Position
of Al-Aqsa Mosque in Shiite Sources
The
other Shiite authorised books follow the same opinion expressed by their
Tafseer books, concerning the location of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Some
of their most prominent books that expressed the same opinion are:
One:
Bihaar Al-Anwaar:
Al-Majlisi
mentioned the following narration in his book, ‘Bihaar Al-Anwaar’: “I
asked Abu Abdullah about the meritorious mosques and he said: ‘The Sacred
Mosque (in Makkah) and the Prophet’s Mosque in Al-Madeenah.’ I asked him: ‘What
about Al-Aqsa Mosque, may I be your ransom?’ He answered: ‘That one is
in the heaven. It was unto it that the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him took a night journey.’ I then said: ‘But the people say,
it is the one that is in Jerusalem Iraq
Two:
Muntahal-Aamaal:
Muntahal-Aamaal
by ‘Abbas Al-Qummi has the following to say: “Though it is popularly held that Al-Aqsa
Mosque is the one that is in Jerusalem, what is preponderant in the light
of the many Hadiths is that Al-Aqsa Mosque is Al-Bayt Al-Ma’moor
that is in the fourth heaven, and it is the farthest mosque.”[2]
Three:
Kaamil Az-Ziyaaraat:
Ibn
Qulubah mentioned in his book, Kaamil Az-Ziyaaraat on the authority of
Abu Abdullah As-Sadiq who said: “A man came to the commander of the believers
while he was in Kufah mosque and said, ‘Peace and mercy of Allah be upon you,
commander of the faithful!’ He returned the greeting. The man then said, ‘May I
be your ransom, I want to go to Al-Aqsa Mosque and I am here to salute
and bid you farewell.’ Abu Abdullah said, ‘What do you want to attain by that
journey.’ The man answered, ‘Reward.’ He then told him, ‘Go and sell your
camel, eat your provision and pray in this mosque. For, an obligatory prayer
performed here has the reward of a perfectly performed Hajj, and a voluntary
prayer performed here has the reward of an accepted ‘Umrah. The blessing from
this mosque extends to a distance of twelve miles. The right side of this
mosque is blessing and its left side is strategy. There are in its center a
spring of oil, a spring of milk and a spring of water that is a drinking for
the believers. There is also another spring of water that is purification for
the believers. It is from this mosque that the Noah’s Ark
Four:
As-Saheeh fee Seerah An-Nabiyy Al-A‘zam’:
In
his book, ‘As-Saheeh fee Seerah An-Nabiyy Al-A‘zam’, Ja’far Al-‘Aamili
wrote: “Al-Aqsa is a mosque in the heaven.” He then cited a Hadith that
is not authentic, either in its chain of transmission or in its text, and
attributed the same to the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him. Here is the Hadith: “When I was taken for a night journey to the
heaven, I found this written on the Throne: There is no deity worthy of being
worshipped except Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah and I support him
with ‘Ali – peace be upon him.”[4]
In
his book, ‘Al-Aqsa Mosque: To Where?’, Al-‘Aamili supports his
interpretation with the following statement: “The word ‘Aqsa’
linguistically simply means ‘far’ and the Qur’anic rhetoric is the greatest
testimony for this. For, Allah says:
“Glorified (and Exalted)
is He (Allâh) (above all that (evil) they associate with Him) Who
took His slave (Muhammad, blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him) for a journey by night from
Al-Masjid-al-Harâm (at Makkah) to the farthest mosque (in Jerusalem), the
neighbourhood whereof We have blessed, in order that We might show him
(Muhammad,
blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
of Our Ayât (proofs, evidences, lessons, signs, etc.). Verily, He is the
All-Hearer, the All-Seer.” (Al-Israaa
17:1)
He
wrote further: “Israaa means night journey, whether horizontally or vertically.
