The Shiites and Al-Aqsa - Kufah Mosque

Superiority of the Kufah Mosque over the Three Mosques in the Estimation of the Shiites

In addition to Kufah mosque being superior to Al-Aqsa Mosque in the estimation of the Shiites, they also have narrations, indicating that the Kufah mosque is superior to all other mosques with the only exception of the Sacred Mosque in Makkah; and that Kufah is the hallowed place blessed by Allah, the place of worship of the angels before Adam was created and the place of worship for Adam and the messengers and prophets, as well as the saints and righteous men who came after him! They also have reports indicating that there is a garden of Paradise in the middle of the Kufah and that the city will be the first point of resurrection of the creation on the Day of Judgment! However, the strangest thing is that it is regarded as one of the mosques to which a journey is taken (for the purpose of worship)!![1]

This is supported by the following narrations from their books:

Sheikh Sadduq recorded in ‘Al-Khisaal’: “No journey should be undertaken (for the purpose of worship) but to one of the three mosques: The Sacred Mosque, the Prophet’s Mosque and the Kufah mosque.”[2]

He also recorded in his work, ‘Maa laa Yahdhuruhul-Faqeeh’, on the authority of the commander of the faithful ‘Ali – may Allah be pleased with him – that he said: “No journey should be undertaken (for the purpose of worship) but to one of the three mosques: The Sacred Mosque, the Prophet’s Mosque and the Kufah mosque.”[3]

The Kufah occupies, in the estimation of the Shiites, a position that is higher than that of Al-Aqsa.[4] This is explicitly mentioned in their narrations which they wrote in their authorized books. Some of these false narrations are as follows:

Al-Kulaini recorded in his book, ‘Al-Kaafi’ on the authority of Khalid Al-Qalaanasi who said he heard Abu Abullaah As-Saadiq saying: “A prayer performed in Kufah mosque equals a thousand prayers performed elsewhere.”[5]

Hassaan ibn Mihraan reported on the authority of Abu Abdullaah who narrated that he heard the commander of the faithful ‘Ali ibn Abi Taalib – may Allah be pleased with him – saying: “Makkah is Allah’s sanctified city, Al-Madeenah is the sanctified city of the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace of Allah be upon him and Kufah is my sanctified city. If any tyrant intends to harm it, Allah will destroy him.”[6]

Another version reads: “Kufah is a sanctified city of Allah, His Messenger and the commander of the faithful. A prayer in it equals a thousand prayer performed elsewhere and a dirham spent in it equals a thousand dirhams spent elsewhere.”[7]

Another narration says: “Indeed, Allah has a sacred city which is Makkah, and His Messenger has a sacred city which is Al-Madeenah, the commander of the faithful has a sacred city which is Kufah and we have a sacred city which is Qom.[8] A woman from among my offspring whose name is Faatimah will be buried there. Whoever visits her will certainly be admitted to Paradise.”[9]

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[1] The deviant and misguided Qadiani (Ahmadiyyah) sect that reared its ugly head from India also has similar belief. They Qadianis believe that Al-Aqsa Mosque is Mirza mosque that is in Qadian and not the one that is in Jerusalem. Their mouthpiece, Fadhl, issued on September 3, 1935, said: “Indeed, Allah sanctified the three places; Makkah, Al-Madeenah and Qadian, and He selected these three for His appearances.” According to the issue 23 of the same newspaper, “What is meant by night journey from the Sacred Mosque to the Al-Aqsa Mosque the neighborhood of which is blessed is Qadian mosque!!”

[2] Kaamil Az-Ziyaaraat p137

[3] Al-Wasaail 3/525

[4] The one who built the Kufah is the great Companion, Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqaas – may Allah be pleased with him – in the year 17 A.H. after the Battle of Qadisiyyah and during the caliphate of ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattaab – may Allah be pleased with him. It is however, strange that the Shiites so much hate this this noble Companion that they call him ‘Qaroon of this Ummah’ in their narrations. In the introduction to Al-Burhaan (p280), Abu Hasan Al-‘Aamiri wrote: “Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqaas is the Qaroon of this Ummah in the sense that he apostatized by refusing to give allegiance to the commander of the believers, Ali!!” Now the questions the questions are: Why didn’t the rightly-guided caliph, Ali ibn Abi Taalib – may Allah be pleased with him – demolish the mosque when he moved to Kufah and he was then the caliph and the ruler if the one who built it was an apostate – as the Shiites claim? Why would the Shiites imams recommend praying there in spite of their claim that its builder Sa’d ibn Abi Waqaas – may Allah be pleased with him – was an apostate and ‘the Qaaroon of this Ummah’?! How did the Shiites come about the merits attributed to a mosque built under the command of ‘Umar – may Allah be pleased with him?! Didn’t Ja’far As-Saadiq say, “Any act of worship based upon impiety is of no benefit”?!

[5] Al-Wasaail 3/547

[6] Tafseel Wasaail Ash-Shee’ah 4/360

[7] Kaamil Az-Ziyaaraat 73-74

[8] Qom is a holy city, according to the Shiites. It is situated in Iran and all its inhabitants are Shiites. (See: Mu’jam Al-Buldaan 4/397). One of the reason for regarding it as holy city is that Fatimah bint Musa ibn Ja’far, their seventh imam was buried there. (See: Mashaahid Al-‘Itrah by Abdur-Razzaaq Al-Husaini p. 162)

[9] Bihaar Al-Anwaar 102/267