Arbaeen march should be listed in the Guinness Book of World Records in several categories:

the biggest annual gathering, the longest continuous dining table, the largest number of people fed for free, the largest group of volunteers serving a single event, all under the imminent threat of suicide bombings. But, despite all the efforts made by the Shia communities, the Arbaeen rituals has not yet been recorded in Guinness records.

Here is thirteen facts about Arbaeen which show why the great march of Arbaeen should be recorded in Guinness:

First, Arbaeen march has thousands years old. Al-Biruni, one of the greatest scientists in the world, who lived about 1000 years ago, wrote in his book Al-Athar Al-Baqiyah (The Remaining Signs of Past Centuries): On the 20th of the Month of Safar, the holy head of Imam Hussain’s (A.S) returned to his body and was buried in the same place. Al-Biruni explicitly indicated the pilgrimage of Arbaeen, which shows this ritual has thousands years old.
Second, Arbaeen is unique because it takes place against the backdrop of chaotic and dangerous geopolitical scenes. Daesh sees the Shia as their enemy, so nothing infuriates the terror group more than the sight of Shia pilgrims gathering for their greatest show of faith, according to Tehran Times.

Third, The Shia Muslim ritual of Arbaeen is the world’s largest religious gathering and it dwarfs every other rally on the planet, as American news internet site, the Huffington Post mentions. This annual event attracts over five times more people than the annual Islamic Hajj pilgrimage.

More than 14.5 million pilgrims participated in Arbaeen ceremony in Karbala
Forth, distribution of seven hundred million meals per year by villagers. During the heartbreaking Haithi earthquake, the US military has registered its name in the Guinness Book of World, for distributing 6 million meals to the earthquake victims. But the food distributed by the Iraqi people to Arbaeen pilgrims is seven hundred million meals per year, which has been done by hospitable villagers, not superpowers!
Fifth, there’s another peculiar feature of Arbaeen. While it is a distinctively Shia spiritual exercise, Sunnis, even Christians, Yazidis, Zoroastrians, and Sabians partake in both the pilgrimage as well as serving of devotees. This is remarkable given the exclusive nature of religious rituals, and it could only mean one thing: people regardless of color or creed see Hussein as a universal, borderless, and meta-religious symbol of freedom and compassion, Rahyafteha mentioned.

Sixth, world’s longest ‘table cloth’ provided for Arbaeen pilgrims. More than 1000 food donation bases on the way to Karbala collaborated in providing the world’s longest table cloth for the millions of Arbaeen pilgrims with the length of 80 kilometers, en.abna24 told.
Seventh, some pilgrims walk coming from as far as Basra, 500 km away. The 500 km distance between the southern port city of Basra and Karbala is a long journey by car, but it’s unimaginably arduous on foot. It takes pilgrims a full two weeks to complete the walk. Pilgrims walk in long columns.

Eight, the largest number of people fed for free. Throughout the Najaf-Karbala route, food and services like medical support, housing, and prayer areas, resting spots, refreshments and even massaging services are provided free for those who participate in the walk. All these services are provided individually by Iraqi citizens and some foreign communities as well.
Ninth, given the massive participation of people, length of the route, annual frequency, popularity and its peacefulness, the event is unprecedented in the Shia and Islamic history, and even in human history.

Tenth, the most evident issue in the march is the presence of Shia Muslims as well as those who love Ahl al-Bayt (AS) from various countries. There may be no other historical event at the international level or religious teaching that can bring together so many Shia Muslims and Ahl al-Bayt (A.S) devotees from all over the world as Arbaeen march does.

Eleventh, the presence of people from various social classes. An interesting issue about the participants in the march is their diverse social and economic status. People from all social strata gather together around the theme of love for Imam Hussain’s (A.S). There are both highly-educated and minimally educated individuals, wealthy and poor, those living in cities and those living in rural areas, men, women, children, elderly, and so on , Csr told.
Twelfth, one of the main features of the march is the various languages and cultures of those attending in this great event, and materialization of ethnic, racial, linguistic, geographical, sectarian, religious unity despite pluralities and differences.

Thirteenth, sense of cooperation, self-Sacrifice, forgiveness, and kindness to fellow human beings. All of those attending the march, showcase a sense of cooperation, self-sacrifice, forgiveness and kindness to fellow human beings at the highest level, which result in amazing scenes of assistance, support, compassion and self-sacrifice.

In this way, the Arbaeen march is the story having all the critical elements of an eye-catching event.

Source: en.shafaqna.com