MANAMA, Bahrain: Hundreds of thousands of Bahrainis will be taking part in a string of religious activities during the first month of Muharram which begins on Tuesday.

Processions will be in Manama suq along with all other towns and villages to mark the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussain (a.s.), grandson of Prophet Mohammed (s.w.).

The Islamic Enlightenment Society is also holding a variety of events during the occasion under the theme Ashoora for Unity. They include processions, lectures and exhibitions as well as charity and clean-up campaigns.

A center has been set up at the open area near Bin Zabar Ma'tam in Manama for processions and other activities starting from Tuesday to Thursday.

A temporary center, supervised by the Islamic Awareness Center, to help non-Arabic speakers experience and understand the Ashoora religious occasion will also open on Tuesday. Center president Ali Dashti said it would provide daily lectures in English at 9pm.

Banners in several languages including Turkish, English, French, Tagalog and Russian, have been set-up all around Bahrain to invite people to attend the center’s activities.
An Arabic operetta will be held on Thursday at 9pm on Imam Hussain (a.s.) at the center. Screens would be set-up with subtitles for the dialogue in English, said Dashti.
Meanwhile, the society is staging a play entitled His Only Solution Was To Cry at Al Ahli Club, in Mahooz, on March 9. The play is written by Jaffar Abdulhassan and directed by top Bahraini director Mohammed Al Saffar.

An exhibition will open at the Samaheej Club on March 18, featuring paintings, sculptures and photographs, organized in co-ordination with Al Hussaini Drawing Society for Islamic Arts. The society also invited artists of all nationalities to pool their talent to come up with a painting "for humanity". The three-meter by four-meter painting, under the theme Imam Hussain (a.s.) and Human Rights, will be presented to the UN House, in Hoora, early next month during Ashoora. Five other regular size paintings will also be presented to the UN and copies will be later distributed to the UN's offices at other regions.

Society president Abdulnabi Al Hamer said Imam Hussain (a.s.) fought for human rights, calling for equality between people regardless of their faith, religion, race, color or background.

The society is also organizing a lecture on Imam Hussain (a.s.) and Human Rights on the fifth night of Muharram.