Shrine of Jam Karan, Iran
Six kilometers east of the city of Qum stands the extraordinarily beautiful mosque of Jam Karan. In 986 AD, a devout Muslim by the name of Hassan ibn Muthlih had a mystical experience in which the Imam al-Mahdi (the Imam of the Ages, and son of the 11th Imam, al-Hasan al-Askari) and the prophet Khizr (the 'Green Sage') appeared to him and directed him to organize the building of a mosque on the holy ground of Jam Karan. The mosque was built by Sheikh Afif Saleh Hassan ibn Mosleh Jamkarani in 1006 and has since that time attracted vast numbers of pilgrims.
Shrine of Jam Karan, Iran
Dome and minaret, shrine of Jam Karan, Iran
Jam Karan, Iran
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Martin Gray is a cultural anthropologist, writer and photographer specializing in the study of pilgrimage traditions and sacred sites around the world. During a 40 year period he has visited more than 2000 pilgrimage places in 165 countries. The World Pilgrimage Guide at sacredsites.com is the most comprehensive source of information on this subject.