Ziyarah of the Imams of al-Baqi‘
Permission to enter
Observe the etiquette of ziyarah — ghusl, purity, clean clothes and perfume — and ask permission to enter, saying:
يَا مَوَالِيَّ يَا أَبْنَاءَ رَسُولِ اللّٰهِ
O my masters, O sons of the Messenger of God,
عَبْدُكُمْ وَابْنُ أَمَتِكُمُ الذَّلِيلُ بَيْنَ أَيْدِيكُمْ
your servant and the son of your bondmaid, humble before you,
وَالْمُضْعِفُ فِي عُلُوِّ قَدْرِكُمْ
lowly before the height of your rank
وَالْمُعْتَرِفُ بِحَقِّكُمْ
and acknowledging your right,
جَاءَكُمْ مُسْتَجِيراً بِكُمْ
has come to you seeking your protection,
قَاصِداً إِلَى حَرَمِكُمْ
heading for your sanctuary,
مُتَقَرِّباً إِلَى مَقَامِكُمْ
seeking nearness to your station,
مُتَوَسِّلاً إِلَى اللّٰهِ تَعَالَى بِكُمْ
seeking a means to God the Exalted through you.
أَأَدْخُلُ يَا مَوَالِيَّ
May I enter, O my masters?
أَأَدْخُلُ يَا أَوْلِيَاءَ اللّٰهِ
May I enter, O friends of God?
أَأَدْخُلُ يَا مَلَائِكَةَ اللّٰهِ الْمُحْدِقِينَ بِهٰذَا الْحَرَمِ
May I enter, O angels of God who surround this sanctuary
الْمُقِيمِينَ بِهٰذَا الْمَشْهَدِ
and dwell at this shrine?
Enter with humility and a tender heart, right foot first, and say:
اَللّٰهُ أَكْبَرُ كَبِيراً
God is greatest, greatly;
وَالْحَمْدُ لِلّٰهِ كَثِيراً
praise be to God, abundantly;
وَسُبْحَانَ اللّٰهِ بُكْرَةً وَأَصِيلاً
and glory be to God, morning and evening.
وَالْحَمْدُ لِلّٰهِ الْفَرْدِ الصَّمَدِ
Praise be to God, the One, the Self-Sufficient,
الْمَاجِدِ الْأَحَدِ
the Glorious, the Unique,
الْمُتَفَضِّلِ الْمَنَّانِ
the Bountiful, the Benefactor,
الْمُتَطَوِّلِ الْحَنَّانِ
the Gracious, the Compassionate,
الَّذِي مَنَّ بِطَوْلِهِ
who bestowed favour through His grace,
وَسَهَّلَ زِيَارَةَ سَادَاتِي بِإِحْسَانِهِ
made easy the visit to my masters through His kindness,
وَلَمْ يَجْعَلْنِي عَنْ زِيَارَتِهِمْ مَمْنُوعاً
and did not keep me from visiting them,
بَلْ تَطَوَّلَ وَمَنَحَ
but was gracious and gave.
The ziyarah
Then come close to their holy graves, face them with the qibla behind you, and say:
اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ أَئِمَّةَ الْهُدَى
Peace be upon you, O Imams of guidance.
اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ أَهْلَ التَّقْوَى
Peace be upon you, O people of piety.
اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ أَيُّهَا الْحُجَجُ عَلَى أَهْلِ الدُّنْيَا
Peace be upon you, O proofs over the people of the world.
اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ أَيُّهَا الْقُوَّامُ فِي الْبَرِيَّةِ بِالْقِسْطِ
Peace be upon you, O you who uphold justice among creation.
اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ أَهْلَ الصَّفْوَةِ
Peace be upon you, O people of the elect.
اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ آلَ رَسُولِ اللّٰهِ
Peace be upon you, O family of the Messenger of God.
اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ أَهْلَ النَّجْوَى
Peace be upon you, O people of intimate converse with God.
أَشْهَدُ أَنَّكُمْ قَدْ بَلَّغْتُمْ وَنَصَحْتُمْ
I bear witness that you conveyed the message and gave sincere counsel,
وَصَبَرْتُمْ فِي ذَاتِ اللّٰهِ
were patient for the sake of God,
وَكُذِّبْتُمْ وَأُسِيءَ إِلَيْكُمْ فَغَفَرْتُمْ
were called liars and were wronged, yet you forgave.
وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّكُمُ الْأَئِمَّةُ الرَّاشِدُونَ الْمُهْتَدُونَ
I bear witness that you are the rightly guiding, rightly guided Imams,
وَأَنَّ طَاعَتَكُمْ مَفْرُوضَةٌ
that obedience to you is obligatory,
وَأَنَّ قَوْلَكُمُ الصِّدْقُ
that your word is the truth,
وَأَنَّكُمْ دَعَوْتُمْ فَلَمْ تُجَابُوا
that you called but were not answered,
وَأَمَرْتُمْ فَلَمْ تُطَاعُوا
commanded but were not obeyed,
وَأَنَّكُمْ دَعَائِمُ الدِّينِ وَأَرْكَانُ الْأَرْضِ
and that you are the supports of the religion and the pillars of the earth.
لَمْ تَزَالُوا بِعَيْنِ اللّٰهِ
You never ceased to be under the eye of God,
يَنْسَخُكُمْ مِنْ أَصْلَابِ كُلِّ مُطَهَّرٍ
who transferred you from the loins of every purified man
وَيَنْقُلُكُمْ مِنْ أَرْحَامِ الْمُطَهَّرَاتِ
and moved you from the wombs of purified women;
لَمْ تُدَنِّسْكُمُ الْجَاهِلِيَّةُ الْجَهْلَاءُ
the darkest ignorance of the Jahiliyya never defiled you,
وَلَمْ تَشْرَكْ فِيكُمْ فِتَنُ الْأَهْوَاءِ
nor did the trials of whims have any share in you.
