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Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem are recognized as the three most important sites in Islam according to interpretations of scriptures in the Quran and Hadith. Based on scriptural references, the Al-Aqsa Mosque is widely recognized as the third holiest site in Islam. References to Jerusalem and events in it have been made more than seventy times in the Quran, in various states of ambiguity, and many times in the Hadith. The Temple Mount precinct is considered the holiest site in Judaism and thus this site is arguably the most contested religious site in the world. While Kairouan is considered today as Islam's fourth holiest city, some secular scholars have noted that during medieval times Kairouan was regarded as the third holiest city in Islam.

The expression "third holiest site in Islam", however, has been sometimes used in the media to refer to other Islamic sites. These references do not necessarily represent the general view in Islam. While the Organization of the Islamic Conference, refers to the Al-Aqsa Mosque as the third holiest site in Islam, others believe that the use of the term "Third Holiest" is driven by political motives and that Al-Aqsa mosque is not the third holiest site. Rather, its, or any other substitute's selection, is based more on politics or the rise and expansion of a certain type of literary genre, known as al-Fadhail (history of cities) than religious theory.

Al-Aqsa Mosque

Most Muslims believe that the third holiest site in Islam is the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. Jerusalem is called the “First of the two qibla’s”. Al-Aqsa's importance is also due to it being the site from which the Prophet Muhammad is said to have ascended to heaven.

Although most political references to the Al Aqsa Mosque date from the 12th century or later, the Mosque's position in Islam is firmly grounded in a number of hadith dating from the birth of Islam..

In terms of the virtue of a religious site, and the value of prayers performed within it, Muslims believe that the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem is the third holiest site based on scripture. The Sahih Bukhari quotes Abu al-Dardaa as saying: "the Prophet of Allah Muhammad said a prayer in the Sacred Mosque (in Mecca) is worth 100,000 prayers; a prayer in my mosque (in Medina) is worth 1,000 prayers; and a prayer in al-Masjid al-Aqsa (in Jerusalem) is worth 500 prayers more than in any other mosque.

The hadith also instructs Muslims "…not to travel (for visiting) except for three mosques: Masjid-al-Haram (in Mecca), my Mosque (in Medina), and Masjid-al-Aqsa (in Jerusalem), as quoted by Abu Huraira.” Template:Muslim and

The precincts of the Al-Aqsa Mosque are said to be blessed in the Qur'an .

Imam Ali Mosque, Iraq

This is where Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib, the son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad and the fourth caliph is buried. Because Ali was also Muhammad's cousin, he is considered by Shiite tradition to be the first legitimate caliph and the first Imam.

Many sources refer to the Imam Ali Mosque, in Najaf, Iraq, as the third holiest site for the Shiite branch of Islam. With an estimated 130 to 200 million followers worldwide, this accounts for approximately 15% of all Muslims. It is estimated that only Mecca and Medina receive more Muslim pilgrims.

It has also been reported in the name of Imam Sardeg (Imam-Jaafar Al-Sadeq, the Sixth Twelver of Shia) that the Imam Ali mosque is the third of five holy places: Mecca, Medina, the Imam Ali shrine in Najaf, the Imam Hussein shrine in Karbala, and the shrine for Fatemah in Qom.

There are even those who claim that the Imam Ali shrine is the second holiest site after Mecca Juan Cole mentions that Imam Ali Mosque, in Najaf is the fourth holiest preceded by Mecca, Medina, and Jerusalem. He also mentions that Najaf and Karbala, the two holiest cities for Shiites.

Imam Husayn Shrine, Iraq

The Imam Husayn Shrine is built on the spot where Husayn ibn Ali, grandson of the prophet Muhammad, is believed to have been killed during the Battle of Karbala.

According to the Public Broadcasting Service, the Imam Husayn Shrine in Karbala is the holiest site outside of Meca and Medina. This view was also agreed to by the British public broadcast network, Channel 4.

Juan Cole mentions that Imam Husayn Shrine in Karbala in Iraq is the fifth holiest preceded by Mecca, Medina, Jerusalem and Najaf. He also mentions that Najaf and Karbala, the two holiest cities for Shiites.

Al Askari Mosque, Iraq

Here the remains of the tenth and eleventh Shī`a Imāms, `Alī l-Hādī and his son Hassan al-`Askarī, known as "the two `Askarīs", are interred. It stands adjacent to a shrine to the Twelfth or "Hidden" Imām, Muħammad al-Mahdī. The `Askariyya Shrine is also known as the "Tomb or Mausoleum of the Two Imāms". Also buried within the Mosque are the remains of Hakimah Khatun, sister of `Alī l-Hādī, and of Narjis Khatun, mother of Muħammad al-Mahdi.

