Quick Answer
- Meaning: Arbaeen is the fortieth day after Ashura, the completion of the mourning for Karbala
- Date: 20 Safar in the Hijri calendar, so it moves about eleven days earlier each year
- Where: centred on the shrine of Imam Hussain (AS) in Karbala, Iraq
- The walk: most pilgrims travel from Najaf, about eighty kilometres, on foot over three days
- Scale: Iraqi officials have reported more than twenty million visitors in recent years
- Open to all: volunteers of every background staff the roadside stations, and guests are welcome
Forty days after the tenth of Muharram, millions of people begin walking towards a city in southern Iraq. Some travel for a day, some for three, some for weeks. They are going to the shrine of a man killed in 61 AH, and they arrive on the day the mourning is completed.
This is Arbaeen, the largest annual gathering on earth by most counts, and one of the least understood outside the communities that keep it. This guide explains the word, the date, the walk, the volunteers who make it possible, and what a first-time visitor should know.
What Does Arbaeen Mean?
Arbaeen is the Arabic word for forty. In the Islamic calendar it names the twentieth day of Safar, which falls forty days after Ashura, the tenth of Muharram.
If Ashura is the day of the killing, Arbaeen is the day the mourning is formally completed. The link between the two is fixed: the same events at Karbala are remembered, first at their worst moment, then at the end of the period that tradition sets aside for grieving.
When Is Arbaeen? The Date Each Year
Because the Hijri year is about eleven days shorter than the solar year, Arbaeen moves earlier each year in the Gregorian calendar, just as Ashura does. The dates below are from the Umm al-Qura calendar used in Saudi Arabia; countries that begin the month by local moon sighting usually observe a day later.
| Islamic year | Arbaeen in the Gulf | Arbaeen in India and South Asia |
|---|---|---|
| 1449 AH | Saturday, 24 July 2027 | Sunday, 25 July 2027 |
| 1450 AH | Thursday, 13 July 2028 | Friday, 14 July 2028 |
| 1451 AH | Monday, 2 July 2029 | Tuesday, 3 July 2029 |
| 1452 AH | Friday, 21 June 2030 | Saturday, 22 June 2030 |
For reference, Arbaeen fell on 4 and 5 August in 2026, one day apart for the same reason. After the last year shown, subtract about eleven days per year, or check the Hijri calendar printed by your local mosque.
Why Forty Days?
Forty is not a random number in this tradition. It is the number of nights the Quran gives Musa (AS) on the mountain (2:51), and it returns throughout Islamic practice as the length of a completed act of devotion or grief.
In the Karbala story, the forty days are the time it took for the family, released from captivity, to come back to the plain. Whether that return is read as history or as tradition, the number has shaped the calendar ever since: mourning runs for forty days, and the fortieth day is the day it closes.
Who Made the First Pilgrimage?
Tradition holds that the first pilgrim to the grave was Jabir ibn Abdullah al-Ansari, a companion of the Prophet (PBUH), who came to Karbala forty days after the battle. He is described as old and nearly blind, and the meeting between him and the returning family is one of the most recounted scenes in the devotional literature.
Historians do not treat the details of that meeting as settled. What is not in dispute is that the grave became a place of visitation very early, and that the fortieth day had become the day of that visitation long before the modern pilgrimage took its present size.
What Happens on the Road from Najaf?
Most pilgrims arrive first at Najaf, where Imam Ali (AS) is buried, and then walk to Karbala. The distance is about eighty kilometres, and the walk takes roughly three days at an ordinary pace.
The road is not empty countryside. It becomes a continuous settlement for the length of the pilgrimage: tents, kitchens, tea stands, washing points, medical posts and prayer areas, set up by families and by organisations and given away free. Pilgrims do not need to carry food, water or money for the journey.
People walk in groups, often with a flag or a banner so that they do not lose each other. The old and the young walk; so do people who have come from other countries and do not speak Arabic. The mood is closer to a long procession than to a hike.
What Is a Mawkib?
A mawkib is a service station set up along the route. The word comes from the Arabic for a standing place, and in practice a mawkib can be anything from a single tent offering tea to a compound with kitchens, beds and a clinic.
They are run by volunteers, usually families who have done it for years, and everything is free. This is the part of Arbaeen that visitors remember longest: not the crowds, but being handed a cup of tea by someone who will not accept payment and will not give a name.
How Did Arbaeen Become So Large?
The pilgrimage is old. The crowds are not. Under Saddam Hussein, whose government ruled Iraq from 1979 to 2003, public Shia mourning was tightly restricted and the Arbaeen march was effectively banned.
