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 4:30 pm
Trailing devotees
Unfamiliar with the J J Hospital junction, I was prepared to be a little lost. But as I reached the flyover, I knew directions werent necessary as I spotted a trail of thousands of people wearing black. I trailed the procession or Juloos, until I figured out my next stop.
8.20 pm 
Hitchhikers guide to Muharram
I reached Dongri to find that the world had suddenly taken on a dual tone. Khaki lined the left side of the road and a sea of black was passing by on the right. I, on the other hand seemed to disturb the two-tone effect, conspicuous in a maroon top and blue jeans. Then, just in time a white ambulance swerved around the bend of the road. I hitched a ride to learn more, making sure I sat on the part of the seat that wasnt stained with blood.
 8.45 pm
Ringside view
After a rather bumpy, yet informative ride, I made it to Rehmatabad cemetery at Mazgaon, where the Matam, or flagellating was going on.
The outside of the cemetery resembled a mela in a strange sort of way, complete with families, refreshment stalls and announcements of lost children on loudspeakers. Except, the entire affair was shrouded by gloom. And it wasnt the mellow kind.
As I braved my way into the cemetery gate, I found myself pushing against hordes of burkha-clad women carrying bandaged children, men and young boys in blood-soaked shirts holding their weapons above their heads as a testimony of their repentance.
People volunteered to come up to me and explain the history behind their actions. It gave some perspective and order to the chaos in my head. I took a deep breath and made my way through the narrow lane. Now, I could hear people beating their chests and the chanting got louder.
The smell of fresh blood was omnipresent in the air. Kids not more than eight were whipping themselves and men cutting their bare bodies with blades.
Women were beating themselves with their hands in a separate area. What caught my attention was not the blood, but the fact that one could not hear even a wince of pain. As the chants got louder, the wounds got deeper.
 9.30 pm
Sound of silence
I walked to Kesarbaag, to find a mood more suited to my temperament. People were sitting in silence in the dark for the last mourning before the candle procession. 10 pm
Not quite the end
The final tribute to Imam Hussain, grandson of the prophet, unfolded in a beautiful candlelight procession from Kesarbaag to Khoja Masjid. This marked the end of the 10th day of Muharram. Mourning will continue for the next 40 days. The vigour increases each year
 This is the first time I am attending a matam. I am using a whip with five blades
Zakirali Jafer, 9  I lost my four-year-old daughter for 20 minutes in the crowd. I just found her at the lost-and-found booth
Shamsad Hasan, 30  I drive the ambulance for Jafri United social troop, a voluntary organisation. I dropped at least 25 people to the hospital in the last two days
Iqbal Dawood Memon, 38  This is the first time we will be cutting him with a blade for Matam. We will follow the tradition every year
Mother of six-month-old Nakki Abbas  I think the vigour of people increases with each passing year
Rafiz Mohammed Altaf, 28  I am glad to get such an opportunity to pay respect to Imam Hussain. This is a very important day for me
Shaheen Sayed, 18
Pics: Shadab Khan  What is Muharram? Muharram is the first as well as one of the three most sacred months of the Islamic calendar. The first ten days of the month, especially the 10th, are observed as mourning days for what had happened in Karbala, a city in Central Iraq, in 680 AD. In Karbala, on the bank of the river Euphrates, a large army mobilised by the Umayyad regime besieged a group of people called Ahl-e-Bait numbering less than a 100 and put them under pressure to pay allegiance to Yazeed, the son of Moaviya, the Caliph and submit to his authority. The group belonged to the family of Prophet Mohammed and was led by his grandson Hussain. The Caliph was a man much taken with earthly pleasures, and had deviated from the Islamic way of life.
A severe battle took place in which the small group was killed. Though almost all members of the group Ahl-e-bait were martyred, it was the defeat of the Caliph, as the tragedy became a victory for Islam. The couplet in Urdu written by the prominent freedom fighter Mohammed Ali Johar, explains this: Qatle Hussain asl mein marg-e-Yazeed hai
Islam zinda hota hai har karbala ke baad
(The murder of Hussain is in fact the death of Yazeed every tragedy like Karbala revives Islam) Hussains martyrdom at Karbala represents a conscious confrontation with anti-Islamic forces and a courageous resistance for a sacred cause. This was not the battle for power but for the spiritual righteousness over material falsehood. Muslims hold meetings during the 10 days, where speeches are made on what happened at Karbala. On the 10th day people, even seven-year-old boys, whip themselves with sharp knives particularly on the back to remember the atrocities committed by Yazeed and his army on the prophets grandson and the other family members. | 
