Tomb of Maryam (upon her be peace)

Here is the tomb of Maryam (upon her be peace)

[Mary], the mother of Isa (upon him be peace)

[Jesus]. It is located in a church at the foot of

the Mount of Olives, close to the old city of

Jerusalem.

In Islam, Maryam (upon her be peace) is

venerated as a righteous woman and is the

only woman mentioned by name in the Quran.

The 19th surah of the Quran is named after

her and she is mentioned more times in the

Quran than in the entire New Testament.

Maryam (upon her be peace)’s story in the

Quran, begins while she is still in her mother’s

womb. The mother of Mary said, “O my Lord! I

do dedicate into Thee what is in my womb for

Thy special service. So accept this of me for

Thou hearest and knowest all things.” [3:35] .

When Mary was delivered, she said, “O my

Lord! Behold! I am delivered of a female

child!” [3:36]. She had expected her baby to be

a boy who would grow up to be a scholar or

religious leader. The verse continues “…and

God knew best what she brought forth — ‘And

no wise is the male like the female. I have

named her Maryam, and I commend her and

her offspring to Thy protection from Satan, the

Rejected.’“

The Quran further mentions the qualities of

Maryam (upon him be peace), declaring her

(uniquely along with Isa a.s.) to be a Sign of

God to mankind [23:50]; as one who “guarded

her chastity” [66:20]; “an obedient one” [66:12]

; “a Chosen One” [3:42]; “a Purified One” [3:42]

; “a Truthful one” [5:75]; her child conceived

through “a Word from God” [3:45]; and “exalted

above all women of The Worlds/

Universes” [3:42].

The first tomb was cut in the hillside here in

the 1st century CE. By the 5th century, an

upper chapel had also been built. This was

destroyed by the Persians in 614, rebuilt by the

Crusaders but again destroyed by Salahuddin

Ayyubi in 1187. He left the crypt, however,

largely intact.

In the south western wall beside the tomb is a

mihrab (indicating the direction of Makkah)

that was installed after the conquest of

Jerusalem by Salahuddin Ayyubi.

References: Wikipedia, Jerusalem & the Holy Land

– Dorling Kindersley

Note that this entry has been shown for

information purposes only. On no account should

anybody pray towards a grave or seek

supplication through them as this is tantamount

to committing shirk, associating partners with

Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He).

Plan and vertical cross-section of the site

The interior of the sarcophagus. Now encased

with glass.

Staircase of 47 steps leading from the entrance

down into the tomb

The entrance stairs from between the two

chapels.