Sunday, August 7, 2016

Conversion of non-Muslim places of worship into mosques



 Conversion of non-Muslim places of worship into mosques 

Cathedral–Mosque of Córdoba: Built over a pagan worship place, then converted into church and then, the Umayyad Moors built a mosque half of the site, which was then turned into a Christian cathedral
The conversion of non-Muslim places of worship into mosques occurred primarily during the life of Muhammad and continued during subsequent Islamic conquests and under historical Muslim rule. As a result, numerous Hindu temples, churches, synagogues, the Parthenon and Zoroastrian temples were converted into mosques. Several such mosques in Muslim or ex-Muslim lands have since reverted or become museums, such as the Hagia Sophia in Turkey and numerous mosques in Spain.
Ka'aba
Before the rise of Islam the Ka'aba, and Mecca (previously known as Bakkah), were revered as a sacred sanctuary and was a site of pilgrimage.[1]Some identify it with the Biblical "valley of Baca" from Psalms 84 (Hebrew: בך‎‎).[2] [3] At the time of Muhammad (AD 570–632), his tribe the Quraysh was in charge of the Kaaba, which was at that time a shrine containing hundreds of idols representing Arabian tribal gods and other religious figures. Muhammad earned the enmity of his tribe by claiming the shrine for the new religion of Islam that he preached. He wanted the Kaaba to be dedicated to the worship of the one God alone, and all the idols were evicted. The Black Stone (al-Hajar-ul-Aswad), still present at the Kaaba was a special object of veneration at the site. According to tradition the text of seven especially honored poems were suspended around the Ka'aba.
According to Islam, Muhammad's actions were not strictly a conversion but rather a restoration of the mosque established on that site by Abraham, who is considered to be a prophet in Islam. The Ka'aba thus became known as the Masjid al-Haram, or Sacred Mosque, the holiest site in Islam.[4]
Biblical holy sites
Mosques were regularly established on the places of Jewish or Christian sanctuaries associated with Biblical personalities who were also recognized by Islam. The Caliph Umar initially built a small prayer house, which laid the foundation for the later construction of the Al-Aqsa mosque on the Temple Mount, the most sacred site in Judaism, possibly by the Umayyads. The Dome of the Rock was also built on the Temple Mount which was an abandoned and disused area.[5] Upon the capture of Jerusalem, it is commonly reported that Umar refused to pray in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre[6] for fear that later Muslims would then convert it into a mosque in spite of a treaty guaranteeing its safety.[7]
The mosque of Job in Ash Shaykh Sa'd, Syria, was previously a church of Job.[4] The Herodian shrine of the Cave of the Patriarchs, the second most holy site in Judaism, was converted into a church during the Crusades before being turned into a mosque in 1266 and henceforth banned to Jews and Christians. Part of it was restored as a synagogue after 1967 by Israel.
Hindu, Jain and Buddhist temples
The destruction of Hindu temples in India during the Islamic conquest of India occurred from the beginning of Muslim conquest until the end the Mughal Empire throughout the Indian subcontinent. In his book "Hindu Temples - What Happened to Them", Sita Ram Goel produced a politically contentious list of 2000 mosques that it is claimed were built on Hindu temples.[8] The second volume of the book excerpts from medieval histories and chronicles and from inscriptions concerning the destruction of Hindu, Jain and Buddhist temples.
In Indonesia, where popular conversion from Hinduism to Islam was slower, it is believed that the minaret of the Menara Kudus Mosque, in Java, was originally part of a Hindu temple.[8]
Menara Kudus Mosque
Masjid Menara Kudus in Indonesia, with its original tower.
One of Indonesia's most famous mosques, Menara Kudus has retained much of its former Hindu character. Although the main building has been reconstructed, its iconic minaret and front gates are believed to be relics of a Hindu site.
Ram Janmabhoomi
Ram Janmabhoomi refers to a tract of land in the North Indian city of Ayodhya which is claimed to be the birthplace of Lord Rama. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), after conducting excavations at the site, filed a report which stated that a temple stood at the site before the arrival of the Mughals, who constructed the Babri Masjid at the site.[9] Critics of the report state that the "presence of animal bones throughout as well as of the use of 'surkhi' and lime mortar" that was found by ASI are all characteristic of Muslim presence, which they claim "rule out the possibility of a Hindu temple having been there beneath the mosque".[10] From 1528 to 1992 this was the site of the Babri Mosque.The mosque was constructed in 1527 on the orders of Babur, the first Mughal emperor of India, and was named after him. Before the 1940s, the mosque was also called Masjid-i-Janmasthan, translation: ("mosque of the birthplace").The Babri Mosque was one of the largest mosques in Uttar Pradesh, a state in India with some 31 million Muslims.Numerous petitions by Hindus to the courts resulted in Hindu worshippers of Rama gaining access to the site. The mosque was razed on 6 December 1992 by a mob of some 150,000 nationalist Hindus supported by the nationalist organisationRashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP),[11] [12]after a political rally developed into a riot[13] despite a commitment to the Indian Supreme Court by the rally organisers that the mosque would not be harmed.[14]The Sangh Parivaar, along with VHP and the main Indian opposition party, sought to erect a temple dedicated to Rama at this site. The 1986 edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica stated that "Rama's birthplace is marked by a mosque, erected by the Moghul emperor Babar in 1528 on the site claimed of an earlier temple".[15]Archaeological excavations at the site by the Archaeological Survey of India reported the existence of a 10th-century temple.[9] The report stated that scientific dating indicated human activity at the site as far back to the 17th century BC.[16]
On 30 September 2010, Allahabad High Court ruled that the 2.7 acres disputed land in Ayodhya, on which the Babri Masjid stood before it was demolished on 6 December 1992, will be divided into three parts: the site of the Ramlala idol to Lord Ram, Nirmohi Akhara gets Sita Rasoi and Ram Chabutara, Sunni Wakf Board gets a third.[17]
Somnath temple
Somnath temple (present day; as reclaimed by Hindus), Somnath, India
A century later the third temple was constructed in red sandstone by the Pratihara king, Nagabhata II.
Soon the temple regained its old glory and wealth, the descriptions of which were carried to the Middle East. In particular, the accounts of the Al-Biruni impressed Mahmud of Ghazni. In AD 1025, Mahmud destroyed and looted the temple, killing over 50,000 people who tried to defend it.[18] The defenders included the 90-year-old clan leader Ghogha Rana. Mahmud personally broke the gilded lingam to pieces and took them back to his homeland and placed them in the steps leading to the newly built Jamiah Masjid, so that they would be stepped upon by those going to the mosque to pray.[18] [19] Work on the fourth temple was started immediately by the Paramara King Bhoj of Malwa and the Solanki king Bhima of Patan and the temple was ready by AD 1042. This temple was destroyed in AD 1300. At that time Allaudin Khilji occupied the throne of Delhi and he sent his general, Alaf Khan, to pillage Somnath. The fifth temple was built by King Mahipala of the Chudasama dynasty.[19]
Converted structure at the site of Somnath temple, 1869
Somnath was repeatedly attacked in the succeeding centuries. The last of these attacks was by the Mughal emperor Aurangazeb in AD 1701. A mosque was built at the site of the temple.[19] In AD 1783 queen Ahilyabhai Holkar built the sixth temple at an adjacent site. The temple still stands and worship is carried out there. After independence, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel pledged on 13 November 1947, that the seventh temple would be reconstructed. According to prescribed Hindu rituals, pledges are made by taking holy water in one's fist. Leaders like Morarji Desai, Dr. Rajendra Prasad (the first president) and Kanhaiyalal Munshi joined in and the work was entrusted to the Sompura Shilpakars, whose ancestors rebuilt each new temple through the ages. The mosque built by Aurangazeb was not destroyed but carefully relocated. In 1951 Dr. Rajendra Prasad performed the consecration ceremony with the words "The Somnath Temple signifies that the power of creation is always greater than the power of destruction." The temple construction was completed on 1 December 1995, long after the demise of Sardar Patel. The then President of India, Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma, dedicated it to the nation. Recently, the Shree Somnath Trust has declared that non-Hindus will not be allowed to enter the temple premises. Chairman of Shree Somnath trust is former chief minister of Gujarat Keshubhai Patel and its trustees include Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, former chief secretary of Gujarat P K Laheri and former deputy prime minister of India Mr. L K Advani[20]
Other references
Intricate stone carvings on the cloistercolumns at Quwwat ul-Islam Mosque,Qutb complex, Delhi
An inscription at the Quwwat Al-Islam Mosqueadjacent to Qutb Minar in Delhi states:
"This Jamii Masjid built in the months of the year 587 (hijri) by the Amir, the great, the glorious commander of the Army, Qutb-ud-daula wad-din, theamir-ul-umara Aibeg, the slave of the Sultan, may God strengthen his helpers! The materials of 27 idol temples, on each of which 2,000,000 Deliwal coins had been spent were used in the (construction of) this mosque."[21]
However, as the inscription depicts, the mosque was built from the material remnants of Hindu temples which was destroyed by Muslims.
Alberuni in his India[22] writes about the famous temple of Multan:
A famous idol of theirs was that of Multan, dedicated to the sun. When Muhammad Ibn Alkasim Ibn Almunabbih, conquered Multan, he inquired how the town had become so very flourishing and so many treasures had there been accumulated, and then he found out that this idol was the cause, for there came pilgrims from all sides to visit it. Therefore he thought to build a mosque at the same place where the temple once stood. When then the Karmatians occupied Multan, Jalam Ibn Shaiban, the usurper, broke the idol into pieces and killed its priests. When afterwards the blessed Prince Mahmud swept away their rule from those countries, he made again the old mosque the place of the Friday-worship.
An inscription of 1462 A.D.at Jami Masjid at Malan, in Banaskantha District of Gujarat states:
The Jami Masjid was built by Khan-I-Azam Ulugh Khan, who suppressed the wretched infidels. He eradicated the idolatrous houses and mine of infidelity, along with the idols with the edge of the sword, and made ready this edifice. He made its walls and doors out of the idols; the back of every stone became the place for prostration of the believer.[23]
Mughal Emperor Jahangir wrote in his Tujuk-i-Jahangiri:
"I am here led to relate that at the city of Banaras a temple had been erected by Rajah Maun Sing, which cost him the sum of nearly thirty-six laks of five methkaly ashrefies. ...I made it my plea for throwing down the temple which was the scene of this imposture; and on the spot, with the very same materials, I erected the great mosque, because the very name of Islam was proscribed at Banaras, and with God’s blessing it is my design, if I live, to fill it full with true believers."[24]
Zoroastrian temples
After the Islamic conquest of Persia, Zoroastrian fire temples, with their four axial arch openings, were usually turned into mosques simply by setting a mihrab (prayer niche) on the place of the arch nearest to qibla (the direction of Mecca). This practice is described by numerous Muslim sources; however, the archaeological evidence confirming it is still scarce. Zoroastrian temples converted into mosques in such a manner could be found in Bukhara, as well as in and near Istakhr and other Iranian cities.[4]
Conversion of Churches to Mosques
Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia (from the Greek: Ἁγία Σοφία, "Holy Wisdom"; Latin: Sancta Sophia or Sancta Sapientia; Turkish: Ayasofya) is a former Orthodox patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, and now a museum in Istanbul, Turkey. From the date of its dedication in 360 until 1453, it served as the Greek Patriarchal cathedral of Constantinople, except between 1204 and 1261, when it was converted to a Roman Catholic cathedral under the Latin Patriarch of Constantinople of the Western Crusader established Latin Empire. In 1453, Constantinople was conquered by the Ottoman Turks under SultanMehmed II, who subsequently ordered the building converted into a mosque.[25] The bells, altar, iconostasis, and sacrificial vessels were removed and many of themosaics were plastered over. Islamic features – such as the mihrab, minbar, and fourminarets – were added while in the possession of the Ottomans. The building was a mosque from 29 May 1453 until 1931, when it was secularised. It was opened as a museum on 1 February 1935.[26]
Turkey
Following the Ottoman conquest of Anatolia, all of the Orthodox churches of Istanbul were desecrated and converted into mosques except the Church of St. Mary of the Mongols. In Anatolia outside of Istanbul, the following churches were desecrated and converted into mosques:
Cyprus
Following the Ottoman conquest of Cyprus, a number of Christian churches were desecrated and then converted into mosques.
Hungary
Following the Ottoman conquest of the Kingdom of Hungary, a number of Christian churches were desecrated and then converted into mosques. Those that survived the era of Ottoman rule, were later reconverted into churches after the Great Turkish War.
  • Church of Our Lady of Buda, converted into Eski Djami immediately after the capture of Buda in 1541, reconverted in 1686.
  • Church of Mary Magdalene, Buda, converted into Fethiye Djami c. 1602, reconverted in 1686.
  • The Franciscan Church of St John the Baptist in Buda, converted into Pasha Djami, destroyed in 1686.
Lebanon
Morocco
Post-Colonial North Africa
A number of North African cathedrals and churches were confiscated and/or forcibly converted into mosques in the mid-20th century
Others were desecrated and later destroyed after the Christian congregants were expelled.
Iraq
The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria has converted a number of Christian churches into mosques
  • Syrian Orthodox Church of St. Ephraim in Mosul, Iraq; converted to the Mosque of the Mujahideen
  • Chaldean Church of St. Joseph in Mosul, Iraq
The practice today
The Aksa mosque in The Hague, Netherlands, was formerly a synagogue.
The conversion of non-Islamic places of worship into mosques has abated since no major territorial acquisitions have been made by Muslim majority populations in recent times. However, some of the Greek Orthodox churches in Turkey that were left behind by expelled Greeks in 1923 were converted into mosques.
A relatively significant surge in church-mosque conversion followed the 1974 Turkish Invasion of Cyprus. Many of the Orthodox churches inNorthern Cyprus have been converted, and many are still in the process of becoming mosques.
Churches and synagogues in non-Islamic countries re-arranged as mosques
In areas that have experienced Muslim immigration, such as parts of Europe and North America,[27] [28] some church buildings, and those of other religious congregations, that have fallen into disuse have been converted into mosques following a sale of the property.
In London, the Brick Lane Mosque has previously served as a synagogue.
See also
References
  1. Britannica 2002 Deluxe Edition CD-ROM, "Ka'bah."
  2. Daniel C. Peterson (2007). Muhammad, prophet of God. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. pp. 22–25. ISBN 978-0-8028-0754-0.
  3. Psalms 84:6, King James Version
  4. Hillenbrand, R. "Masdjid. I. In the central Islamic lands". In P.J. Bearman; Th. Bianquis; C.E. Bosworth; E. van Donzel; W.P. Heinrichs. Encyclopaedia of Islam Online. Brill Academic Publishers. ISSN 1573-3912.
  5. "Routledge Encyclopedia of Ancient Mediterranean Religions". Books.google.com. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  6. He was touring the Church and prayer time came around and he requested to be shown to a place where he may pray and the Patriarch said "Here".
  7. Adrian Fortescue, "The Orthodox Eastern Church", Gorgias Press LLC, 1 Dec 2001, pg. 28 ISBN 0-9715986-1-4
  8. "Hindu Temples-What Happened to Them by Sita Ram Goel". Scribd.com. 1990-04-07. Retrieved 2016-05-07.
  9. Proof of temple found at Ayodhya: ASI report Rediff News, 25 August 2003 19:35 IST
  10. Ayodhya verdict yet another blow to secularism: Sahmat The Hindu, 3 October 2010
  11. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 17 January 2008. Retrieved 26 September 2010.
  12. Uproar over India mosque report: Inquiry into Babri mosque's demolition in 1992Al-Jazeera English – 24 November 2009
  13. Babri mosque demolition case hearing today. Yahoo News – 18 September 2007
  14. Tearing down the Babri Masjid – Eye Witness BBC's Mark Tully BBC – Thursday, 5 December 2002, 19:05 GMT
  15. 15th edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica, 1986, entry "Ayodhya", Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc.
  16. "The ASI Report - a review". Hindu.com. 1992-12-06. Retrieved 2016-05-07.
  17. "Disputed Ayodhya site to be divided into 3 parts- TIMESNOW.tv – Latest Breaking News, Big News Stories, News Videos". Timesnow.Tv. Retrieved 6 March 2012.
  18. "Mosque and Tomb of the Emperor Soolta Mahmood of Ghuznee". Bl.uk. 2003-11-30. Retrieved 2016-05-07.
  19. "Temples of India". Books.google.com. p. 8. Retrieved 2016-05-07.
  20. "No entry for non-Hindus’ to Somnath temple without permit in Gujarat - Times of India". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 2015-06-03. Retrieved 2016-05-07.
  21. Epigraphia Indo Moslemica, 1911–12, p. 13.
  22. Alberuni's India, Edward C. Sachau (translator and editor)
  23. Epigraphia Indica-Arabic and Persian Supplement, 1963, Pp. 26–29
  24. "Decisions Involving Urban Planning and Religious Institutions". Persian.packhum.org. Retrieved 2016-05-07.
  25. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 5 January 2009. Retrieved 13 February 2009.
  26. Magdalino, Paul; et al. ""Istanbul: Buildings, Hagia Sophia" in Grove Art Online". Oxfordartonline.com. Retrieved 28 February 2010.
  27. Perlez, Jane (2 April 2007). "Old Church Becomes Mosque in Uneasy Britain". The New York Times. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
  28. Applebome, Peter (18 August 2010). "Utica Welcomes a New Mosque Replacing an Old Church". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
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Holiest sites in Shia Islam


 Holiest sites in Shia Islam 
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In addition to the three mosques accepted by all Muslims as holy sites, Shia Muslims consider sites associated with Muhammad, his family members (Ahl al-Bayt) and descendants (including the Shia Imams), their companions, and the Prophets as holy places. After Mecca and Medina, Najaf and Karbala are the most revered by Shias.[1]
Holy sites accepted by all Muslims
Masjid al-Haram
Masjid al-Haram ("The Sacred Mosque"), is a large mosque in the city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia and the second largest in Islam. It surrounds the Kaaba, the place which all Muslims turn towards each day in prayer, considered by Muslims to be the holiest place on Earth.
The current structure covers an area of 356,800 m2 (3,841,000 sq ft) including the outdoor and indoor praying spaces and can accommodate up to 820,000 worshippers during the Hajj period. During the Hajj period, the mosque is unable to contain the multitude of pilgrims, who pray on the outlining streets. More than 2 million worshippers gather to pray during Eid prayers.[2]
According to the teachings of Islam, God in the Quran used the word mosque when referring to the sites established by Ibrahim (Abraham) and his progeny as houses of worship to God centuries before the revelation of the Quran. The first of these spots is Masjid al-Haram in Mecca and the second is Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. Before Mecca and Jerusalem came under Muslim control between 630 AD and 638 AD, the site of the Kaaba, which was established by Abraham and Ishmael, was used by non-Muslim Arabs who worshipped multiple gods.
And when We assigned to Ibrahim the place of the House, saying: Do not associate with Me aught, and purify My House for those who make the circuit and stand to pray and bow and prostrate themselves.
— Quran, sura 22 (Al-Hajj), ayah 26[3]
And when Ibrahim and Ismail raised the foundations of the House: Our Lord! accept from us; surely Thou art the Hearing, the Knowing:
— Quran, sura 2 (Al-Baqara), ayah 127[4]
Al-Masjid an-Nabawi
Al-Masjid an-Nabawi in Medina
Al-Masjid an-Nabawi ("Mosque of the Prophet"), located in Medina, Saudi Arabia is the second holiest site in Islam.
The edifice was originally Muhammad's house; he settled there after his Hijra (emigration) to Medina, and later built a mosque on the grounds. He himself shared in the heavy work of construction. The original mosque was an open-air building, with no gender separation. The mosque also served as a community center, a court, and a religious school. There was a raised platform for the people who taught the Quran. The basic plan of the building has been adopted in the building of other mosques throughout the world.
The original mosque was built by the Muhammad and subsequent Islamic rulers greatly expanded and decorated the mosque. The most important feature of the site is the Green Dome over the center of the mosque, where the tomb of Muhammad is located. Constructed in 1817 CE and painted green in 1839, it is known as the Dome of the Prophet.[5]
al-Ḥaram al-Šarīf
The mosque along the southern wall of The Noble Sanctuary
The al Aqsa Mosque is a mosque which sits on the al-Ḥaram al-Šarīf ("the Noble Sanctuary") and is a holy site in Shia and Sunni Islam. It located in the Old City of Jerusalem is called the Temple Mount by Jews and Christians. It is the site on which the silver domed al Aqsa Mosquesits, along with the Dome of the Rock[6] is theTemple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism, the place where the Temple is generally accepted to have stood. Muslims believe that Muhammad was transported by the Buraq from the Sacred Mosque in Mecca to al-Aqsa during the Night Journey. Islamic tradition holds that Muhammad led prayers towards this site until the seventeenth month after theemigration, when God directed him to turn towards the Kaaba.
Holy sites accepted by all Shia Muslims
Imam Ali Mosque
Exterior view of Imam Ali Mosque
Imam Ali Mosque in Najaf, Iraq contains the tomb of:
  • First Shia Imam, Ali
Also buried within this mosque according to Shia Islam:
Ali was the cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad. He is considered by Shia tradition to be the first legitimate caliph and the first Imam due to the proclamation given by Muhammad. The site is visited annually by at least 8 million pilgrims on average, which is estimated to increase to 20 million in years to come.[9]
Many Shia believe that Ali did not want his grave to be desecrated by his enemies and consequently asked his friends and family to bury him secretly. This secret gravesite is supposed to have been revealed later during the Abbasid Caliphate byJa'far al-Sadiq, the sixth Shia Imam.[10] Most Shias accept that Ali is buried in the Imam Ali Mosque, in what is now the city of Najaf (which grew around the shrine).[11]
It has also been narrated from Ja'far al-Sadiq, the 6th Imam, that the Imam Ali Mosque is the third of five holy places: Mecca, Medina, Imam Ali Mosque in Najaf,Imam Husayn Shrine in Karbala, and the shrine of Fatima Masumeh in Qom.[12]
God chose that land [Najaf] as the abode of the Prophets. I swear to God that no one more honourable than the Commander of the Believers [Ali] has ever lived there after (the time of) his purified fathers, Ādam and Nūh.[13]
— Ja'far al-Sadiq
Imam Husayn Shrine
Imam Husayn Shrine in Karbala. Two tall minarets of Al Abbas Mosque are also seen in the picture.
