Biography of Imam `alĪ Ibn AbĪ-tĀlib

The Burial

The twenty-first night of Ramadan was in its last stage. The dull radiance of the moon was pervading the environment, the stars were twinkling and there was silence in the abode of Imamate. On one side were the close relations of the Imam (a.s) and on the other were his Companions. They were all a picture of sadness and pathos. Arrangements were being made for the final bath and giving him the shroud. Imam al-Hasan and Imam al-Husayn (a.s) gave him the bath in a way that Imam al-Husayn (a.s) was pouring the water and Imam al-Hasan (a.s) was rubbing the body. According to one narration, Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah was pouring the water and Imam al-Hasan and Imam al-Husayn (a.s) were rubbing the body. After the bath, the camphor that was left over after the final bath of the Prophet (a.s) was embalmed on the Imam’s body. Then the body was shrouded with a white cloth. According to the wish of the Imam (a.s), his mortal remains were buried the same night he died. The bier was taken to the western side of al-Kūfah towards al-Hirah.

When it reached Najaf near al-Hirah, the bier was put on the ground and Imam al-Hasan (a.s) led the funeral prayer with five or seven Takbirs. Al-Daynawari writes:

“`Ali was buried and al-Hasan offered the Funeral Prayer with five Takbirs.”[1]

After the funeral prayer, between the white hills, at one place, they removed the soil and found a grave ready. Imam al-Hasan and Imam al-Husayn, Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah and Muhammad ibn Ja`far entered the grave and the body was lowered into it. The grave was then closed with bricks and earth was poured over it and brought to the level of the ground.

In the desert of Najaf, the body was quietly consigned to the grave and people learned about this when Imam al-Hasan and Imam al-Husayn (a.s) and other close persons returned to al-Kūfah. Gossip started among the populace. Some said that he had been interred inside the Dar al-Imarah, others said that he had

[1] Al-Akhbār al-Tiwāl, Page 216

been buried in the al-Kūfah Mosque. Some were of opinion that the burial was done in al-Rahbah al-Kūfah and many thought that the body was taken to the locality of Karkh in Baghdad. But the correct location of the grave was known only to the sons of the Imam (a.s) and some close Companions who were in the funeral procession. One reason for keeping the location of the grave secret was that they feared barbarous acts from the Khawarij and the Umayyads that was witnessed at the Battle of Uhud when the limbs of the martyrs’ bodies were severed by the barbarous Umayyads. When the period of Banū-Umayyah was over, during the reign of Abul-`Abbas al-Saffah, Imam Ja`far al-Sadiq (a.s) came to Iraq and informed about the location of the grave to his Companions, Abū-Basir, `Abdullah ibn Talhah, the freed slave of Ibn Khunays, Yūnus ibn ²abyan and Zurarah… etc. Then commenced the visits by the Shi`ah from all over the world.

Through the confirmation of Imam Ja`far al-Sadiq and other Imams, it is established that the last resting place of Amir al-Mu’minin (a.s) is the holy city of Najaf which is a place of pilgrimage from the `Abbasid reign and the scholars of the Ahl al-Sunnah too have mentioned clearly about the location. Therefore, Ibn al-Athir writes:

“The correct belief is that his grave is the same that is visited by the masses for pilgrimage and is a source of felicity for the people.”[1]

Ibn Abil-Hadid writes that Abul-Ghana’im Muhammad ibn `Ali, who died in 510 H, used to say:

“In al-Kūfah, three hundred Companions died, but other than the grave of Amir al-Mu’minin, the grave of any other Companion cannot be traced. The Imam’s grave is the same that is visited by people for Ziyarah.”[2]

[1] Al-Kāmil fit-Tārīkh, Vol 3, Page 199
[2] Sharh Nahj al-Balāghah by Ibn Abil-Hadīd, Vol 2, Page 45