Karbala & Shi'ism

Today I finished watching a documentary available on Netflix titled "Pilgrimage to Karbala".  It follows the journey of a 'pilgrimage bus' from Tehran to Karbala, Iraq--where Imam Hussein's shrine is located. The film does a terrific job explaining the concept of martyrdom in Shia Islam and connects this concept to the Islamic Revolution of 1979, the Iran-Iraq war of the 80s, and Iran's continued resistance to foreign domination. The pilgrims were a diverse group of men and women of various ages and professions who find themselves making this precarious trip to Iraq in the summer of 2006.  For anyone interested in understanding what conservative Shi'ism looks like today and how it influences political ideology--this is a good place start.  :)