Imam Husayn Shrine in Karbala, Iraq contains the tombs of:
The mosque stands on the site of the grave of Hussein ibn Ali, where he was martyred during the Battle of Karbala in 680.[14] [15] Up to a million pilgrims visit the city to observe the Day of Ashura, which marks the anniversary of Hussein ibn Ali's death.[16] There are many Shia traditions which narrate the status of Karbala:
Karbalā, where your grandson and his family will be killed, is the most blessed and the most sacred land on Earth and it is one of the valleys of Paradise.[17]
— The archangel Gabriel
God chose the land of Karbalā as a safe and blessed sanctuary twenty-four thousand years before He created the land of the Ka‘bah and chose it as a sanctuary. Verily it [Karbalā] will shine among the gardens of Paradise, like a shining star shines among the stars for the people of Earth.[18]
— Ali ibn al-Hussain
Not one night passes in which Gabriel and Michael do not go to visit him [Husayn].[19]
— Ja'far al-Sadiq
Al-Baqi'
Al-Baqi' cemetery in Medina
Al-Baqi' (Jannatul Baqee) is a cemetery located across from Al-Masjid al-Nabawi in Medina, Saudi Arabia. Holy figures of interest to the Shia include:
It is also thought that the real grave of Fatimah, daughter of Muhammad, lies here as well.
Sayyidah Zaynab Mosque in Damascus
Jannatul Mualla Cemetery
The Jannatul Mualla cemetery in Mecca, Saudi Arabia contains the graves of many relatives of Muhammad, held in high esteem by the Shia, including:
Sayyidah Zaynab Mosque
Al Abbas Mosque in Karbalā
The Sayyidah Zaynab Mosque in Damascus, Syria contains the tomb of:
  • Zaynab bint Ali, the daughter of Ali and Fatimah, and the granddaughter of Muhammad.
Al Abbas Mosque
The Al Abbas Mosque is located directly across from the Imam Husayn Shrine, and contains the tomb of:
Millions of pilgrims visit the shrine and pay homage to it every year. The real grave of Abbas is beneath the masoulem, and is present in the shrine.[22] Emperors and kings of various dynasties have offered valuable gifts and gems to the shrine of Abbas. It was designed by Persian and Central Asian architects. The central pear shaped dome is an ornately decorated structure. On its sides stand two tallminarets. The tomb is covered with pure gold and surrounded by a trellis of silver. Iranian carpets are rolled out on the floors.[23]
Sayyidah Ruqayya Mosque
Sayyidah Ruqayya Mosque in Damascus
The Sayyidah Ruqayya Mosque in Damascus, Syria contains the tomb of:
  • Sukayna bint Husayn, the youngest daughter of Hussein ibn Ali, often referred to by her title: "Ruqayya".
Bab al-Saghir Cemetery
The Bab al-Saghir cemetery in Damascus, Syria contains the graves of many relatives of Muhammad as well as sites related to the Battle of Karbala. Some of the figures laid to rest here include:
Other tombs for the family of imams
There are many tombs of the various descendants of the Imams (often calledImamzadeh). Some of them include:
Other places associated with Muhammad
  • Quba Mosque found just outside Medina, Saudi Arabia, was the first Islamic mosque ever built. Its first stones were positioned by Muhammad on his emigration from the city of Mecca to Medina and was subsequently completed by his companions. Muhammad then waited for Ali to arrive before he entered the city of Medina.
  • Masjid al-Qiblatain in Medina, Saudi Arabia - the mosque where the direction of prayer (qibla) was changed from Jerusalem to Mecca
  • Hira located on the mountain Jabal al-Nour in Saudi Arabia - the place where the first verses of the Quran were revealed to Muhammad
  • Haram al Sharif ("The Noble Sanctuary"), is the Islamic name for the compound of Islamic religious buildings in Jerusalem that includes al-Aqsa congregation mosque and the Dome of the Rock. The Al-Aqsa Mosque is sacred because it was the first of the two Qiblas.[24] [25] The mosque is also believed by many to be the area from where Muhammad is said to have ascended to heaven.[26]According to some narrations, a single prayer performed at this mosque is the same as having performed 500 prayers elsewhere.[27]
Places associated with imams, prophets and Karbala
Mosques associated with companions of Muhammad and the imams
Holy sites specific to Twelver Shia Muslims
Imam Reza Mosque
Imam Reza shrine, which is visited by 12 to 15 million pilgrims every year.
Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad, Iran contains the tomb of:
Ali al-Rida is believed, by members of the Shia, to have been poisoned there upon the orders of Caliph Al-Ma'mun and the place was subsequently called, Mashhad ar-Ridhā (the place of martyrdom of Ali al-Rida). By the end of the 9th century a dome was built on the grave and many buildings and bazaars sprang up around it. For years totalling more than a millennium, the mosque was destroyed and reconstructed several times.[28]
Nowadays Imam al-Rida shrine in Mashhad, Iran, is a complex which contains the mausoleum of Ali al-Rida, the eighth of The Twelve Imams. Also found within the complex is a museum, library, cemetery, mosque and seminaries. Today the holy shrine and its museum hold one of the most extensive cultural and artistic treasuries of Iran, in particular manuscript books and paintings. Several important theologicalschools are associated with the shrine of the eighth Imam. As a city of great religious significance, it is also a place of pilgrimage. It is said that the rich go to Mecca but the poor journey to Mashhad. Thus, even as those who complete the pilgrimage to Mecca receive the title of Haji, those who make the pilgrimage to Mashhad–and especially to the Imam Rida shrine–are known as Mashtee, a term employed also of its inhabitants. It is thought that over 20 million Muslims a year make the pilgrimage to Mashhad. It is generally considered to be the holiest Shia shrine in Iran, and is sometimes ranked as the third holiest Shia shrine in the world.[29]
Al-Kadhimiya Mosque
Al-Kadhimiya Mosque in Baghdad
The Al-Kadhimiya Mosque in Baghdad, Iraq contains the tombs of:
Also buried within this mosque:
Some consider the mosque the third holiest in Shia Islam.[30] [31]
Al-Askari Mosque
Al-Askari Mosque Shrine of the 10th and 11th Twelver Shī‘ah Imāms
The Al-Askari Mosque in Samarra, Iraq contains the tombs of:
Also buried within this mosque:
The cellar from which the twelfth or "Hidden" Imam, Muhammad al-Mahdi, disappeared from view is also found within this mosque.
At the time of the Al-Askari bombing in Samarra, it was reported that the mosque was one of Shia Islam's holiest sites, only exceeded by the shrines of Najaf and Karbala.[32]
Mosques associated with the twelfth Shia Imam
Jamkaran in Qom
The final Imam, considered to be alive and inoccultation, has the following two mosques associated with him:
Fatima Masumeh Shrine
Fatima Masumeh Shrine in Qom
The Fatima Masumeh Shrine in Qom, Iran contains the tomb of:
Located in Qom, Iran, some consider the Fatima Masumeh Shrine to be the third holiest shrine in Shia Islam.[12] The shrine has attracted to itself dozens of seminaries and religious schools.Shah Abbas I of Persia built the shrine complex in the early 17th century.[33]
Tombs of other family members of Muhammad
Shah-Abdol-Azim shrine in Rey
Holy sites specific to Other Shia Muslims (non-Twelvers)
See also
References
  1. Karbala and Najaf: Shia holy cities April, 2003
  2. "Makkah the Blessed".
  3. Quran 22:26
  4. Quran 2:127
  5. Tore Kjeilen. "Madina - LookLex Encyclopaedia".
  6. Schieck, Robert (2008) in Geographical Dimension of Islamic Jerusalem, Cambridge Scholars Publishing; see also Omar, Abdallah (2009) al-Madkhal li-dirasat al-Masjid al-Aqsa al-Mubarak, Beirut: Dar al-Kotob al-Ilmiyaah; also by the same author the Atlas of Al-Aqsa Mosque (2010)
  7. al-Qummi, Ja'far ibn Qūlawayh (2008). "10". Kāmil al-Ziyārāt. trans. Sayyid Mohsen al-Husaini al-Mīlāni. Shiabooks.ca Press. pp. 66–67.
  8. "Iraq".
  9. "Red tape curbs profits from Iraq religious tourism". Reuters. 2009-02-16. Retrieved May 9, 2009.
  10. Majlesi, V.97, p. 246-251
  11. Redha, Mohammad; Mohammad Agha (1999). Imam Ali Ibn Abi Taleb (Imam Ali the Fourth Caliph, 1/1 Volume). Dar Al Kotob Al ilmiyah. ISBN 2-7451-2532-X.
