Qatligah

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Qatligāh (Sacrifice place) or Sacrifice Pit (Arabic:المِنحَر, Persian:قتلگاه) is the name of a place in Karbala where, according to sources, Imam al-Husayn (a) was beheaded by Shimr or Sinan. This place is today in the Shrine of Imam al-Husayn (a) near his darih, visited by Shi'a and lovers of the Ahl al-Bayt (a).

Location and Description

Darih of Qatligah located in the shrine of Imam Husayn (a).

Qatligāh, or the Sacrifice Pit, is where Imam al-Husayn (a) attained martyrdom.[1] It was within these grounds that Imam al-Husayn's head was severed from his body, a brutal act by Shimr b. Dhi l-Jawshan or Sinan b. Anas al-Nakha'i.[2] Qatligah was situated at a lower elevation than other parts of the Karbala battlefield,[3] thus earning its name as the pit of sacrifice or murder.[4]

In the current architectural layout of the shrine, Qatligah is positioned outside of Imam al-Husayn's darih in the southwestern section of the Portico of Habib b. Muzahir. It is distinguished by a silver gate and a window that opens towards the courtyard. The floor of Qatligah is adorned with light-colored marble stones, while its walls showcase intricate mirror work. Additionally, Qatligah encompasses a cellar (saradb) accessible through a silver door.[5] This cellar is considered the place where Imam (a) was martyred. There is a marble stone in that cellar, 50 cm above the ground, like a grave.[6]

Qatligah is also known as maqtal (place of murder), (Arabic: مَقْتَل)[7] mahall al-nahr (Arabic: محل النَّحْر) or Manhar (place of sacrifice), (Arabic: مَنْحَر) or Madhbah (place of slaughter) (Arabic: مَذْبَح).[8]

Historical Investigations

An old photo of Qatligah

According to some researchers of history, there is a lack of evidence in credible early sources, as well as sources from the Safavid and Qajar periods, regarding the existence of the pit of Qatligah. The mention of Qatligah first emerged during the Pahlavi era when preachers recounted the tragic events surrounding Imam al-Husayn (a), subsequently gaining popularity among people.[9] However, some other scholars assert that the Sacrifice Pit does indeed possess a valid historical background, dismissing its association with the Pahlavi era.[10]

Zayn al-Din al-Shaʿbani, a prominent Sufi figure during the thirteenth/nineteenth century, made a reference to the existence of the Qatligah in the eighth/fourteenth century.[11] The editor of the book Bughyat al-nubalaʾ fi tarikh Karbala suggests that Qatligah mentioned in the book actually pertains to the cellar (sardab).[12] Furthermore, in his travelogue dated 1287/1870-1, Naser al-Din Shah Qajar described Qatligah as a deep pit equipped with multiple stairs.[13]

According to some scholars, it is believed that the term "pit of Qatligah" was first introduced by Sipihr al-Kashani, the author of Nasikh al-tawarikh during the Qajar period. Before his time, there is no record of this term being used in historical or hadith sources.[14]

The Painting “The Throne on the Earth”

The painting titled The Throne on the Earth was created by Iranian artist Mahmoud Farshchian.

The artwork titled "The Throne on the Earth" by Mahmoud Farshchian depicts the poignant moment of Lady Zaynab (a) bidding farewell to the body of Imam al-Husayn (a) within the pit of Qatligah. Created in the miniature style, the painting measures 123*80 cm and was completed in 2017. It was subsequently donated to the Museum of Astan Quds Razavi. Notably, the painting focuses on Imam al-Husayn's legs, while his body is subtly implied to be concealed behind a mound of soil. At the center of the artwork, a bloodstained flag is depicted as fallen on the ground, while angels join Lady Zaynab (a) in mourning.[15]