طِبْتُمْ وَطَابَ مَنْبَتُكُمْ
You are good, and good is the soil from which you grew.
مَنَّ بِكُمْ عَلَيْنَا دَيَّانُ الدِّينِ
The Judge of the Religion favoured us with you
فَجَعَلَكُمْ فِي بُيُوتٍ أَذِنَ اللّٰهُ أَنْ تُرْفَعَ وَيُذْكَرَ فِيهَا اسْمُهُ
and placed you in houses which God has allowed to be raised and in which His name is remembered (24:36),
وَجَعَلَ صَلَاتَنَا عَلَيْكُمْ رَحْمَةً لَنَا وَكَفَّارَةً لِذُنُوبِنَا
and made our invoking blessings upon you a mercy for us and an expiation for our sins,
إِذِ اخْتَارَكُمُ اللّٰهُ لَنَا
since God chose you for us
وَطَيَّبَ خَلْقَنَا بِمَا مَنَّ عَلَيْنَا مِنْ وِلَايَتِكُمْ
and made our creation good through the favour He did us of your guardianship.
وَكُنَّا عِنْدَهُ مُسَمِّينَ بِعِلْمِكُمْ
With Him we were named among those who know you,
مُعْتَرِفِينَ بِتَصْدِيقِنَا إِيَّاكُمْ
acknowledging that we believe in you.
وَهٰذَا مَقَامُ مَنْ أَسْرَفَ وَأَخْطَأَ
This is the standing place of one who has gone to excess and erred,
وَاسْتَكَانَ وَأَقَرَّ بِمَا جَنَى
humbled himself and confessed what he committed,
وَرَجَا بِمَقَامِهِ الْخَلَاصَ
and hopes, by standing here, for deliverance,
وَأَنْ يَسْتَنْقِذَهُ بِكُمْ مُسْتَنْقِذُ الْهَلْكَى مِنَ الرَّدَى
and that the Rescuer of the perishing from ruin will rescue him through you.
فَكُونُوا لِي شُفَعَاءَ
So be my intercessors,
فَقَدْ وَفَدْتُ إِلَيْكُمْ إِذْ رَغِبَ عَنْكُمْ أَهْلُ الدُّنْيَا
for I have come to you when the people of the world turned away from you,
وَاتَّخَذُوا آيَاتِ اللّٰهِ هُزُواً
took the signs of God in mockery
وَاسْتَكْبَرُوا عَنْهَا
and were too proud for them.
Then raise your head towards the sky and say:
يَا مَنْ هُوَ قَائِمٌ لَا يَسْهُو
O He who is ever-standing and never heedless,
وَدَائِمٌ لَا يَلْهُو
everlasting and never distracted,
وَمُحِيطٌ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ
encompassing all things:
لَكَ الْمَنُّ بِمَا وَفَّقْتَنِي
Yours is the favour for granting me success,
وَعَرَّفْتَنِي بِمَا أَقَمْتَنِي عَلَيْهِ
and for making known to me what You have established me upon,
إِذْ صَدَّ عَنْهُ عِبَادُكَ
when Your servants turned away from it,
وَجَهِلُوا مَعْرِفَتَهُ
were ignorant of it,
وَاسْتَخَفُّوا بِحَقِّهِ
belittled its right
وَمَالُوا إِلَى سِوَاهُ
and inclined to other than it.
فَكَانَتِ الْمِنَّةُ مِنْكَ عَلَيَّ
So the favour was Yours upon me,
مَعَ أَقْوَامٍ خَصَصْتَهُمْ بِمَا خَصَصْتَنِي بِهِ
together with people whom You singled out with what You singled me out with.
فَلَكَ الْحَمْدُ إِذْ كُنْتُ عِنْدَكَ فِي مَقَامِي هٰذَا مَذْكُوراً مَكْتُوباً
So praise be to You, since in this standing of mine I am mentioned and recorded with You.
فَلَا تَحْرِمْنِي مَا رَجَوْتُ
Do not deprive me of what I have hoped for,
وَلَا تُخَيِّبْنِي فِيمَا دَعَوْتُ
and do not disappoint me in what I have prayed for,
بِحُرْمَةِ مُحَمَّدٍ وَآلِهِ الطَّاهِرِينَ
by the sanctity of Muhammad and his pure family;
وَصَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ وَآلِ مُحَمَّدٍ
and God bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad.
Farewell
Then pray for yourself as you wish, and pray eight rak‘as of ziyarah — two for each Imam (al-Tusi, al-Tahdhib). To bid them farewell, say:
اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ أَئِمَّةَ الْهُدَى وَرَحْمَةُ اللّٰهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ
Peace be upon you, O Imams of guidance, and the mercy of God and His blessings.
أَسْتَوْدِعُكُمُ اللّٰهَ وَأَقْرَأُ عَلَيْكُمُ السَّلَامَ
I entrust you to God and greet you with peace.
آمَنَّا بِاللّٰهِ وَبِالرَّسُولِ وَبِمَا جِئْتُمْ بِهِ وَدَلَلْتُمْ عَلَيْهِ
We believe in God, in the Messenger and in what you brought and guided to.
اَللّٰهُمَّ فَاكْتُبْنَا مَعَ الشَّاهِدِينَ
O God, write us among the witnesses.