Mosque of Kufa: Difference between revisions

'''Masjid al-Kūfa''' (Arabic: مسجد الکوفة) is a great mosque in the Islamic world. For Shi'as, it is the fourth important mosque after [[Masjid al-Haram]], [[Masjid al-Nabi]], and [[Masjid al-Aqsa]]. It is also the oldest and the most important visiting place in [[Kufa]]. According to some [[hadiths]], the first person who founded the Mosque of Kufa was [[Adam (a)]]. It was reconstructed by [[Noah]] after the storm.

In 17/638, when Muslims first entered Kufa in the period of [[Sa'd b. Abi Waqqas]], the mosque was rebuilt together with the Governmental Building (Dar al-'Imara) at the suggestion of [[Salman al-Farsi]].

The mosque witnessed many prophets, [[the Prophet Muhammad (s)]], [[Amir al-Mu'minin (a)]], [[Imam al-Hasan (a)]], and [[Imam al-Husayn (a)]], and some other [[Imams (a)]].

In 36/656 when Amir al-Mu'minin (a) attended the mosque, it became much more important. He frequently led [[congregational prayers]] in this mosque, delivered sermons on its [[minbar]], did some governmental and judiciary tasks there, and was finally martyred in its [[mihrab]].

The mausoleum of [[Maytham al-Tammar]], the house of [[Amir al-Mu'minin (a)]], the governmental building of Kufa, the mausoleum of [[Hani b. 'Urwa]], and [[al-Mukhtar al-Thaqafi]]’s grave are located near the Mosque of Kufa. The mosque has in it a number of positions, in many of which some spiritual practices of the mosque are done.

Just as travelers have the option to say their [[prayers]] fully or in a shortened form in [[Masjid al-Haram]], the [[Holy Shrine of Imam al-Husayn (a)]], and [[Masjid al-Nabi]], they have the same option in the Mosque of Kufa as well. There are many [[hadiths]] regarding the virtues of this mosque. According to some hadiths, the Mosque of Kufa is a garden of the [[Heaven]]. If someone enters the Mosque of Kufa, he or she will be forgiven. Kufa will be the center of [[Imam al-Mahdi (a)]]’s government, and the Mosque of Kufa will be the headquarters of his commandership.

Kufa was first known as “Suristan”. In 17/638, months after the construction of [[Basra]], [[Sa'd b. Abi Waqqas]] built Kufa at the command of [['Umar b. Khattab|the Second Caliph]] as a residence for soldiers and military forces as well as their families during conquests.

The Mosque of Kufa is 110 meters long, 101 meters wide, and has an area of 11162 square meters. Its walls are 10 meters tall. The open courtyard of the mosque is 5642 square meters, and the area of its [[Shabistans]] is 5520 square meters. The number of its pillars is 187, and it has 4 minarets each 30 meters tall. The mosque has 5 gates called: “Bab al-Hujja” (the main entrance), “Bab al-Thu'ban”, “Bab al-Rahma”, “Bab Muslim b. 'Aqil”, and “Bab Hani b. 'Urwa”.

In 17/638, the Islamic army was in [[al-Mada'in]]. Al-Mada'in’s weather was so terrible for soldiers from [[Hijaz]] that they became weak and thin. Thus, [[Hudhayfa b. Yaman]] wrote a letter to [['Umar b. Khattab]] and let him know about the situation. The Caliph wrote to Sa'd b. Abi Waqqas to “send [[Salman al-Farsi|Salman]] and Hudhayfa to find a convenient place [for soldiers]”. When they received the Caliph’s letter, Salman and Hudhayfa departed from al-Mada'in: Salman departed from the western bank of Euphrates and Hudhayfa departed from its eastern bank. They did not like any land until they arrived in Kufa. They both found the land appropriate as a residence for the army. They said two [[rak'as]] of [[prayer]] and asked God to make the place peaceful and stable. When Sa'd b. Abi Waqqas and his army arrived in Kufa, he ordered the construction of a mosque before making any other constructions. Abu Hayja' al-Asadi stood in a place and threw arrows to all directions in order to specify the area of the Mosque of Kufa.

[[Asbagh b. Nubata]] says: addressing people of Kufa, [[Amir al-Mu'minin (a)]] referred to the Mosque of Kufa as “the house of Adam, place of Noah, residence of [[Idris]], worshiping place of Ibrahim and my brother, [[Khidr]]” and “one of the four mosques selected by God for His people”. The Imam (a) also predicted that the [[Black Stone]] (al-Hajar al-Aswad) will be installed in this mosque. There will be, he said, a time when the mosque will be the worshiping place of [[Imam al-Mahdi (a)]] and every believer.

* Heavenly Castle: according to some [[hadiths]], the Mosque of Kufa is a “castle of the [[Heaven]]”.