And the word ‘Al-Aqsa’ means ‘far’. If it is hypothetically agreed that the Al-Aqsa
Mosque is the one that is in Jerusalem
Five:
Al-Kaafi
According
to the narration of Al-Kaafi, someone told Abu Abdullaah: “I was told
that you have one of Allah’s Names by which you travel to the Bayt
Al-Muqaddas and return to your house every night.” He said: “Do you know Bayt
Al-Muqaddas?” I said: “The only Bayt Al-Muqaddas that I know is the
one that is Shaam.” He said: “That is not Bayt Al-Muqaddas. Bayt
Al-Muqaddas is the house of the family of Muhammad (peace be upon him and
his family).” I said: “Until now, I used to believe that Bayt Al-Muqaddas
is that one that is Jerusalem
“They are but names which you have named - you and your fathers -
for which Allâh has sent down no authority.” (An-Najm 53:23)”[6]
Six: ‘Ilal Ash-Shara‘ia:
In
this book, its author, Muhammad Babawayh Al-Qummi recorded that Thabit ibn
Dinar said: “I asked Zainul-‘Aabideen Ali ibn Husain ibn ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib
about Allah, High and Exalted, as to whether He could be described to be in a
particular place.” Zainul-‘Abideen responded: “Far is He above all that.” I
said: “Why then did He take His Prophet on a night journey to the heaven?” He
said: “In order to show him the kingdoms of the heavens and His wonderful
creation.”[7]
Seven:
Al-Misbaah fil-Ad’iyah was-Salawaat waz-Ziyaaraat:
In
the commentary on Mi’raaj invocation mentioned in the book, ‘Al-Misbaah
fil-Ad’iyah was-Salawaat waz-Ziyaaraat’, by Taqiyyyuddeen Al-Kaf’ami, the
author wrote: “This invocation is of high importance. It is narrated by the
commander of the faithful ‘Ali ibn Abi Taalib from the Prophet, blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him. The summary of the narration is as follows, ‘When I
was taken for a night journey to the heaven, I kept braking one screen after
another until I broke seventy thousand screens. And between every two screens
is a distance of what is between the east and the west seventy thousand times.”[8]
Eight: Tafseel Wasaa’il ash-Shee’ah:
Muhammad
ibn Al-Hasan Al-‘Aamili (d.1104) mentioned in his Book, ‘Tafseel Wasaa’il
ash-Shee’ah ilaa Tahseel Masaa’il ash-Sharee’ah’ a chapter he named:
“Importance of respecting Makkah, Al-Madeenah and Kufah and desirability of
living there, giving alms there, performing much prayer there and traveling
there.”
Under
this title, he mentioned narrations that claim that, “as Makkah is a city
sanctified by Allah and Al-Madeenah is a city sanctified by the Prophet,
blessings and peace of Allah be upon him; Kufah is also a city sanctified by
the commander of the faithful, ‘Ali ibn Abi Taalib – may Allah be pleased with
him. No tyrant will intend to do harm to that city except that Allah destroys
him!”
He
also mentioned the following narrations: Abul-Hasan Musa ibn Ja’far narrated on
the authority of his fathers that the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him said: “Indeed, Allah selected four cities. He, High and
Exalted says:
“By the fig, and the olive. By Mount Sinai .
By this city of security (Makkah).” (At-Teen 95:1-3)
The
fig is Al-Madeenah, the olive is Jerusalem , Mount Sinai is Kufah and the city of security is Makkah.”[9]
In
his commentary on the following verse:
“And We made the son of Maryam (Mary) and his mother as a sign,
And We gave them refuge on high ground, a place of rest, security and flowing
streams.” (Al-Mu’minoon 23:50)
Muhammad
ibn Al-Hasan Al-‘Aamili claimed that the ‘high ground’, is Kufah; that the
‘place of rest’, is the Kufah mosque and that the ‘flowing stream’, is the Euphrates .[10]
[1] See: Bihaar
Al-Anwaar’ by Muhammad ibn Baaqir Al-Majlisi 97/405; Third Edition 1403 – 198;
published byDaar Ihyaa Turaath Al-‘Arabi.
[3] Kaamil
Az-Ziyaaraat p80; Bihaar Al-Anwaar 97/404; Al-Wasaail 3/529; and Furoo’
Al-Kaafi by Abu Ja’far Al-Kulaini 3/491
[8] See: Al-Misbaah
by Taqiyyuddeen Ibraaheem ibn ‘Ali Al-‘Aamili Al-Kaf’ami (d.900 A.H.) Edited by
Husain Al-‘Aamili; Second Edition 2003; Muassasah Al-A’lami lil-Matbu’aat,
Beirut, Lebanon
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