Birthday of Commander of the Faithful Celebrated at Najaf Shrine
According to the website of the holy shrine’s Astan (custodianship), a large number of pilgrims flocked to the mausoleum on Friday evening to celebrate the auspicious occasion.
Pilgrims attended the celebration with hearts full of devotion and loyalty, offering a grand congregational prayer at the mausoleum.
The 13th day of the month of Rajab on the lunar Hijri calendar (January 3 this year) marks the birth anniversary of the first Shia Imam (AS).
Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS) was born 23 years before the Hijra, which marked Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) departure from the holy city of Mecca to Medina.
The Imam is known as the first to be appointed by the Prophet to the estimable position of Imamate among Shia Muslims.
Declaring him as his successor during the Ghadir Khum event, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) averred, "Whoever I am his master, Ali is his master."
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Imam Ali (AS) is a celebrated personality among many faiths, including Sunni Islam.
He is the husband of the Prophet’s daughter, Hazrat Fatima Zahra (SA), and the father of Shia Muslims’ Second and Third Imams, Imam Hassan (AS) and Imam Hussain (AS), as well as Hazrat Zaynab (SA) and Umm Kulthum.
The Imam ruled as the Caliph for less than five years.
He holds a prominent position among Muslims owing to his epic bravery, contempt for danger, and insistence on observation of justice and equality.
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