Time Out of Memory: Ta'ziyeh, the Total Drama by Peter J. Chelkowski The Ta'ziyeh of the Martyrdom of Hussein translated and with an introduction by Rebecca Ansary Pettys The Origins of the Sunnite-Shiite Divide and the Emergence of the Ta'ziyeh Tradition by Kamran Scot Aghaie Muharram Ceremonies observed in Tehran by Ilya Nicolaevich Berezin (1843) by Jean and Jacqueline Calmard Acting Styles and Actor Training in Ta'ziyeh by William O. Beeman and Mohammad B. Ghaffari Identification and Analysis of the Scenic Space in Traditional Iranian Theater by Mohammad Reza Khaki; translated by Iraj Anvar Peripheral Ta'ziyeh: The Transformation of Ta'ziyeh from Muharram Mourning Ritual to Secular and Comical Theatre by Iraj Anvar A View from the Inside: The Anatomy of the Persian Ta'ziyeh Plays by Sadegh Homayouni Garden of the Brave in War: Recollections of Iran by Terence O'Donnell Karbala Drag Kings and Queens by Negar Mottahedeh Compelling Reasons to Sing: The Music of Ta'ziyeh by Stephen Blum Ta'ziyeh as Theatre of Protest by Hamid Dabashi Shi'ite Narratives of Karbala and Christian Rites of Penance: Michel Foucault and the Culture of the Iranian Revolution, 1978-79 by Janet Afary Moses and the Wandering Dervish: Ta'ziyeh at Trinity College by Milla Cozart Riggio Mohammad B. Ghaffari, Ta'ziyeh Director: an interview with Peter J. Chelkowski Presenting Ta'ziyeh at Lincoln Center by Nigel Redden Ta'ziyeh in France: The Ritual of Renewal at the Festival d'Automne by Alain Crombecque Ta'ziyeh in Parma by Anna Vanzan Remembering Ta'ziyeh in Iraq by Elizabeth Fernea Ritual, Blood, and Shiite Identity: Ashura in Nabatiyya, Lebanon by Augustus Richard Norton Shiite Theater in South Lebanon: Some Notes on The Karbala Drama and the Sabaya by Sabrina Mervin Flagellation and Fundamentalism: (Trans)forming Meaning, Identity, and Gender though Pakistani Women's Rituals of Mourning By Mary Elaine Hegland The Heart of Lament: Pakistani-American Muslim Women's Azadari Rituals by Bridget Blomfield From the Sun-Scorched Desert of Iran to the Beaches of Trinidad: Ta'ziyeh's Journey from Asia to the Caribbean by Peter J. Chelkowski.

Commemorating the Battle of Karbala, in which the Prophet Mohammad's grandson Hosayn and seventy-two of his family members and supporters were martyred in 680 CE, is the central religious observance of Shi'i Islam. Though much has been written about the rituals that reenact and venerate Karbala, until now no one has studied women's participation in these observances. This collection of original essays by a multidisciplinary team of scholars analyzes the diverse roles that women have played in the Karbala rituals, as well as the varied ways in which gender-coded symbols have been used within religious and political discourses. The contributors to this volume consider women as participants in and observers of the Karbala rituals in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, India, Pakistan, and the United States. They find that women's experiences in the Shi'i rituals vary considerably from one community to another, based on regional customs, personal preferences, religious interpretations, popular culture, and socioeconomic background. The authors also examine the gender symbolism within the rituals, showing how it reinforces distinctions between the genders while it also highlights the centrality of women to the symbolic repertory of Shi'ism. Overall, the authors conclude that while Shi'i rituals and symbols have in some ways been used to restrict women's social roles, in other ways they have served to provide women with a sense of independence and empowerment.

Stephen C. Poulson investigates cycles of social protest in Iran from 1890 to the present era. This work covers the following social movements: the 1890-92 Tobacco Movement; the 1906-09 Constitutional Revolution; two post-World War II movements, the Tudeh (Masses) and the National Front; the 1963 Qom Protest; and the 1978-79 Iranian Revolution. Poulson shows how various Iranian political actors have framed their dissent, drawing on both regional and Western-influenced modes of protest to achieve their ends.

The representation of prophets and saints in Islam is erroneously considered nonexistent by many scholars of Islam, Muslims, and the general public. The issue is often dealt with superficially without attention to its deep roots in piety and religiosity. Visualizing Belief and Piety in Iranian Shiism offers new understanding of Islamic iconography and Muslim perspectives on the use of imageries in ritual contexts and devotional life. Combining iconographic and ethnographic approaches, Ingvild Flaskerud introduces and analyzes imageries (tile-paintings, posters and wall-hangings), ritual contexts and interviews with male and female local viewers to discuss the representation, reception and function of imageries in contemporary Iranian Shia environments. This book presents the argument that images and decorative programmes have stimulating qualities to mentally evoke the saints in the minds of devotees and inspire their recollection, transforming emotions and stimulating cultic behaviours. Visualization and seeing are significant to the dissemination of religious knowledge, the understanding of spiritual and ethical values, the promotion of personal piety, and functions as modes of venerating God and the saints.

In this volume the authors present and discuss different aspects of their field researches and experiences in regard to the women's rituals and devotional practices. One of the main aims of this book is to broaden our understanding of women's devotional life, as well as calling attention to its relation to general social change. Most of the contributions are based on field researches, direct observations and rituals participations. This gives the reader a unique opportunity for better understanding of methodological challenges related to gender issues and field research among Muslim communities. --