Love for All, Hatred for None – Message of Peace delivered by Muslims

We believe in loyalty, equality, freedom, respect and peace. These are values that we all share and are values that are promoted by Islam.

You may have heard that ‘Islam’ means ‘peace’, but mere words are not enough to create peace – they need to be put into practice. This was one of the key messages of the founder of our community who stressed that peace must be inspired by our beliefs and demonstrated by our actions.

As Muslims it pains us when the noble religion of Islam is maligned by the actions of extremists. We therefore continuously seek to clarify the true teachings of Islam, to speak out against injustices, suicide bombings and terrorism. We are clear and firm in our belief that Islam is a religion of peace and any actions that do not promote peace find no support whatsoever in Islam.

This website is part of a wider initiative of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community to explain the true teachings and values of Islam. We hope that you find this site useful and informative. If you would like to visit a mosque, learn more about Islam, or just ask us a question then you are welcome to do so, simply contact us.

Holy Bible on the Mission of Jesus

The subject of the Second Coming of Jesus is so important not only to the Christians but for the Muslims as well. For the benefit of the readers, as a Muslim, I need to expose some truths from the vary sayings of the Holy Bible so that they should know what really happened. It is evident from the Holy Bible that the moving prayers of Jesus on the night before the day of crucifixion (Matt 26:39; Luke 22:42; Mark 14:36; Matt 27:46) had been the main source for his escape from the accursed death on the cross. For it is utterly unbelievable that such earnest prayers from no less a personage than Jesus Christ should go unanswered.

It is also evident from the Bible that Jesus did not die on the cross, but was taken down in a state of unconsciousness and had lived afterward to complete his mission eventually to die a natural death. After his escape from the death on the cross, he was in his body of clay (John 20:15; Luke 24:39-43) and it is incorrect to say that a vapor cloud lifted him up to heaven.

No cloud has the power to raise a body of clay; no mortal can soar to heaven. To say that Jesus ascended to heaven with his mortal body is absolutely contrary to the sayings of Jesus, for he said: “No man hath ascended up to heaven but he that came down from heaven, the Son of man” (John 3:13). It is also clear from the New Testament that the accounts of both Mathew and John support this theory very strongly that Jesus did not ascend to heaven but migrated to another country, whilst both (Mark and Luke) are silent regarding the ascension.

Jesus, peace be on him, was not sent as a Universal Guide. Jesus was the Messiah of the Israelites, and he proclaimed in clear-cut words: “I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matt 15:24). The term “lost” can be taken in two ways, literal and metaphorical. It can therefore be applied to the lost tribes metaphorically, but literally as well. For centuries, they had been away from the Holy Land. No wonder, Jesus enjoined his disciples to “Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matt 10:6). Jesus even foretold that he would go in search of those who were lost from the Israelites and would find them.

He says “And other sheep I have which are not of this fold, them also I must bring and they shall hear my voice” (John 10:16). As, according to his aforesaid statement he was sent to the Israelites only, these other sheep, not belonging to the Palestinian Jews therefore were from the lost ten tribes dispersed in other countries. A similar conclusion can be drawn from another saying of Jesus: “A prophet is not without honor save in his own country” (Matt 13:57).

To believe, therefore, that Jesus did not go to another country where he was honored, is tantamount to believing that he passed away without honor. His saying, that his case, in view of the plot of his enemies to destroy him, would be similar to the case of the prophet Jonah, also reveals that as Jonah was honored by his people after he had been in the belly of the whale, likewise Jesus would be honored by the lost sheep of the House of Israel after he had been in the heart of the earth, i.e. hewn chamber serving for a tomb. And so it happened. He went to other countries where the lost sheep lived and was hallowed by them. The story of the wise men from the East who visited Palestine at the birth of Jesus (who evidently were Israelites, because no nation besides them expected the appearance of the Messiah and because of their saying, “Where is he that is born King of the Jews?”) contained a hint that Jesus would be honored by those sheep who were living in the Eastern countries.

Jesus also mentioned a parable which hinted at the same. He said: “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountain, and go in search of the one that went astray?. And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray” (Matt 18:12,13).

If it is true what this parable contains, if it is true that Jesus was a good shepherd, if it is true that the ten tribes of Israel were lost and were scattered abroad by foreign powers as divine punishment for their turning away from the right path, and if it is true that he was sent to the lost sheep of the House of Israel, then it was, undoubtedly, his foremost duty to go in search of these lost sheep of the House of Israel and rejoice after finding them.

Jesus, as we believe, a true prophet and beloved of God, could not neglect the duty imposed upon him by God. When he saw that the Palestinian Jews were not going to accept him, he left the country and went in search of the lost sheep, who were not of the fold of the Palestinian Jews. Historical investigations reveal to us that the people of Kashmir, India, Afghanistan and the surrounding provinces represent the ten lost tribes of Israel. Therefore Jesus must have gone to that part of the world.

The names of number of towns and cities of Afghanistan and Kashmir are identically the same as those of ancient Syria. For example, the names of Kabul, Himis, Gilgit, Laddakh, Leh, Suro, Sukat may be compared with Kabul, