Ben Aissa Festival Morocco

Unknown to many, Morocco is a country where the religious boundaries have blurred to give rise to an eclectic culture: a culture where Islamic practices have effortlessly flown into the Sufi beliefs. The worship of saints (or “moussem”) is one manifestation of this fusion and the Ben Aissa Festival, Morocco is one of the most important of such Morocco festivals & events.

About The Ben Aissa Festival, Morocco

Morocco is predominantly an Islamic country and quite naturally, the Moroccan calendar has an influx of Islamic festivals. But you will be also presently surprised to find a number of non-Islamic festivals in Morocco featuring in this calendar. A moussem is one such festival.

The Ben Aissa Festival is most famous in the Meknes region of Morocco, a place also famous for the shrine of Ben Aissa. Ben Aissa was the representative of the Aissoua cult who underwent physically painful rites to placate their god.

The moussem of Ben Aissa or the Ben Aissa Festival, Morocco is held annually just a day before the birthday of Prophet Mohammed. The festivities of the Morocco Ben Aissa Festival incorporate a lot of Sufi practices like devotional dances, trance sessions and poetry reading.

Mystic, entrancing and enigmatic, the Ben Aissa Festival, Morocco gives you an insight into the lesser-known aspects of Sufism.