Shia iconography fascinates me because the parallels with Christian iconography of martyrs is uncanny. Here, on the left, we see Hussein (the youngest grandson of the Prophet Muhammad) pieced by arrows; on the right, is Hussein again, mourning the death of his son, Ali al-Akbar ibn Hussein, in the Battle of Karbala, which would also claim Hussein’s life.
To me, the parallels with iconography of the martyrdom of St. Sebastian, a Roman soldier who practiced Christianity in secret during the reign of Emperor Diocletian.
The bridge that links these two (in my intuition) is where Shia Islam took root: Iraq, Iran, Yemen, the Levant, and (historically) Egypt. In all these lands old, established religions (Christianity, Manichaeanism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism) were practiced before the expansions of the Arabs in the late 7th century CE.
Once Islam arrived in a particular land, not everyone converted right away. Old habits and practices persisted (see the pre-Islamic spring festivals of Nouruz in Iran and Sham el Nasim in Egypt), too, despite the austerities of Islamic theology.
So, it seems to me that, too, that old Christian conceptions of Christ’s holy family and the Zoroastrian hope in its unique savior (the Saoshyant) persisted. Converts in previously Christian or Zoroastrian lands transferred (unconsciously) their previous beliefs into their new faith. Whereas Christians in Mesopotamia once adored the holy family of Joseph, Mary, and Jesus, conversion and the movement of time have introduced Ali, Fatima, and Hussein into that locus of devotion. Whereas Persian Zoroastrians awaited with great patience the advent of the Saoshyant to restore peace, justice, and the bonds of humanity, the Shia now yearn for the return of the Imam al-Mahdi from his occultation.
I don’t want you to emerge from this reading and think any less of the Shia (that they aren’t “true” Muslims etc) because of this. I write this to try to understand deep history; that is, the unconscious forces that shape our beliefs and daily practices. I find it a humbling exercise, to journey through the sea of human experience, and find the threads - their knots, frays, and ties - that shape our modern world and hint at the patterns to come.
