Infants, elderly shed Ashura blood in Lebanon town

NABATIYEH, Lebanon, Jan 30 (Reuters) The young and old wait for Hatem Mohieldin to tap their heads with his razor, bringing forth the blood through which Shi'ite Muslims in this southern Lebanon town mark Ashura.

Two or three strikes of his blade is enough to start the bleeding which commemorates the martyrdom of Prophet Mohammad's grandson, Imam Hussein. Shi'ites mark Hussein's death in battle in 680 during the annual Ashura commemorations.

''I've been doing this for 45 years,'' said Mohieldin, his pocket stuffed with razor blades. ''It's a religious obligation and an old tradition,'' the 67-year-old said.

He gently taps the head of a five-month-old baby, yielding a few drops of blood. ''It's so they grow up loving Hussein,'' said the child's father, Hossam Mohieldin, smiling as he told of how another of his sons marked his first Ashura aged just 40 days.

''Hussein is the route to God,'' he said.

Young men, their faces covered in blood, chanted ''Haider, Haider, Haider'' as they marched through the streets, seeking to bleed more by hitting their heads with hands, swords or knives.

Haider is another name for Imam Ali, the father of Hussein and cousin of the Prophet. Shi'ites, or the partisans of Ali, believe leadership of the Muslims should have passed to Ali and his line after the Prophet's death.

Sunnis hold Ali and his line in high regard, but do not believe they had automatic right to the Muslim leadership.

''The followers of Ali must be brave,'' said an onlooker, admiring the courage of a one-year-old boy as he held back tears after having his head cut.

Nabatiyeh, which nestles in the hills of Lebanon's south, is one of the few places in the country where Shi'ites draw blood during Ashura.

Lebanon's most senior Shi'ite cleric, Ayatollah Sayyed Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah, has banned the practice, which is a form of self-punishment because of the failure of Muslims to help Hussein in battle against Islamic ruler Yazid.

Ali Atwy, a 33-year-old nurse, said bleeding added to the spirituality of Ashura. ''You go deep inside yourself,'' he said, pointing at the scars on his head from last year's commemoration.

''Then you might hit your head harder and start weeping.'' A sheikh read the story of Hussein's last days over loudspeakers, occasionally bursting into tears as he recounted the events leading to his death -- a defining moment in the history of Shi'ite Islam.

Watching as hundreds gathered, 80-year-old Ahmed Abdullah noted on how much turnout has grown over the years, then added: ''I used to come with my grandfather. Now I am here with my grandsons.'' REUTERS SP BD2225