* Place of Prayer for Prophets: [[Abu Basir]] quoted [[Imam al-Sadiq (a)]] as saying about the Mosque of Kufa that: “the best mosque is the Mosque of Kufa: one thousand prophets and one thousand saints said prayers in it …”.

* Saying Prayer in the Mosque Equals [[Hajj]]: [[Imam al-Baqir (a)]] says about the virtues of saying one’s prayers in the Mosque of Kufa that: “if people knew how virtuous it is to say prayers in the Mosque of Kufa, they would go there from distance areas. Truly, saying one’s obligatory prayers in this mosque equals hajj and saying [[mustahab]] prayers there equals [['Umra]].

* Superior to All the Mosques: Imam al-Sadiq (a) takes saying prayer in the Mosque of Kufa to equal to one thousand prayers in another mosque. Also, Imam al-Rida (a) says about saying prayers in this sacred place: “saying an individual prayer in the Mosque of Kufa is superior to seven [[congregational prayers]] in another mosque”.

* Center of Imam al-Mahdi’s (a) Government: according to [[Imam al-Baqir (a)]]: “when our [[Qa'im]] [i.e. Imam al-Mahdi (a)] starts his uprising and goes to Kufa, there will be no believer unless he or she resides in the city near him or goes to the city”. Amir al-Mu'minin (a) said: “a time will come when this place (the Mosque of Kufa) will be a place for the prayer of Imam al-Mahdi (a)”.

There are places in this mosque which are attributed to prophets or prominent religious figures. These are called “Maqam” (position). Some [[mustahab]] prayers or practices are recommended for some of these positions.

* Rahba Amir al-Mu'minin: in front of the Mosque of Kufa where the gate of the mosque is located, there is a bench on which Imam 'Ali (a) sat and answered people’s questions. It is mentioned in some hadiths.

* Dakka al-Qada': this is the place where Imam 'Ali (a) adjudicated legal cases. There was a short pillar in this position on which the following Quranic verse was written: “Surely Allah commands justice and good deeds”.

* Position of Adam (a): the 7th pillar of the Mosque of Kufa is known as the position of Adam (a). This is believed to be the place where God accepted Adam’s (a) [[repentance]]. Imam 'Ali (a) said his prayers near this pillar, which is why it is also known as the position of Amir al-Mu'minin (a).

* Position of Ibrahim (a): the 4th pillar of the mosque near “Bab Anmat” is a place where the prophet [[Ibrahim (a)]] is believed to have said prayers.

* Position of Jabra'il: the 5th pillar is attributed to [[Jabra'il]]. In the night of [[Mi'raj]] when the Prophet (s) was moving from [[Masjid al-Haram]] to [[Masjid al-Aqsa]] and arrived in Kufa, Jabra'il told him: “O the messenger of God, you are now across from the Mosque of Kufa. The Prophet (s) asked for God’s permission and said two [[rak'as]] of prayers there. [[Imam al-Hasan (a)]] also said prayers near this pillar. Thus, it is also known as the position of Imam al-Hasan (a).

* Position of Imam Zayn al-'Abidin (a): the third pillar is where [[Imam al-Sajjad (a)]] said prayers. [[Abu Hamza Thumali]] says: I saw 'Ali b. al-Husayn (a) (that is, Imam al-Sajjad) entering the Mosque of Kufa, saying two rak'as of prayers, and then praying to God. After a while, he headed home to Medina. He was told why he had come to that place where his father and grandfather were killed. He said: “I visited my father and said prayers in this mosque”.

* [[Mihrab]] of Amir al-Mu'minin (a): this is the place where [[Ibn Muljam al-Muradi]] hit the Imam’s (a) head and martyred him.

* Position of Imam al-Sadiq (a): a person reported: “in the [[Abbasid]] period, I once saw Imam al-Sadiq (a) entering the mosque from Bab al-Fil and saying prayers near the 4th pillar.

* The place where Noah’s ship ran aground.

* Mausoleums of [[Muslim b. 'Aqil]] and [[Hani b. 'Urwa]]: after the [[martyrdom]] of Muslim and Hani, the Midhhaj tribe received [['Ubayd Allah b. Ziyad]]’s permission to bury their corpses near the governmental building. The place might have been selected because their graves as well as Shiite come-and-goes could be monitored by the government. Until 65/684, their graves had no sunshades. In 65/684, [[al-Mukhtar al-Thaqafi]] constructed a mausoleum and a dome for their graves and inscribed their names on a marble which was installed on their grave.

* The Grave of al-Mukhtar al-Thaqafi: al-Mukhtar al-Thaqafi’s grave is also located near the Mosque of Kufa close to that of Muslim b. 'Aqil and Hani b. 'Urwa.

* The Mosque of Kufa as a Center for Imam al-Mahdi’s (a) Judgeship: Imam al-Sadiq (a) said: “the center of Imam al-Mahdi’s (a) government will be in Kufa and the center of his judgeship will be the Mosque of Kufa”.