Both the 4th and 5th Imams greatly encouraged Aza’ al-Husayn.

Both the 4th and 5th Imams greatly encouraged Aza’ al-Husayn. In their times Aza’ al-Husayn had to be performed in utmost secrecy as the regime was opposed to any remembrance of Karbala’. The poets who composed elegies and the devout Shiahs who attended the gatherings at which these elegies were recited did so at the risk of their lives. Nonetheless, the poets continued to pour out their emotions in their poetry.

Some of these poetry are extant today and one can see the intensity of faith and sadness enshrined in the words of the poets. Gradually,