At the time of the Al Askari Mosque bombing in Samarra, it was reported that the mosque was one of Shiite Islam's holiest sites, only exceeded by the shrines of Najaf and Karbala.

In an interview published by Abroad Media, Lt. Gen. David Petraeus referred to it as the third holiest shrine in shia Islam.

Al Kadhimiya Mosque, Iraq

After the bombing of the Al Kadhimiya Mosque, Middle East correspondent of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Nahlah Ayed, reported that “Well, it had been a very quiet crowd just walking around, milling around, and then the first of the bombs went off. People didn't really know what was going on until the second bomb went off and it blew up in a fiery ball right in front of the Kadhimiya Mosque, the third holiest site for Shia Muslims.”

Other reports after the bombing also referred to the shrine as the third-holiest in Shiite Islam.

Hala Sultan Tekke, Cyprus

The Hala Sultan Tekke is the tomb of Umm Haram, who was either Muhammed's paternal aunt, his wet-nurse, or an unrelated holy woman and miracle worker. It also contains the tomb belonging to the Queen of Hashemite Adile Hüseyin Ali, the Turkish wife of the last Hashemite King Hüseyin ibn Şerif Ali, who was the grandson of the Ottoman vizier Mustafa Reşit Pasha. Since the former king was the descendant of the Prophet Mohammad, after his death, he too was buried here.

The mosque is Islam’s third sacred holy site, after the Kaaba in Mecca and the Mosque of the Prophet in Medina, according to the United Nations Development Programme. In an assessment of the environmental and cultural assets of Cyprus, Professor George E. Bowen, a senior Fullbright scholar at the University of Tennessee, is quoted as referring to the Hala Sultan Tekke as the third holiest place for Muslims in the world. There are a number of other sources referring to the Hala Sultan Tekke as Islam's third-holiest site.

Acoording to the United Nations Peace Keeping force in Cyprus, Hala Sultan Tekke is not just the holiest Muslim shrine in Cyprus, it is one of the holiest shrines in the Islamic world, after Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem.

Eyüp Mosque, Turkey

This site is the reputed burial place of Ayoub al-Ansari who was a friend and the standard bearer for Muhammed. In addition to Ayoub's tomb there is a golden-framed footprint of Muhammed.

According to an article in the Turkish Daily News, Turkish Muslims consider the Eyüp Mosque as the third holiest pilgrimage site in Islam after Mecca and Jerusalem.

Rawze-e-Sharif, Afghanistan

Rawze-e-Sharif located in Mazari Sharif is said by Capt. Emma Schofield to be the resting place of the Ali ibn Abi Talib, the fourth caliph and the cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He is revered as the first Shi'a Imam by Shi'a Muslims. It is said that bandits stole his body and buried it in Mazari Sharif. However this claim is disputed, see Grave of Ali. According to Capt. Emma Schofield Rawze-e-Sharif is the third holiest site in Islam.

Umayyad Mosque, Syria

The Umayyad Mosque is one of the largest and oldest mosques in the world. Located in the old city of Damascus, it is of great architectural importance. The mosque holds a shrine which is said to contain the head of John the Baptist, honoured as a prophet by both Christians and Muslims. The head was supposedly found during the excavations for the building of the mosque. The tomb of Saladin stands in a small garden adjoining the north wall of the mosque.

The narrators of the Hadith are also recorded as having been at the "Damascus Mosque" when relating the teachings of Muhammed: Template:Muwatta, Template:Abudawud, Template:Abudawud.

Richard Moore reported that according to many Syrians, the Umayyad Mosque, which after Mecca and Medina, “is possibly the world's third most important mosque.” This was also reported in The Guardian.

Imam Reza Shrine, Iran

Imam Reza was the Eighth Imam of Shi'ite Islam, who is believed by members of the Shi'ia sect to have been poisoned there upon orders of Caliph Al Ma'mun. Among the first major buildings built in Mashad was a mausoleum built by Sultan Mahmood Ghaznavi. Today the holy shrine and its museum hold one of the most extensive cultural and artistic treasuries of Iran, in particular manuscript books and paintings. Several important theological schools are associated with the shrine of the Eighth Imam. As a city of great religious significance, it is also a place of pilgrimage. It is said that the rich go to Mecca but the poor journey to Mashhad. Thus, even as those who complete the pilgrimage to Mecca receive the title of Haji, those who make the pilgrimage to Mashhad – and especially to the Imam Reza shrine – are known as Mashtee, a term employed also of its inhabitants. It is thought that over 20 million Muslims a year make the pilgrimage to Mashhad.

