Mazar (mausoleum)

A mazār (Arabic: مزار‎‎) is a mausoleum or shrine in some places of the world, typically that of a saint or notable religious leader. Medieval Arabic texts may also use the words mašhad, maqām or ḍarīḥ to denote the same concept. Another synonymous term mostly used in Palestine and in older Western scholarly literature is wali' or weli.

Practices vary considerably in different countries. Syncretism is not unusual, where pre-Islamic practices and beliefs persist among Muslim communities. Despite Muhammad's wishes and Allah's command, a cult of saints developed within some Muslim communities at an early date, following deeply ingrained pre-Islamic practices in the Middle East. Mashhads, or sanctuaries, were established by certain people for figures mentioned from the Quran such as Muhammad, Jesus, the prophets and other main figures of the Jewish and Christian Bible, great rulers, military leaders and clerics.

Sufi mystics developed the concept of Wahdat al-Wujud, in which God and the universe are considered coterminous.

The Salaf as Saaliheen consider that no person can mediate between man and God. Even the Prophet was a man not expected to be worshiped. They consider that Muslims who believe that saints and their shrines have holy properties are polytheists and heretics. In 1802, Salaf forces invaded Karbala where they partially destroyed the shrine of Imam Husayn.Shi'a claim that In 1925 the commander and later king of Saudi Arabia, Abdulaziz Ibn Saud, destroyed the cemetery of Jannat al-Baghi in Medina, the burial place of four of the Shia imams and of the Prophet's daughter. However, the cemetery is apparently still in existence and is used daily to bury the dead.

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