The Jamkaran Mosque (), also known as Saheb al-Zaman Mosque, is a

Shi'ite Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood to ...

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

and

shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...

, located in the village of Jamkaran, on the outskirts of the city of

Qom Qom (; ) is a city in the Central District of Qom County, Qom province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is the seventh largest metropolis and also the seventh largest city in Iran. The city is ...

, in the province of

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. The architecture of the mosque is defined by its stunning display of Islamic art and craftsmanship, featuring intricate tile work, five majestic domes, and spacious courtyards, including the Sahib Al-Zaman Courtyard, dedicated in honor of the

Twelfth Imam Muhammad al-Mahdi () is believed by the Twelver Shia to be the last of the Twelve Imams and the eschatological Mahdi, who will emerge in the end of time to establish peace and justice and redeem Islam. Hasan al-Askari, the eleventh Imam ...

. The main prayer hall, with its impressive

iwan An iwan (, , also as ''ivan'' or ''ivān''/''īvān'', , ) is a rectangular hall or space, usually vaulted, walled on three sides, with one end entirely open. The formal gateway to the iwan is called , a Persian term for a portal projecting ...

, is adorned with verses from the

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

and Islamic motifs.

History

The mosque, east of Qom, has been a sacred place, at least since 17th of

Ramadan Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. It is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting (''Fasting in Islam, sawm''), communal prayer (salah), reflection, and community. It is also the month in which the Quran is believed ...

, in , (22 February), when Sheikh Hassan ibn Muthlih Jamkarani reportedly met the

along with the prophet Al-Khidr. Jamkarani was instructed that the land they were on was "noble" and that the owner — Hasan bin Muslim — was to cease cultivating it and finance the building of a mosque on it from the earnings he had accumulated from farming the land.

20th and 21st-century history

Sometime in the decade of 1995-2005, the mosque's reputation spread, and many pilgrims, particularly young people, began to come to it. In the rear of the mosque, there is a "well of requests" where it is believed the Twelfth Imam once "became miraculously unhidden for a brief shining moment of loving communion with his Creator." Pilgrims tie small strings in a knot around the grids covering the holy well, which they hope will be received by the Imam Mahdi. Every morning custodians cut off the strings from the previous day. Tuesday night is especially popular as it is said to be "the day the vision appeared and therefore the day of the week that he Imam although invisible, takes requests." The gathering "resembles a huge tailgate party where vendors set up in the parking lots and families set up picnic rugs and tens of thousands wander about the grounds as if waiting for the main event to happen." More than a hundred thousand pilgrims sometimes pray outside the overflowing mosque for

Maghrib prayer Maghrib () is one of the five mandatory salah (Islamic prayers), and contains three cycles (''rak'a''). If counted from midnight, it is the fourth one. According to Shia and Sunni Muslims, the period for Maghrib prayer starts just after sun ...

. In keeping with separation of the sexes, women are separated from men in their own special cordoned-off area and also have their own well. Also on Tuesdays, the mosque kitchen provides a free evening meal to thousands of poor people. One of the first acts of the government of President

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (born Mahmoud Sabbaghian on 28 October 1956) is an Iranian Iranian principlists, principlist and Iranian nationalism, nationalist politician who served as the sixth president of Iran from 2005 to 2013. He is currently a mem ...

was to donate £10 million to fund plans to turn "the normal-sized Jamkaran mosque into a massive complex of prayer halls, minarets, car parks and ablutions." In recent years, overseers of the Jamkaran compound have become sensitive to its foreign images and have restricted foreign press from the main mosque and well. On 4 January 2020, a blood-red flag symbolizing vengeance unfurled above the dome in response to the

2020 Baghdad International Airport airstrike On 3 January 2020, Qasem Soleimani, an Iranian major general, was killed by an American drone strike ordered by U.S. president Donald Trump near Baghdad International Airport in Iraq, while travelling to meet Iraqi prime minister Adil Ab ...

. However, usually the red flag is raised during

Muharram Al-Muharram () is the first month of the Islamic calendar. It is one of the four sacred months of the year when warfare is banned. It precedes the month of Safar. The tenth of Muharram is known as Ashura, an important day of commemoration in ...

and it also flown in response to the

COVID-19 pandemic in Iran The COVID-19 pandemic in Iran has resulted in confirmed cases of COVID-19 and deaths. On 19 February 2020, Iran reported its first confirmed cases of infections in Qom. The virus may have been brought to the country by a merchant from Qom ...

whenever a milestone of casualties was reached.

Gallery

Jamkaran.001.jpg, Jamkaran.002.jpg Jamkaran.003.jpg Jamkaran.004.jpg Jamkaran.005.jpg Jamkaran.006.jpg The Jamkaran Mosque.jpg Qadr_night_in_Jamkaran_2.jpg Jamkaran Mosque مسجد جمکران قم 21.jpg مسجد جمکران - panoramio (10).jpg Jamkaran Mosque مسجد جمکران 05.jpg مسجد جمکران - panoramio (11).jpg

References

External links

* {{Qom Province 10th-century mosques Afsharid dynasty Buyid dynasty Mosque buildings with domes in Iran Mosque buildings with minarets in Iran Mosques in Qom province Qom County Safavid mosques in Iran Shia mosques in Iran Shrines in Iran

History

20th and 21st-century history

Gallery

See also

References

Further reading

External links