Writing in the Chicago Business biweekly Alex Mahler wrote that the site is third holiest for Shiite Muslims.

References

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2. el-Khatib, Abdallah (May 1, 2001). "Jerusalem in the Qur'ān" (Abstract). British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies. 28 (1): 25–53. "The third section deals with the verses which imply ambiguous, but likely references to the same . The fourth section deals with the verses that imply ambiguous, but unlikely references. It was found that there are about 70 places in the Qur'an which fall into these two last categories.". doi:10.1080/13530190120034549. Retrieved 2006-11-17. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
3. Prah, Professor Kwesi (May 12, 2004). "Towards A Strategic Geopolitic Vision of Afro-Arab Relations". Centre for Advanced Study of African Societies, Cape Town, South Africa. Retrieved 2006-11-16. By 670 the Arabs had taken Tunisia, and by 675 they had completed construction of Kairouan, the city that would become the premier Arab base in North Africa. Kairouan was later to become the third holiest city in Islam in the medieval period, after Mecca and Medina. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
4. "Umayyad Territorial Expansion". The Islamic World to 1600 Tutorial. The Applied History Research Group, University of Calgary. 1998. Retrieved 2006-11-16. By 670, the Arabs had taken Tunisia, and by 675, they had completed construction of Kairouan, the city that would become the Arab base in North Africa. Kairouan would also become the third holiest city in Islam in the medieval period, after Mecca and Medina, because of its importance as the centre of the Islamic faith in the Maghrib. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
5. "Resolution No. 2/2-IS". Second Islamic Summit Conference. Organization of the Islamic Conference. February 24, 1974. Retrieved 2006-11-17. RECALLING once again, the deep attachment of the Muslims to the Holy City of Jerusalem which for them is the First Qibla and the Third Holiest Shrine… {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
6. Gilbert, Martin (1996). Jerusalem in the Twentieth Century. Chatto and Windus. LCCN 97-0 ISBN 0701130709. Martin Gilbert describes how the Nazi mufti of Jerusalem raised money from an Indian prince to gild the dome and finance a publicity campaign throughout the Arab world to promote the mosques of Temple Mount as the third-holiest shrine in Islam, making them 'far more prominent than they had been hitherto in the minds of Muslims everywhere.'
7. Talhami, Ghada Hashem (February, 2000). "The Modern History of Islamic Jerusalem: Academic Myths and Propaganda". Middle East Policy Journal. Blackwell Publishing. ISSN 1061-1924. Retrieved 2006-11-17. The holiness of Jerusalem was related to the rise and expansion of a certain type of literary genre, known as al-Fadhail or history of cities. The Fadhail of Jerusalem preserved the traditions of the Prophet regarding Jerusalem, the statements of various holy personages, and the city's popular lore. All of these inspired Muslims to embellish the sanctity of the city beyond its status in the holy texts. The greatest source of information for al-Fadhail was the hadith, the Prophet's traditions, which were beginning to be quoted extensively in the last third of the first Muslim century (the seventh century of the Christian era). The traditions were used to enumerate the values of visiting the city and al-Aqsa Mosque. Circulating widely during the Umayyad period, these traditions were often a reflection of the Umayyad policy of enhancing the religious status of Jerusalem. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
8. Silverman, Jonathan (May 6, 2005). "The opposite of holiness". Retrieved 2006-11-17. After the prophet died in June 632 a series of successors, or caliphs, assumed authority as Islam's leaders. Between 661 and 750 the Umayyad Dynasty held the Caliphate and ruled from Damascus. During the time they ruled, on account of various internal and external pressures, the Umayyads exerted enormous effort to elevate Jerusalem's status, perhaps even to the level of Mecca...the Palestinian historian A.L. Tibawi writes, that building an actual Al Aqsa Mosque "gave reality to the figurative name used in the Koran...." As Pipes points out, moreover, "it had the hugely important effect of giving Jerusalem a place in the Koran post hoc which naturally imbued the city with a higher status in Islam." Which is another way of saying, before the Umayyads built Dome of the Rock and Al Aksa, Jerusalem had no status at all in Islam. Israeli scholar Izhak Hasson says: "construction of the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa mosque, the rituals instituted by the Umayyads on the Temple Mount and the dissemination of Islamic-oriented Traditions regarding sanctity of the site, all point to the political motives which underlay the glorification of Jerusalem among the Muslims." In other words the sanctification of Jerusalem in Islam is based on the Umayyad building program. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
