The Al-Kādhimiya Mosque is a shrine

Shrine

A shrine is a holy or sacred place, which is dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon or similar figure of awe and respect, at which they are venerated or worshipped. Shrines often contain idols, relics, or other such objects associated with the figure being venerated....

 located in the Kādhimayn suburb of Baghdad

Baghdad

Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...

, Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

.

It contains the tombs of the seventh Twelver Shī‘ah Imām

Imamah (Shi'a doctrine)

Imāmah is the Shia doctrine of religious, spiritual and political leadership of the Ummah. The Shīa believe that the A'immah are the true Caliphs or rightful successors of Muḥammad, and further that Imams are possessed of divine knowledge and authority as well as being part of the Ahl al-Bayt,...

 Mūsā al-Kādhim

Musa al-Kadhim

' was the seventh of the Twelve Imams of Twelver Shi'a Islam. He was the son of Imam and his mother was Hamidah Khātūn, a student and former Zanjiyyah slave...

 and the ninth Twelver Shī‘ah Imām Muhammad at-Taqī.

Also buried within this mosque are the famous historical scholars, Shaykh Mufīd and Shaykh Nasīr ad-Dīn Tūsi

Nasir al-Din al-Tusi

Khawaja Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad ibn Ḥasan Ṭūsī , better known as Naṣīr al-Dīn al-Ṭūsī , was a Persian polymath and prolific writer: an astronomer, biologist, chemist, mathematician, philosopher, physician, physicist, scientist, theologian and Marja Taqleed...

.

Directly adjacent to the mosque are two smaller shrines, belonging to the brothers who compiled Nahjul Balagha - Shaykh Radhi and Shaykh Murtadhā.

Inner Structure

Repairs to the crumbling structure of the main courtyard of the mosque and its surrounding rooms were carried out in three phases, spanning a period of four months, before the end of the year 2007. The project entailed the stripping off of the old crumbling walls throughout the courtyard, the addition of various reinforcements to the walls and ceilings, as well as maintenance on the electrical wirings throughout the mosque. Once the inner structure was completed, the floors and walls were then plated in various kinds of marble. Updates to the cooling units of the mosque began in late 2008, and new water filtration units were installed on November 28, 2008.

Construction work on the new ladies entrance to the mosque (Bāb al-Fatimah) began in late 2008, along with the construction work for new rooms to the mosque meant for serving refreshments to pilgrims.

Outer Structure

Among the earliest of repairs done to the mosque after the fall of the regime of Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...

, were repairs done to one of the entrance gates of the mosque known as Bāb al-Qiblah. The gate and the outer wall had to be entirely refurbished due to the severe neglect they had withstood, and took seven months to complete, having started in early September, 2006.

The golden dome over the grave of Muhammad at-Taqī was re-gilded and unveiled to the public in March 2008, during the birthday celebrations of Muhammad

Muhammad

Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...

 and his descendant, Ja‘far as-Sādiq

Ja'far al-Sadiq

Jaʿfar ibn Muhammad al-Sādiq was a descendant of Muhammad and a prominent Muslim jurist. He is revered as an Imam by the adherents of Shi'a Islam and as a renowned Islamic scholar and personality by Sunni Muslims. The Shi'a Muslims consider him to be the sixth Imam or leader and spiritual...

. Repair work on the dome over the grave of Mūsā al-Kādhim

Musa al-Kadhim

' was the seventh of the Twelve Imams of Twelver Shi'a Islam. He was the son of Imam and his mother was Hamidah Khātūn, a student and former Zanjiyyah slave...

 began in early August 2008, during the birthday ceremonies of Husayn ibn ‘Alī

Husayn ibn Ali

Hussein ibn ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib ‎ was the son of ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib and Fātimah Zahrā...

, ‘Abbās ibn ‘Alī, and ‘Alī ibn Husayn.

Timeline

Date	Event
March 2, 2004	At least 75 people were killed and hundreds others were wounded as crowds had gathered to commemorate ‘Āshūrā' Day of Ashura The Day of Ashura is on the 10th day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar and marks the climax of the Remembrance of Muharram.It is commemorated by Shia Muslims as a day of mourning for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala on 10... . Concurrent explosions also occurred at the Imām Husayn Mosque Imam Husayn Shrine The Shrine of Husayn ibn ‘Alī is one of the oldest mosques on Earth and a holy site of Shīah Islām in the city of Karbalā, Iraq. It stands on the site of the grave of Husayn ibn ‘Alī, the second grandson of Muhammad, near the place where he was killed during the Battle of Karbalā in 680 C.E....  in Karbalā Karbala Karbala is a city in Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorate, and has an estimated population of 572,300 people .... .
August 31, 2005	This mosque was the destination of the crowd that was caught up in the Baghdad bridge stampede Baghdad bridge stampede The 2005 Baghdad bridge stampede occurred on August 31, 2005 when 953 people died following a stampede on Al-Aaimmah bridge, which crosses the Tigris river in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad.-The stampede:... .
June 6, 2007	At least 7 people were killed after twin car bombings occurred near the mosque.
June 27, 2007	A car bomb killed at least 14 people and injured 22 others.
March 25, 2008	The freshly gilded dome over the grave of Muhammad at-Taqī was unveiled to the public, as crowds had gathered in celebration for the birthday of Muhammad Muhammad Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...  as well as his descendant, Ja‘far as-Sādiq Ja'far al-Sadiq Jaʿfar ibn Muhammad al-Sādiq was a descendant of Muhammad and a prominent Muslim jurist. He is revered as an Imam by the adherents of Shi'a Islam and as a renowned Islamic scholar and personality by Sunni Muslims. The Shi'a Muslims consider him to be the sixth Imam or leader and spiritual... .
December 27, 2008	A car bomb killed at least 24 people and wounded 46 others, many of them Shiite pilgrims. The explosion occurred about 100 yards from Bab al-Dirwaza, one of the main gates to the shrine.
January 4, 2009	A male suicide bomber dressed as a woman, killed 38 and injured 72 Shia pilgrims as they were preparing for ‘Āshūrā' Day of Ashura The Day of Ashura is on the 10th day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar and marks the climax of the Remembrance of Muharram.It is commemorated by Shia Muslims as a day of mourning for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala on 10... .
April 8, 2009	7 people were killed and 23 others were wounded after a bomb that was left in a plastic bag near the mosque detonated.
April 24, 2009	Two female suicide bombers killed at least 66 people and wounded 125 others as people were heading towards the mosque for Friday prayers.

External links

• History of the Shrine at Kadhimayn