Hazrat Hussain was the second son of Fatimah, the prophet Muhammad's daughter. He was brutally murdered with his whole family and followers by the wicked, Yazid, a Muslim ruler at Karbala in Mecca. This dispute was result of a disagreement among Muslims on the question of succession after the demise of Hazrat Ali, the fourth caliph.

In Rajasthan as in other parts of the country, devout Muslims, particularly those belonging to the Shia sect celebrate Muharram with a lot of devotion. Muharram is celebrated as a mark of respect for Hazrat Imam Hussain, the grandson of Prophet Mohammad. They commemorate his martyrdom.

Muharram is one of these four sanctified months, with which the Muslims begin their lunar Hijrah Calendar. Muharram is so called because it is a sacred month and to confirm its sanctity one can read the Allaah's words "so wrong not yourselves therein…" mean do not wrong yourselves in these sacred months, because sin in these months is worse than in other months.

Though it is an occasion for mourning, a colorful memorial procession is led through the streets of Delhi, Agra, Lucknow and Hyderabad, to name a few. Decorated and brightly colored tazias of bamboo and paper are carried as replicas of the martyr’s tomb. The procession proceeds to the frenzied beating of drums and heart-renting cries of ‘Hussain, Hussain !’ A peculiar practice here is that young men armed with leather whips often lash themselves repeatedly.