  12. Escobar, Pepe (May 24, 2002). "Knocking on heaven's door". Central Asia/Russia.Asia Times Online. Retrieved 2006-11-12. To give a measure of its importance, according to a famous hadith (saying) - enunciated with pleasure by the guardians of the shrine - we learn that ‘our sixth imam, Imam Sadeg, says that we have five definitive holy places that we respect very much. The first is Mecca, which belongs to God. The second is Medina, which belongs to the Holy Prophet Muhammad, the messenger of God. The third belongs to our first imam of Shia, Ali, which is in Najaf. The fourth belongs to our third imam, Hussein, in Kerbala. The last one belongs to the daughter of our seventh imam and sister of our eighth imam, who is called Fatemah, and will be buried in Qom. Pilgrims and those who visit her holy shrine, I promise to these men and women that God will open all the doors of Heaven to them.’
  13. al-Qummi, Ja'far ibn Qūlawayh (2008). "10". Kāmil al-Ziyārāt. trans. Sayyid Mohsen al-Husaini al-Mīlāni. Shiabooks.ca Press. p. 67.
  14. Shimoni & Levine, 1974, p. 160.
  15. Aghaie, 2004, pp. 10-11.
  16. "Interactive Maps: Sunni & Shia: The Worlds of Islam". PBS. Retrieved June 9,2007.
  17. al-Qummi, Ja'far ibn Qūlawayh (2008). "Addendum before chapter 89". Kāmil al-Ziyārāt. trans. Sayyid Mohsen al-Husaini al-Mīlāni. Shiabooks.ca Press. p. 545.
  18. al-Qummi, Ja'far ibn Qūlawayh (2008). "88". Kāmil al-Ziyārāt. trans. Sayyid Mohsen al-Husaini al-Mīlāni. Shiabooks.ca Press. p. 534.
  19. al-Qummi, Ja'far ibn Qūlawayh (2008). "88". Kāmil al-Ziyārāt. trans. Sayyid Mohsen al-Husaini al-Mīlāni. Shiabooks.ca Press. p. 536.
  20. "Saudi Arabia". al-islam.org. Retrieved 2009-05-27.
  21. "Saudi Arabia".
  22. KaraÌraviÌ, NajmulhÌ£asan (January 1, 1974). Biography of Hazrat Abbas. Peermahomed Ebrahim Trust. ASIN B0007AIWQW.
  23. Muhammad, Yousaf (December 2001). Al-Abbas (AS) - Rajul Al-Aqidah Wal Jehad. Islamic Republic of Iran.
  24. Lindsay, James (2005). Daily Life in the Medieval Islamic World. Greenwood Press. pp. 142–143. ISBN 0-313-32270-8.
  25. Wendy Doninger, consulting ed., ed. (1999-09-01). Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions. Merriam-Webster. p. 70. ISBN 0-87779-044-2., reviewed on Google books
  26. "Eyewitness: Inside al-Aqsa". BBC News. 2002-03-20.
  27. Sahih al-Bukhari, 2:21:288
  28. Zabeth (1999) pp. 12-16
  29. "Sacred Sites: Mashhad, Iran". sacredsites.com. Retrieved 2006-03-13.
  30. Robertson, Hamish (March 3, 2004). "Iraq suicide bombings: an eyewitness account". The World Today. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved2006-11-12. After the bombing of the Al Kadhimiya Mosque, Middle East correspondent of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Nahlah Ayed, reported that “...in front of the Kadhimiya Mosque, the third holiest site for Shia Muslims
  31. "Iraq blasts kill 143 on Shiite holy day". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. March 2, 2004. Retrieved 2006-11-12. ‘After the blast, all you could see was death everywhere you looked,’ said Ahmed Kamil Ibrahim, a guard at the Kazimiya shrine in Baghdad, the third-holiest in Shiite Islam.
  32. Gosh, Aparisim (March 6, 2006). "An Eye For an Eye". Time Magazine. pp. Cover Story. Retrieved 2006-11-12. That makes al-Askari one of Shi'ite Islam's holiest sites, exceeded in veneration only by the shrines of Najaf and Karbala. Even Samarra's Sunnis hold al-Askari in high esteem. The expression "to swear by the shrine" is routinely used by both communities. Editor's note: Quote is found onthird page of article.
  33. "Today's Top StoriesQom Province". www.indiasnews.com. Retrieved 2006-12-18.Shrine of Hazrat Masoumeh, sister of Imam Reza, one of Iran's holiest places, is in Qom.
  34. "Azərbaycan Prezidentinin Rəsmi internet səhifəsi - XƏBƏRLƏR » Tədbirlər İlham Əliyev Gəncə şəhərindəki "İmamzadə" kompleksində aparılan təmir-bərpa və tikinti işlərinin gedişi ilə tanış olub".
Further reading
External links
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