shura is a festival celebrated on the 10th day of the Islamic month of Muharram. It's celebrated in various ways throughout the Muslim world, respective of the local cultures. For Shias, Ashura is a commemoration of the massacre of Imam Hussain, while Sunnis on the other hand tend to fast during the event, corresponding with the day God saved Moses from the Pharaoh by spliting the sea.
In Morocco, the celebration of this festival has maintained its spirituality while being complemented by other cultural practices where legends and stories intertwine. Today, it's nicknamed the Children's Day and is still celebrated all over the kingdom. On the day of Ashura, water balloons are thrown at passers-by and each group or partakers lights a big fire where various songs and dances are performed. This day's traditional dish is couscous with dried meat (Gueddid). However, at the turn of the 21st century, its most iconic mascot, Baba Aishur is slowly being lost to forgetfulness.
Baba Aishur
Baba Aishur is one of the more popular mythical characters in Morocco, his name often coming up on the night of Ashura.
Although the stories differ about him, Baba Aishur is said to be a frightening and merciless demon. He's described as having ox hooves and is said to wear a large burnous made of wool and of course, that he eats human flesh. Baba Aishur was also described as being quite the womanizer, which is why on the night of Ashura, girls put on their best outfits, style their hair and chant in unison "My Aishur, my Aishur, for you I let go of my hair, my Aishur, my Aishur…'
His life has conflicting counts on its conclusion, some saying he died during his prayer prostration while others believe he died by drowning, washed away by a river.
Baba Aishur disappears
Nowadays, this tradition is no longer celebrated in the Moroccan kingdom as a whole. Indeed, only a few very conservative villages honor it by celebrating it every year. The elders of big cities are increasingly the only ones to keep the memory of Baba Aishur, who is nevertheless an important character in our mythological heritage, thus deserving his place in our memories.