Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts covered in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book focuses on the ritual performance Ta'ziyeh, which Shia Muslims undertake annually to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussein in the battle of Karbala, as a means towards understanding the issues surrounding the public sphere, which is a key feature and a necessary condition for democracy. It focuses on Ta'ziyeh as a means of aiding and targeting specific behaviours during three liminal periods: the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the Iraq–Iran War and the 2009 Green Movement. The book reviews Shia Sufism in Iran, particularly from the end of World War II onwards. It also demonstrates how the Ta'ziyeh symbols were employed by the Islamic regime of Iran to mobilise considerable crowds to fight in the war against Saddam Hussein's army, which was backed by wealthy Arab nations, such as Saudi Arabia, and other powerful states, such as the US and Russia.