See Also

Notes

  1. ↑ Āl-i Ṭuʿma, Karbalā wa ḥarām-hāyi Muṭahhar, p. 116, 162; Muḥaddithī, Farhang-i ʿĀshūrā, p. 417.
  2. ↑ Muḥaddithī, Farhang-i ʿĀshūrā, p. 417.
  3. ↑ Muḥaddithī, Farhang-i ʿĀshūrā, p. 417.
  4. ↑ Muṭahharī, Falsafa-yi Akhlāq, p. 133.
  5. ↑ Āl-i Ṭuʿma, Karbalā wa ḥarām-hāyi Muṭahhar, p. 162; Qurayshī, Marqad-hā wa makān-hāyi zīyāratī-yi Karbalā, p. 37.
  6. ↑ Muḥaddithī, Farhang-i ʿĀshūrā, p. 417.
  7. ↑ Āl-i Ṭuʿma, Karbalā wa ḥarām-hāyi Muṭahhar, p. 162.
  8. ↑ Nabawī, "Qatligāh-i Ḥusayn b. ʿAlī (a)" (Persian)
  9. ↑ Group of authors. Tārīkh-i qīyām wa maqtal-i jāmiʿ-i Sayyid al-Shuhadāʾ, vol. 2, p. 559.
  10. ↑ Nabawī, "Qatligāh-i Ḥusayn b. ʿAlī (a)" (Persian)
  11. ↑ Shīrwānī, Riyāḍ al-siyāḥa, p. 583.
  12. ↑ Āl-i Ṭuʿma, Bughyat al-nubalā, p. 18.
  13. ↑ Naṣīr al-Dīn Shāh Qājār, Shahrīyār-i jādda-ha, p. 116.
  14. ↑ Rafʿat, "Nigāhī intiqādī bi maḥall-i shahādat-i Imām Ḥusayn; taḥlīl-i pindāra-yi Gawdāl-i Qatligāh", p. 58.
  15. ↑ "The Throne on the Earth" painting (killing pit). (Persian).

References

  • Āl Ṭuʿma, ʿAbd al-Ḥusayn Kilīdār. Bughyat al-nubalā fī tārīkh Karbalā. Edited by ʿAbd al-Amīr ʿAzīz al-Qurashī and Ṭāriq Nāfiʿ al-Ḥamdānī. Karbalā: Markaz Karbalā li-Dirāsāt wa l-Buḥūth, [n.d].
  • Āl-i Ṭuʿma, Salmān Hādī. Karbalā wa ḥarām-hāyi Muṭahhar. Tehran: Mashʿar, 1378 Sh.
  • Group of authors. Tārīkh-i qīyām wa maqtal-i jāmiʿ-i Sayyid al-Shuhadāʾ. Under the supervision of Mahdī Pīshwāyī. Qom: Muʾassisa-yi Āmūzishī wa Pazhūhishī-yi Imām Khomeiniī, 1392 Sh.
  • Muḥaddithī, Javād. Farhang-i ʿĀshūrā. Qom: Nashr-i Maʿrūf, 1393 Sh.
  • Muṭahharī, Murtaḍā. Falsafa-yi Akhlāq. Tehran: Ṣadrā, 1376 Sh.
  • Nabawī, Aḥmad. "Qatligāh-i Ḥusayn b. ʿAlī (a)". Farhang-i zīyārāt 18. (1392 Sh)
  • Naṣīr al-Dīn Shāh Qājār. Shahrīyār-i jādda-ha; Safarnāma-yi Naṣīr al-Dīn Shāh bi ʿatabāt. Edited by Muḥammad Riḍā ʿAbbāsī and Parwīz Badīʿī. Tehran: Intishārāt-i Sāzmān-i Asnād-i Millī-yi Irān, 1372 Sh.
  • Qurayshī, ʿAbd al-Amīr. Marqad-hā wa makān-hāyi zīyāratī-yi Karbalā. Translated by Iḥsān Muqaddas. Tehran: Mashʿar, 1391 Sh.
  • Rafʿat, Muḥsin. "Nigāhī intiqādī bi maḥall-i shahādat-i Imām Ḥusayn; taḥlīl-i pindāra-yi Gawdāl-i Qatligāh". Tārīkh-i fiqh wa tamaddun-i Islāmī 28. (1396 Sh)
  • Shīrwānī, Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn. Riyāḍ al-siyāḥa. Edited by Ḥusayn Badr al-Dīn and Aṣghar Ḥāmid Rabbānī. Tehran: Intishārāt-i Saʿdī, 1361 Sh.
  • تابلو عرش بر زمین (گودی قتلگاه) ("The Throne on the Earth" painting (killing pit). (Persian)). Accessed: 2023/08/16.
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