9. Lindsay, James (2005). Daily Life in the Medieval Islamic World. Greenwood Press. pp. 142–143. ISBN 0313322708.
10. Hashimi, Sohail H (2003-05-07). "Political Boundaries and Moral Communities: Islamic Perspectives". In Allen E. Buchannan, Margaret Moore, eds (ed.). States, Nations and Borders: the ethics of making boundaries. Cambridge University Press. pp. 192–193. ISBN 0-521-52575-6. {{cite book}}: |editor= has generic name (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: editors list (link), reviewed on Google books
11. "Prayer at Night (Tahajjud)". Editorial insertion to translation of Sahih Bukhari, Volume 2, Book 21, Number 221. University of Southern California—Compendium of Muslim Texts. Retrieved 2006-11-13. Do not prepare yourself for a journey except to three Mosques, i.e. Al-Masjid-AI-Haram, the Mosque of Aqsa (Jerusalem) and my Mosque.
12. Almodarresi, Sayed Mahdi (February 9, 2003). "Never Again!". Modarresinews.com. Retrieved 2006-11-12. The place was the burial site of Islam's second most important figure and third holiest shrine. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
13. "Muslim Shiite's Saint Imam Ali Holy Shrine". Photo Agency. Cultural Heritage Organization of Iran. 2005. Retrieved 2006-11-12. world's 120 million Shiites regard Najaf - a center of scientific, literary and theological studies - as their third-holiest site, behind Mecca and Medina.
14. al-Issawi, Tarek (August 31, 2003). "Iraqis arrest 19 with terror ties in mosque blast". The Washington Times. Retrieved 2006-11-12. American authorities have not taken an active public role in the mosque investigation because of Iraqi sensitivity to any U.S. presence at the Najaf shrine, the most-sacred Shi'ite shrine in Iraq and the third holiest in the world after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
15. Penhaul, Karl (April 23, 2003). "Religious rivalries and political overtones in Iraq". CNN. Retrieved 2006-11-12. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
16. Escobar, Pepe (May 24, 2002). "Knocking on heaven's door". Central Asia/Russia. Asia Times Online. Retrieved 2006-11-12. To give a measure of its importance, according to a famous hadith (saying) - enunciated with pleasure by the guardians of the shrine - we learn that 'our sixth imam, Imam Sardeg, says that we have five definitive holy places that we respect very much. The first is Mecca, which belongs to God. The second is Medina, which belongs to the Holy Prophet Muhammad, the messenger of God. The third belongs to our first imam of Shia, Ali, which is in Najaf. The fourth belongs to our third imam, Hussein, in Kerbala. The last one belongs to the daughter of our seventh imam and sister of our eighth imam, who is called Fatemah, and will be buried in Qom. Pilgrims and those who visit her holy shrine, I promise to these men and women that God will open all the doors of Heaven to them.' {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
17. "Lebanese Firms To Start Tourism Projects In Iraq". IslamicTourism.com. September 3, 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12. Najaf, home to the shrine of Imam Ali, the cousin of the Prophet Mohammed, is Muslim Shiites second holiest site after Mecca in Saudi Arabia. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Editor's note: This is actually taken from the www.azzaman.com news website, but is no longer directly linked on the English-language page.
18. ^ Juan, Cole (August 28, 2004). "Informed Comment". Juan Cole. Retrieved 2006-11-16. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
19. "Karbala". Interactive Map: Sunni and Shia: The Worlds of Islam. Public Broadcasting Service. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12. Husayn, Ali's son, Muhammad's grandson, and the central martyr in the Shia tradition, died at Karbala and is buried there. For Shiites, his tomb is the holiest site outside of Mecca and Medina, and many make the pilgrimage there -- up to a million pilgrims visit the city to observe Ashura, the anniversary of Husayn's death.
20. "Karbala". Channel 4. Retrieved 2006-11-12. The holy city of Karbala, situated 100 km south of Baghdad, derives its name from the ancient Babylonian meaning "sacred place of God" from the two shrines it houses of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson Husayn and his brother 'Abbas. Shi'a Muslims consider this to be one of the holiest places in the world second only to Mecca and Najaf.
21. Gosh, Aparisim (March 6, 2006). "An Eye For an Eye". Time Magazine. pp. Cover Story. Retrieved 2006-11-12. That makes al-Askari one of Shi'ite Islam's holiest sites, exceeded in veneration only by the shrines of Najaf and Karbala. Even Samarra's Sunnis hold al-Askari in high esteem. The expression "to swear by the shrine" is routinely used by both communities. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Editor's note: Quote is found on third page of article.
22. Petraeus, Lt. Gen. David (Sept 17, 2006). "Transcript: Lt. Gen. David Petraeus - Interview". American Abroad Media. Retrieved 2006-11-13. …but now also sectarian militias that have very much become active particularly in the wake again of the Gold Dome Mosque bombing on Samara when the third holiest shrine in Shia Islam was devastated by an explosion… {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
23. Robertson, Hamish (March 3, 2004). "Iraq suicide bombings: an eyewitness account". The World Today. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 2006-11-12. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
24. "Iraq blasts kill 143 on Shiite holy day". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. March 2, 2004. Retrieved 2006-11-12. 'After the blast, all you could see was death everywhere you looked,' said Ahmed Kamil Ibrahim, a guard at the Kazimiya shrine in Baghdad, the third-holiest in Shiite Islam. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
25. "Hala Sultan Tekke: Where East Meets West". Issue 1. United Nations Development Programme. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12. In a peaceful setting near Larnaca's West Lake, surrounded by forest and set against a breathtaking landscape is Hala Sultan Tekke. Islam's third sacred holy site after the Ka'ba and the Prophet Mohammad's grave in Mecca, and among the greatest cultural heritage monuments of the world, Hala Sultan Tekke, or Umm Haram, has long been the destination of Muslim pilgrims from Cyprus and the Middle East. The site is also an integral part of Cyprus' own remarkable history and impressive multicultural heritage, where East meets West. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
26. Bowen, George E. (April 3, 2001). "Assessing the Isle of Cyprus". Patrick S. O'Brien on the University of Tennessee server. Retrieved 2006-11-12. Three historic churches and monasteries are within the city. Just outside the city is the location of the Hala Sultan Tekke Mosque, the third holiest place for Muslims in the world. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
27. Boyle, Kevin (1997). "Cyprus". Freedom of religion and belief: a world report. London: Routledge. pp. 286–293. LCCN 97-0 ISBN 0415159776. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
28. Drayton, Penny (1993). "Aphrodite's island". Wood & water. 2 (41). {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help) as quoted by Trubshaw, Bob (1993). "The Black Stone - the Omphalos of the Goddess". Mercian Mysteries (14). Retrieved 2006-11-12. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
29. http://www.unficyp.org/Blue_beret/BB-06-June%202003.pdf
30. Gamm, Niki (November 27, 2005). "Exploring a district devoted to the dead: Eyüp, Istanbul". Turkish Daily News. Retrieved 2006-11-12. Fatih Sultan Mehmed had a shrine built here and then a mosque. This proved to be a popular religious site so much so that Eyüp is now considered the third holiest shrine in Islam after Mecca and Jerusalem, and pilgrims throughout the centuries have come here. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
31. Schofield, Emma (October 17, 2005). "The Blue Mosque at Masar-e-Sharif". Mirror. International Security Assistance Force. p. 8. Retrieved 2006-11-12. The Blue Mosque in Masar-e-Sharif is the third holiest site in Islam and the main dome was built 970 years ago to house the coffin of Khalif Ali, the son-in-law of Prophet Mohammed. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
32. Moore, Richard (2005). "Syria: Crossroads of the Levant". Syrian Ministry of Tourism. Retrieved 2006-11-12. The highlight to the Old City was the Umayyad Mosque, which after Mecca and Medina, is possibly the world third most important mosque. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
33. Russell, Mary (November 10, 2001). "Friends in ancient places". The Guardian. Retrieved 2006-11-15. Then Islam arrived, and the stunning mosque, which the ruling Umayyad family built in place of the church, is now the third most important Islamic site after Medina and Mecca. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
34. Mahler, Alex (November 25, 2002). "Sneaking Into Iran's Holiest Shrine". Chicago Business. Retrieved 2006-11-15. Hundreds of thousands of Iranians come to Mashad each year on pilgrimage. The Emam Reza Shrine in the heart of the city is the third holiest site for Shi'ite Muslims, and the most important within Iran. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

• Articles to be merged from November 2006
• Islam
• Ziyarat
• Mosques in Iraq
• Mosques in Afghanistan