A traveller's reflection: Iraq Day 08: Baghdad Tour

“When traveling with someone, take large doses of patience and tolerance with your morning coffee...” - Helen Hayes

(Makam Sheikh Al Ma'arof Al Karkhi)

Day 08: 20 Dec 2023 (Wednesday)
Route: Baghdad Full day Tour
Hotel: Hotel Mansour, Baghdad

Today we embarked in a full-day tour of Baghdad city to experience the rich culture and history of the Iraqi capital. We we had the opportunity of visiting the mausoleums of famous sufis and Imams. We started our tour with the visit to Makam Sheikh Al Ma'arof Al Karkhi located about 3 km from our hotel. There are several mausoleums around the area which were just a walking distance from each other.

(The ancient cemetery at Abu Ma'aruf Al Karkhi's Shrine in Baghdad)

Makam Sheikh Al Ma'arof Al Karkhi

Sheikh Ma’arof was born in the district of Wasit or Karkh in Baghdad. He was of Persian origin. Ma’arof converted to Islam at a young age at the h ands of Ali al-Ridha after rejecting all forms of polytheism. Tradition recounts that he immediately went and told his father and mother, who rejoiced at his decision and became Muslims themselves. After accepting Islam, Ma’arof became a student of Dawud al-Ta'i, and underwent a severe trial of his discipleship. Ma’arof, however, remained steadfast and proved himself so devout that his righteousness became locally famous. Ma’arof is also known to have a close relationship with Ahmad ibn Hanbal, in which ibn Hanbal is reported to have said "True knowledge is only that which Ma‘arof has achieved.”

(A long walk uphill to the Sheikh Maarof Mausoleum)

(A beautiful mausoleum perched on top of a hill)

(The serene ambiance in the main prayer hall0

(Quranic verses on the wall)

(Makam Sheikh Al-Ma’arof Al-Karkhi)

(The golden chamber)

Makam Siti Zubaidah

Zubaidah bint Jaafar was the wife of a Caliph Harun al-Rasyid born in Mosul in 149H. They had a son Al-Amin who became Caliph after Ar-Rasyid. Zubaidah died in 216H, buried in Baghdad at the age of 71. The tomb of Siti Zubaidah is also known by various names including Tomb of Zumurrud Khatun, Al-Khaffafin Mosque and Al-Haza'ir Mosque. It is located in the center of the city of Baghdad near Madrasah Mustansiriya. It was built by Siti Zubaidah or Zumurrud Khatun before her death. Siti Zubaidah is known for her philanthropy and respect for scholars and scientists. She once built several wells that continued from Baghdad to Mecca and Medina simply to provide facilities for pilgrims. Until today, the route is called Darb Zubaidah which means Zubaidah Route after her name.

(The Tomb of Siti Zubaidah)

(Tombs dated back to the Abbasid era)

(The Zumurrud Khatun Mosque and Mausoleum)

(The distinct nine layered honeycomb muqarnas dome)

(Paying our respect to Siti Zubaidah)

Makan Sheikh Bahlul

Bahlul or his real name Wahab Bin Amr was born in Kuffah, lived during the reign of Caliph Harun Al-Rasyid, which is during the Bani Abbasid period. At that time, Bahlul who was an Islamic scholar was considered 'crazy' because of his character which was seen as 'sloppy' and often did unexpected things. He is the cousin of caliph Harun al-Rasyid. Bahlul has left the wealth and luxury of his life to live in a simple style. Because of that he was given the nickname Bahlul by the locals. Bahlull is not actually crazy, but he has such a character to hide his wisdom from being known by others.

(Sheikh Bahlul which literally means a laughing fool)

(He was a well known judge and scholar)

(He was a companion of Musa Al Kazim)

Makam Nabi Yusha bin Nun

Yusha son of Nun, son of Ephraim, son of Prophet Yusuf (Joseph), son of Prophet Ya’qub (Jacob), son of Prophet Ishaaq (Isaac), son of Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham). So Yusha is the great-grandson of Prophet Yusuf and out of six of his forefathers, four were prophets. Prophet Yusha ibn Nun was narrated by Imam Ahmad in which the Prophet Muhammad said: "The sun has never stopped for any man besides Yusha when he wanted to conquer Bayt al-Muqaddis. Yusha took over and led the Bani Israil over the River Jordan and into the surroundings of Jericho, also known locally as Ariha. Alternative sites for the Prophet Yusha's tomb are situated in Turkey (the shrine on Joshua's Hill in Istanbul), Jordan (An-Nabi Yusha' bin Noon, a Sunni shrine near the city of Al-Salt) and Iraq (the Nabi Yusha' shrine of Baghdad).

(One of the many shrines of Nabi Yusha)

(A simple memorial tomb of Nabi Yusha)

Makam Sheikh Al Junaid Al Baghdadi

His full name is Abu Qasim al-Junaid ibn Muhammad ibn Junaid al-Baghdadi. He later became more popular as al-Junaid al-Baghdadi, and sometimes just al-Junaid. Born in the city of Nihawand, Persia and died in 298 H/910 AD. His family settled in Baghdad, where he studied Islamic law of the Imam Shafi'i school, and eventually became the chief qadi in Baghdad. He studied fiqh from Abu Tsur al-Kalbi who was a direct student of Imam As-Shafi'e.

