In Search of Guru Nanak’s Shrine in Baghdad

Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, spent three months in Baghdad with his associates Bhai Mardana and Bhai Bala on his return to India from Mecca. The holy site is in the backyard of Baghdad railway station surrounded by graveyards. War, insurgents or looters have wiped any trace of a historical footnote that had preserved the memory of the Sikh Guru’s 16th-century journey through Arabia and his stay in Baghdad. There is no trace of anything Sikh on the site now. Continue reading In Search of Guru Nanak’s Shrine in Baghdad

Shrine of Imam Hussein, Karbala

Holy Land of Karbala

Karbala is an ancient city, it was known since the Babylonian age. The city is best known as the location of the Battle of Karbala, which was fought in 680 CE between the army of the second Umayyad caliph Yazid I and a small army led by Imam Hussain ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and the Mosques of Imam Hussain and Abbas. The city is considered a holy city for Shi’ite Muslims in the same way as Mecca and Medina. The Battle of Karbala at Karbala. Continue reading Holy Land of Karbala

Budaun | Sleepy Town with a Vibrant History

Budaun is a historical city with its history lost in its dusty avenues and sleepy streets. It seems nothing more than a secluded small town. But moving around the city, you can come across numerous historical ruins and monuments that reveal many legends from its past. Situated on the banks of the river Ganga, Budaun is indeed a hidden gem of Uttar Pradesh. Budaun was the capital of Delhi Sultanate for four years from 1210 CE to 1214 CE during Sultan Iltutmish rule (reign: 1210-1236 CE). Continue reading Budaun | Sleepy Town with a Vibrant History

Se Cathedral, Goa

The Sé Catedral de Santa Catarina, known as Se Cathedral, is the cathedral of the Latin Rite Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Goa and Daman and the seat of the Patriarch of the East Indies. It is located in Old Goa, India. The word Sé is Portuguese for See. An episcopal see is, in the usual meaning of the phrase, the area of a bishop’s ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Continue reading Se Cathedral, Goa

Al-Kadhimiya Mosque (Baghdad)

Al-Kadhimiya Mosque is a shrine located in the northern neighbourhood of Kadhimiya district in Baghdad on the west bank of river Tigris. It contains the tombs of the seventh Shia’i Imam Musa Al-Kadhim and the ninth Shia’i Imam Muhammad al-Jawad. Also buried within this mosque are the famous historical scholars, Shaikh Mufid and Shaikh Nasir ad-Dīn aṭ-Ṭusi. Due to its special geographical location, Kadhimiya has been considered important and its history is thought to date back before Jesus Christ. This place was then known as Shoneezi, an Arab name meaning the Black Grain. Continue reading Al-Kadhimiya Mosque (Baghdad)