Imam Husayn Shrine

Overview

The Imam Husayn Shrine is the mausoleum of Husayn ibn Ali, a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, the founder of Islam. It is located in the city of Karbala, Iraq. Shia Muslims regard it as one of the holiest sites of their tradition. It is an active mosque and place of daily visitation, and millions of pilgrims travel to it each year, above all during the observances of Ashura and Arba'een.

Present

The Imam Husayn Shrine is managed by the Imam Hussain Holy Shrine authority, the institution responsible for the site, which operates under the supervision of Iraq's senior Shia religious leadership. The shrine functions as a mosque with daily prayers, and pilgrims perform Ziyarat, the ritual visitation of the tomb, throughout the year. The largest gatherings take place during Ashura, the annual commemoration of Husayn's death, and Arba'een, the pilgrimage held forty days later, when millions of pilgrims arrive in Karbala, many of them on foot. The shrine authority also runs hospitals, schools, libraries, and charitable services in the city. Expansion projects in recent years have enlarged the shrine's courtyards and facilities to accommodate the growing number of pilgrims.

Religious Significance

Shia Muslims venerate the Imam Husayn Shrine as the burial place of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad and the third Imam of Shia Islam. Husayn was killed at Karbala in 680 CE after refusing allegiance to the Umayyad ruler Yazid, whose rule he regarded as unjust. In Shia belief, his death is the defining act of sacrifice against oppression, and mourning him is a central religious practice. Pilgrims perform Ziyarat, the ritual visitation of the tomb, reciting prayers that greet Husayn and affirm loyalty to his cause. The shrine is the destination of two of the largest annual observances in the Muslim world: Ashura, the day of Husayn's death in the month of Muharram, and Arba'een, the fortieth day after it, when millions walk to Karbala from Najaf and other cities. Many Shia Muslims also use small clay tablets pressed from the soil of Karbala, on which they rest their foreheads in daily prayer, an expression of the sanctity attached to the ground where Husayn died.

History & Structure

The Imam Husayn Shrine developed around the grave of Husayn ibn Ali, who was buried at Karbala in 680 CE. Structures over the grave were built but destroyed repeatedly in the early centuries. In 850 CE, the Abbasid caliph al-Mutawakkil ordered the tomb destroyed, the ground ploughed, and the site flooded to stop pilgrimage. Visitation resumed under his successor. Large-scale construction began in 979–80 CE under the Buyid ruler 'Adud al-Dawla, who built the foundations of the shrine complex and enclosed Karbala with a wall. In 1801, Wahhabi forces from Arabia sacked Karbala, killed thousands of residents, looted the shrine's treasury, and damaged the dome. Qajar rulers of Iran restored the shrine in the 19th century and covered the dome with gold. Today the shrine is a walled rectangular complex of about 59 by 75 metres with ten gates. A gilded dome about 27 metres high rises over the tomb, flanked by two gilded minarets. The courtyard holds the graves of Husayn, his sons, and his companions, who are buried at the foot of his grave.

Additional Resources

• Official website: Imam Hussain Holy Shrine
• Related: History of the Shrine of Imam Husayn, Al-Islam.org
• Book: After the Prophet: The Epic Story of the Shia-Sunni Split in Islam by Lesley Hazleton (2009)