Changes of Mourning Rituals of Muharram among Afghans Residing in Mashhad over time

Based on the main approaches to the study of rituals, one of the important functions of rituals is production and reproduction of a community and culture for the members. Taking into account issues including the minority status of the Afghan immigrants’ community residing in Mashhad, their marginalization, inattention of the host community to them, necessity of creating a social network to regain identity, and the effect of holding mourning rituals on the production and sustainability of identity, the importance of investigating the formation and changes of the mourning rituals of Afghan immigrants as a tool for the stability of this group of people in the host community is strengthened. Therefore, this study is aimed at conducting a qualitative study on the changes of Muharram mourning rituals of Afghans residing in Mashhad and their relationship with the culture of the new community. In this study, an in-depth interview was conducted with 12 immigrants who were selected using purposeful sampling method. Besides, to prepare photos, videos, and reports, the researcher has had a regular presence in Muharram mourning ceremonies of Afghan immigrants. The findings of the study revealed that the main changes are related to: the number participants of the ceremonies, kind of participants (presence of Sunnis), amount and type of vows, clothing styles of mourners, number of ceremonies, style of delegation, style of speech and eulogy, model of mourning, spirituality governing the meetings, venue of the mourning meetings, attitude towards audience, and finally political attitude of the mourners. It seems that factors such as modernization of living space, residential dispersion, change in economic status, and cultural dominance of the host society are the main causes of these changes