The Cellar of Occultation: Difference between revisions
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==The Well of Occultation== | ==The Well of Occultation== | ||
The common belief is that the well located in the Cellar of Occultation is the place through which Imam al-Mahdi entered into occultation. However, according to Muhaddith Nuri, this place was originally a basin used by the Imams for ablution, and later it became a spot where Shia believers would place their written supplications addressed to Imam al-Mahdi ( | The common belief is that the well located in the Cellar of Occultation is the place through which Imam al-Mahdi entered into occultation. However, according to Muhaddith Nuri, this place was originally a basin used by the Imams for ablution, and later it became a spot where Shia believers would place their written supplications addressed to Imam al-Mahdi(a).<ref>Qomī, "Hadiyat al-Zāʾirīn wa Bahjat al-Nāẓirīn", p.84/85.</ref> | ||
Architecture of the Cellar | ==Architecture of the Cellar== | ||
A wooden window from the 7th century AH | ===A wooden window from the 7th century AH=== | ||
The Cellar of Occultation is a small chamber measuring 2 by 1.5 meters, located underground and connected to the ground floor of the building by a staircase of twenty steps. | The Cellar of Occultation is a small chamber measuring 2 by 1.5 meters, located underground and connected to the ground floor of the building by a staircase of twenty steps. | ||
The ceiling and walls of the chamber are decorated with seven-color tiles from the era of Naser al-Din Shah Qajar, and an inscription on these tiles recounts his visitation to this place in the year 1287 AH. | The ceiling and walls of the chamber are decorated with seven-color tiles from the era of Naser al-Din Shah Qajar, and an inscription on these tiles recounts his visitation to this place in the year 1287 AH.<ref>Khāmeh-yār , "Maqām-hā-yi Ḥazrat Mahdī (ʿAjal Allāh Farajuh al-Sharīf) dar ʿIrāq.", p. 103.</ref> | ||
In this chamber, there was a very exquisite wooden door that bore inscriptions written in Naskh script. The door is lattice-designed and has two panels, and according to its inscriptions, it was made in the year 606 AH by order of the Abbasid caliph al-Nāsir li-Dīn Allah—who followed the Shia creed—and under the supervision of Abu Tamim Ma‘add ibn Husayn ibn Sa‘d al-Mūsawi (d. 617 AH). | In this chamber, there was a very exquisite wooden door that bore inscriptions written in Naskh script. The door is lattice-designed and has two panels, and according to its inscriptions, it was made in the year 606 AH by order of the Abbasid caliph al-Nāsir li-Dīn Allah—who followed the Shia creed—and under the supervision of Abu Tamim Ma‘add ibn Husayn ibn Sa‘d al-Mūsawi (d. 617 AH).<ref>Ṣāḥibī, " Waqf-i Mīrāth-i Jāwidān. “Bāb Ghiybat dar Sāmarrā ", p. 86.</ref> | ||
This door is no longer in the cellar and, according to a report, it is kept in the storage of the shrine of the Two Askari Imams.(11)*** | This door is no longer in the cellar and, according to a report, it is kept in the storage of the shrine of the Two Askari Imams.(11)*** | ||
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Around the chamber, there is also a band inscription in Kufic script containing salutations upon the Fourteen Infallibles. | Around the chamber, there is also a band inscription in Kufic script containing salutations upon the Fourteen Infallibles. | ||
This historical artifact was seriously damaged during one of the terrorist explosions that occurred at the sacred shrine in Samarra; its main part was destroyed, and today only its border remains. | This historical artifact was seriously damaged during one of the terrorist explosions that occurred at the sacred shrine in Samarra; its main part was destroyed, and today only its border remains.<ref>Khāmeh-yār , "Maqām-hā-yi Ḥazrat Mahdī (ʿAjal Allāh Farajuh al-Sharīf) dar ʿIrāq.", p. 103.</ref> | ||
==Renovations== | ==Renovations== | ||