They walk under challenging conditions and sometime under...

They walk under challenging conditions and sometime under incredible circumstances, e.g., with tired legs and injured feet, disabilities, carrying children and pushing wheel chairs.\u00a0 Occasionally, we notice these but other times we miss out on such moving accounts while lost in the remembrance of our \u2018Mazloom\u2019 Imam -asws .

\n We also see an unbroken chain of, free resting and food services, provided by the \u2018Moukkab\u2019 [10] – make-shift, permanently built, big and small ones, run by hundreds of volunteer groups and thousands of individuals.

It\u2019s hard to count the number of volunteers serving Momineen\/Mominat spanning from little children to the elderly, they are eager to offer comfort to the tired bodies, by inviting you to eat-in, rest and sleep, massage and treat injured feet.\u00a0 Innocent children frequently offer water bottles, sweets and even tissue papers to register their love and care for the visitors of the great Imam -asws .\u00a0 Small Moukkab are generally installed by the local Iraqis who are not very well off but their hospitality is amazingly rich.\u00a0 Once in the Mashi , one cannot thank the volunteers enough, both inside the Moukkab and standing at the roadsides, for their tireless devotion and relentless efforts, inviting the Zair [11] for food, drinks, foot-treatment, offering sleeping berths and use of shower\/WC facilities.

\n On a personal note, I have tried to reflect on my own experiences during \u2018Mashi\u2019 in the following statement, which others may share.

Still, it\u2019s a reminder of how seriously I fell short of my responsibilities to fellow walkers.\u00a0 Among many slips, some are: I was inexcusably inflexible, failed to slow down to keep up with those who had difficulty in walking and did not try hard enough to persuade those who were in higher spirit and valour to reach their beloved Imam -asws and Mola Abbas -asws \u2018s Harram, to slightly hold back for slow-moving members of the group.

Sometimes, I was also inconsiderate when it came to taking a short break for a nap or comfort, and was hugely propelled by the desire of reaching my destiny with those who had the same passion.