After the regime fell in 2003, the walk resumed openly and grew quickly. The numbers below are the ones Iraqi officials and the shrine authorities have reported; they are counts of visitors rather than independent audits, and they vary by source.
| Year | Reported attendance |
|---|---|
| 2003 | About 2 million |
| 2014 | About 20 million |
| 2023 | About 22 million |
| 2025 | About 21 million |
That growth is why Arbaeen is now described as the largest annual public gathering in the world, ahead of the hajj, which is capped by quota, and far ahead of any sporting event. The comparison is worth making carefully: the total is spread over several days and eighty kilometres of road, not in one place.
What Is Ziyarat Arbaeen?
Ziyarat Arbaeen is the recitation made at the shrine on this day. It is a short text of visitation, read facing the grave, and it is also read at home or in a gathering by people who cannot travel.
Like the rest of the devotional material around Karbala, it is transmitted through tradition rather than through the historical chronicles. Its wording is not a report of the battle; it is a statement of loyalty made by the visitor, which is why it is recited rather than explained.
How Is Arbaeen Marked Outside Iraq?
Away from Karbala, the day is kept with the same vocabulary as the rest of Muharram. A majlis is held, the events are recited, and food is distributed. In South Asia, Arbaeen is often called Chehlum, and it falls inside the longer season of azadari that runs into Safar.
Some cities hold a small procession on the day; others mark it quietly at home. The scale differs enormously, but the content does not: the same story, the same fortieth day, the same closing of the mourning period.
How Should a First-Time Visitor Prepare?
If you are going to Iraq, prepare for walking and for weather. Comfortable shoes, a light bag, a refillable bottle and sun protection cover most of it; the route supplies the rest. Check your visa and insurance well before Muharram, because flights and hotels in Najaf and Karbala fill early.
If you are attending something local, the rules are simpler. Dress modestly, arrive before the recitation starts, keep your phone away, and accept whatever is offered. Do not photograph faces, and do not treat the gathering as an event to be filmed.
One practical caution for anyone following the news: attendance figures are announced by officials and vary widely between sources, so treat a single number as an estimate rather than a count.
Key Takeaways
- Arbaeen falls on 20 Safar, forty days after Ashura, and closes the main mourning period.
- The main walk is from Najaf to Karbala, about eighty kilometres over roughly three days.
- The route runs on mawakib, free service stations staffed by volunteers.
- Public observance was banned under Saddam Hussein and resumed in 2003, growing from about two million to more than twenty million.
- Ziyarat Arbaeen is the visitation recited at the shrine, and Chehlum is the South Asian name for the day.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Arbaeen in simple words?
Arbaeen is the fortieth day after Ashura, when the mourning for Karbala is completed. It is marked by a pilgrimage to the shrine of Imam Hussain (AS) in Karbala, Iraq, where millions arrive, most of them on foot.
When is Arbaeen?
Arbaeen is the twentieth of Safar, so its Gregorian date moves about eleven days earlier each year. It falls on 24 or 25 July in 2027, 13 or 14 July in 2028, and 2 or 3 July in 2029, depending on local moon sighting.
How long does the walk from Najaf take?
The route is about eighty kilometres and usually takes three days at an ordinary pace. Pilgrims stop at mawakib along the way for food, rest and medical help, all of which is free.
How many people attend Arbaeen?
Iraqi officials and shrine authorities have reported between twenty-one and twenty-two million visitors in recent years, up from about two million in 2003.
Is Arbaeen the same as Chehlum?
Yes. Chehlum is the South Asian name for the same day, the fortieth after Ashura, and the observances in India and Pakistan follow the same pattern of majlis, recitation and food.
Can non-Muslims take part in Arbaeen?
Yes, as guests. Visitors of other faiths walk the route and are served at mawakib like anyone else. Modest dress, a respectful manner and a willingness to accept hospitality are all that is expected.
Sources
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, entry on Arbaeen, for the observance, the Najaf to Karbala route and post-2003 attendance, at Britannica.com.
- Al Jazeera, report on the 2023 pilgrimage and the shrine authority's count of 22.19 million visitors, at AlJazeera.com.
- The Quran, Surah Ali Imran, verse 169, on those killed in the way of God being alive, at Quran.com.
- The Quran, Surah Al-Baqarah, verse 51, on the forty nights appointed for Musa (AS), at Quran.com.
- Dates for 20 Safar 1449 to 1452 AH from the Umm al-Qura calendar, compared with published Islamic calendars for 2027 to 2030.
- Accounts of Jabir ibn Abdullah al-Ansari at Karbala and the text of Ziyarat Arbaeen are drawn from devotional tradition, not from the early chronicles.
Disclaimer: This article explains Arbaeen as it is observed by the communities that keep it, and separates what is recorded in history from what comes through tradition. Attendance figures are official estimates and vary between sources. If you find an error, write to us through the contact page and we will correct it.
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