Document Type : Scientific Research Manuscript
Author
Assistant Professor of Sociology, Amin Police University, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
The largest religious community of Muslims is formed every year on the occasion of the 40th Day of Ashura by walking to Karbala and during the Arbaeen procession. This pilgrimage walk, while being a wonderful manifestation of religious experience, is a diverse field of Charity services to pilgrims, as well as a clear example of "religious charity". Religious experience is usually formed during religious practices and rituals, including during pilgrimage. But this study begins specifically with the important question of whether the experience of participation and involvement in religious charity can have the characteristics of a religious experience? To answer this question, the qualitative research method has been used using interview and participatory observation techniques by recording data such as photos, videos and field notes. Iranian pilgrims as well as processions, procession holders and members of Iranian and Iraqi processions were the observation unit and the population studied in this study. The findings showed that the experience of participating in religious charitable services, as well as the use of these services in the Arbaeen walk, can be a ground for the emergence and characteristics of religious experience. By extending the results to other situations of religious practice in which religious Charity deeds are possible, it has been argued that the possibility of defining religious charity as one of the contexts of religious experience in the Arbaeen walk can be a positive answer to the possibility of this kind of definition of Religious experience should be in all situations of religious experience - in addition to pilgrimage and Arbaeen.
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