The Mohsen Children’s Cultural Center, affiliated with the Holy Alawi Shrine, is holding its cultural camp programs at the Murtadha rest station, located near marker No. 96 along the walking route, as part of its special cultural and formative programs for the days of al-Hussaini Arbaeen.
Each day, the camp hosts hundreds of children through a variety of educational, formative, and entertaining programs, striving to instill Islamic values in a joyful and interactive setting.
Hussain al-Kaabi, head of the camp, told the Holy Alawi Shrine News Center:
“This program is being held by order of the Deputy Custodian of the Holy Alawi Shrine and has met with a wide response from children—more than 250 children took part in its programs on the first day, and more than 350 on the second.”
A Comprehensive and Varied Program
He explained that the daily programs open with the “Alawi Youth” unit, affiliated with the Mohsen Cultural Center, and include recitation of verses from the Holy Quran as well as the performance of al-Hussaini anthems and elegies. After training and rehearsal, the children perform these programs in keeping with the spiritual atmosphere of the days of Arbaeen.
Learning Through Fun
He added:
“One of the most popular parts of the camp is the ‘Coco’ program, which uses puppet shows to convey formative and cultural messages to children in an interactive, indirect way. This year, cultural competitions centered on the al-Hussaini movement are also being held using an interactive display, creating an engaging and novel competitive atmosphere for children.”
Nurturing Talent and Awarding Prizes
He continued:
“This program gives children the opportunity to take the stage to recite the Holy Qur’an or recite al-Hussaini poems and elegies. Each day, short moral, religious, and formative stories, no longer than 15 minutes, are also narrated to the children, contributing to the shaping of their character and the reinforcement of positive behavior.”
He noted that the daily programs conclude with the presentation of encouragement prizes, and that more than a thousand gifts have been distributed among the children so far—an effort aimed at encouraging their participation in cultural and religious activities.
Through these varied programs, the Mohsen Children’s Cultural Center has strengthened its presence along the Arbaeen walking route, striving—through a blend of education, creativity, and interaction—to raise a generation familiar with the culture and values of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them), and to reinforce children’s religious and cultural identity at one of the largest gatherings in the Islamic world.
