What did Ibn Battuta see in Kufa, Najaf and Karbala?
Ibn Battuta visited the shrine towns of Iraq and recorded what he saw at the tombs of ʿAlī and al-Ḥusayn.
6 passages from 2 books in the library
On the pilgrims' road, Ibn Battuta saw people from Kufa come to the Euphrates to greet the pilgrims with bread, dates and fruit. He visited its blessed mosque; outside it lie the graves of Atiqa and Suqa'ina, daughters of Husayn, and of the palace built by Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas only the foundations remain. The Euphrates runs half a farsang east amid palm gardens. West of the cemetery he saw a black patch on a white plain, said to be the grave of ibn Muljam, where people burn a fire for seven days each year.
Drawn from the classical sources below — in the scholars' own words.
The classical approach.
These passages are drawn from 2 books by Ibn Battuta — part of the classical Sunni tradition that carries over a thousand years of reflection on the Qurʾān, the authentic Sunnah, and the consensus of the early community. Nothing below is a paraphrase. The words are the scholars' own, translated from the original Arabic manuscripts.
14th century · Tangier, Morocco
The Riḥlah — a 30-year, 75,000-mile journey across three continents, and the most important travel account of the pre-modern world.
More on Ibn Battuta →
· Provenance →
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"The Euphrates is about half a farsang, ancient unit of distance from Kufa to its east, surrounded by lush, interconnecting palm gardens. West of the Kufa cemetery, I came across a spot of intense blackness in a white plain. I was informed that it was the grave of the wicked ibn Muljam, and that the people of Kufa bring a large amount of wood every year to burn a fire over his grave for seven days."
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"a large palace, water structures, and an Arab-inhabited area, marking the last water point along this path. Beyond it to Kufa, the well-known source is the riverbanks of the Euphrates. There, many people from Kufa greet pilgrims bringing flour, bread, dates, and fruits, congratulating each other on their safe journey. We stopped at a site called Lara, featuring a large water cistern, and then moved on to a place known as al-Masajid, which has three water structures."
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"Nearby, outside the mosque, is the grave of Atiqa and Suqa'ina, daughters of Husayn. Peace be upon him. As for the famous governor's palace in Kufa built by Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas, may Allah be pleased with him, only its foundations remain. The Euphrates is about half a farsang, ancient unit of distance from Kufa to its east, surrounded by lush, interconnecting palm gardens."
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"with him. Al-Qadisiyyah was a great city conquered by Sa'ad, now reduced to the size of a large village, boasting palm gardens and riverbanks along the Euphrates. From al-Qadisiyyah, we journeyed to the city of the shrine of Ali ibn Abi Talib, may God be pleased with him, in Najaf. It is a pleasant city situated in a vast, solid plain, one of the most beautiful and populous cities of Iraq, well built with clean, attractive markets. We entered through the Bab al-Hadra and were welcomed by the market of grocers, cooks, and bakers, followed by the fruit market, then the tailor's market, and the kaiseriyah, and then the perfumer's"
14th century · Tangier, Morocco
The Riḥlah — a 30-year, 75,000-mile journey across three continents, and the most important travel account of the pre-modern world.
More on Ibn Battuta →
· Provenance →
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"traveled to the tomb of Ali ibn Abi Talib. May Allah be pleased with him. And we visited it. We then headed toward Kufa and visited its blessed mosque, followed by a journey to Hila, where the shrine of Sahib al-Zaman is located. During some of those days, a certain governor took charge and prevented the locals from their usual practice of visiting the mosque of Sahib al-Zaman and waiting for him there. He also denied them the animal they used to receive each night from the governor. As a result, that governor quickly fell ill and died. This incident further inflamed the Rafida people, who claimed he suffered due"
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"There, I encountered a distinguished jurist from Baghdad called al-Sarsari, named after a town ten miles from Baghdad on the road to Kufa, its name being the same as the sur sur near us in the Maghreb. He had a brother in this city with substantial wealth who left young children under his care, and I left him preparing to take them to Baghdad."
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