Jamnāmā is a story of wars and battles. It is a popular text in the region of Cāchār in Āssām and is ritually read on the Muharram night.
'Jam' is a Persian word meaning 'battle' or 'war'. The text is thus a tale of battles. It is a narrative poem and recounts the battle of Kārbālā. The battle was fought between the grandsons of the Prophet Muhammad - Hāsān and Hussain on the one side and Éjid on the other. The text also contains songs, called 'Jāri' songs. On the night of Muharram, the community gets together to recite passages from the text and to sing the 'Jāri' songs.
The significance of the text lies in its literary innovations and creativy in weaving a story of a distant land into one which rouses the spontaneous emotions of the listeners.
The original volume is printed and undated. It measures 132mm x 219mm. It is bound by cardboard and wrapped in black cloth. The cover page is missing and the main text is written on pages 11-464. These pages are all that has been copied, along with images of the front and back covers.