(A chief Qadi of Baghdad)

Makam Sheikh Abu Hassan Al Sirri

Abū al-Ḥasan Sarī (al-Sirrī) b. al-Mughallis al-Saqaṭī (867CE) also known as Sirri Saqti was one of the early Muslim Sufi saints of Baghdad. He was one of the most influential students of Maruf Karkhi and one of the first to present Sufism in a systematic way. He was also a friend of Bishr al-Hafi. He was the maternal uncle and spiritual master of Junayd of Baghdad.

(Makam Abū al-Ḥasan al-Sirrī is on the left)

(A Pakistani group was waiting for their turn to visit the mausoleum)

After visiting the six makams, we boarded the bus and travelled about 10 km to Imam Abu Hanifa Mosque to visit Makam Imam Abu Hanifah. We performed our solat jamak Zohor/Asar there. In Iraq it has become common for members of the two sects, Shi'ah and Sunni to pray at the same mosques. Both share faith in the Quran and the Prophet Mohammad's sayings and perform similar prayers, although they differ in rituals and interpretation of Islamic law.

Masjid Imam Abu Hanifah

Nuʿmān ibn Thābit ibn Zūṭā ibn Marzubān (696 - 767), commonly known by his kunyah Abū Ḥanīfah, or reverently as Imam Abū Ḥanīfah by Sunni Muslims. He was a Sunni Muslim theologian and jurist who became the eponymous founder of the Hanafi school of Sunni jurisprudence, which has remained the most widely practised law school in the Sunni tradition, predominating in Central Asia, Afghanistan, Iran, Turkey, the Balkans, Russia, Circassia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Muslims in India, and some parts of the Arab world. He is also widely called al-Imām al-Aʿẓam, "The Greatest Imam" and Sirāj al-Aʾimma, "The Lamp of the Imams" by Sunni muslims.

(Masjid Imam Hanifah from across the main road)

(The main entrance to the Abu Hanifah Mosque)

(Retractable umbrellas and a huge clock tower)

(Waiting for the caretaker to unlock the door to the makam)

(A simple makam for Sirāj al-Aʾimma)

(The beautiful interior of the mosque)

(The huge main prayer hall)

We had lunch at the famous Restaurant al-Beiruti by the Tigris River. The signature dish here is the Masgouf or Iraqi Grilled Fish, marinated with olive oil, rock salt, tamarind, and ground turmeric. The delicious grilled fish is eaten either with rice or the crispy flatbread. If you like grilled fish, there's no better place to be in Baghdad!

(Beiruti Cafe - one of the oldest surviving cafe)

(A cafe overlooking the Tigris River)

(A large dish of Masgouf with flatbread and pilaf rice)

After lunch the bus brought us to the tomb of Imam Ahmad Hanbali in Al-Rasafa located amidst the old quarters of Baghdad. The tomb of Imam Ahmad Hanbali, looks quiet, unattended, and simple. Unlike the tomb of other Sufi figures in Iraq, Imam Ahmad Hanbali's tomb is not as magnificent.

Makam Imam Ahmad Hanbali

Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Hanbal bin Hilal bin Asad bin Idris as-Syaibani was born in Baghdad in 164H. When he was 15 years old, he started studying and studying hadith. He often accompanied his teacher, Husyaim bin Bashir and wrote more than 3,000 hadiths. After his teacher died, Imam Ahmad traveled to Kufah, Basrah, Makkah, Medina, Yemen, Sham and Khurasan. Imam Ahmad is the founder of the Hanbali school of thoughts, one of the four famous schools of jurisprudence. He went through various challenges and difficulties in learning. Returning to Baghdad, his name became famous and known for his pious, virtuous, ascetic nature.

(A dirty wet alley leading to Imam Hanbali's tomb)

(A small makam, a final resting place of a pious man)

(Signages to Makam Imam Hanbali)

His mastery of hadith knowledge was so extraordinary that Imam as-Syafie once referred hadith to him. He also has a strong memory. He memorized a million hadiths. Among his students are his two sons, Soleh and Abdullah bin Ahmad, al-Bukhari, Muslim and Abu Dawud. Imam Ahmad was once imprisoned for 28 months and flogged during the time of Caliph al-Mu'tasim who adhered to the Mu'tazilah doctrine. During the time of Caliph al-Wathiq, he was to be expelled from Baghdad, causing him to hide until the death of the caliph. Imam Ahmad died in 241H in Baghdad at the age of 77. When he died, it is said that more than a million people came to visit his remains.

(A simple tomb for a great Imam)

(A small prayer area at the makam)

(The humble caretaker of the makam)

Back to the hotel to freshen up and a short rest. By 5.30 we were ready to visit Baghdad Kazimiyah Bazaar for shopping and dinner. It took us about 45 minutes through a massive traffic jam. As usual there were security checks at the entrance of the open night market. We bought some sweets and Iraq delights with whatever balance of our Iraqi dinar. We walked quite a distance till the end of the night market to Makam Musa bin Kazim, one of the great grandsons of Prophet Muhammad. We did not visit the makam as there was quite a crowd at the security check points and tonight I was not wearing the abaya.