In a Najaf cellar, a secret century-old Ashura mourning ritual endures

NAJAF — In the narrow lanes of Najaf’s historic Mishraq quarter, an underground chamber known as a sardab—a traditional Iraqi cellar—hosts one of the city’s oldest and most discreet Ashura mourning rituals. For more than a century, the Al-Wudeis family has kept the practice alive, holding nightly recitations during the first ten days of Muharram, the Islamic month that marks the martyrdom of Imam Hussein.

“This council resembles those once held by the Imams of Ahl al-Bayt in the early centuries of Islam,” said one attendee.

The ceremony, held in a modest room beneath the home of Haj Saleh Muna, was revived after years of disuse by Sheikh Safaa Al-Wudeis, who restored the sardab despite what participants described as significant difficulty. During the rule of Saddam Hussein, when Shi’a religious rituals were often banned or surveilled, gatherings like this were forced underground—literally.

“We’re in the sardab of Haj Saleh Muna’s home. It had been abandoned for years until Sheikh Safaa Al-Wudeis restored it, despite the great effort and hardship,” said Aqeel Mirza, a resident of Najaf’s Buraq district. “Even then, we never stopped. Some councils were held in secret, fearing arrest or worse.”

Historically, saradeeb (plural of sardab) served as naturally cooled spaces for rest and prayer in Iraq’s southern climate. Over time, especially during political repression, they became sanctuaries of resistance and quiet devotion.

“We hold this gathering today in the historical house of the Al-Wudeis family,” said Sheikh Mohammed Al-Miammar, who leads the mourning. “It follows the old Najafi tradition, conducted in saradeeb under homes.”

According to Sheikh Al-Miammar, the practice dates back roughly 114 years, passed down through generations of Najafi families closely tied to Shi’a scholars. The gathering centers on n‘a’i — a solemn form of mourning recitation focused exclusively on grief, without lectures or extended sermons.

“This method of mourning is how the scholars practiced it in the past, and it’s still used today,” he said.

Najaf, one of Shi’a Islam’s holiest cities and home to the shrine of Imam Ali, is renowned for its seminaries and religious scholarship. The first ten nights of Muharram are marked across the city by commemorative rituals honoring Imam Hussein, who was killed in the Battle of Karbala in 680 AD.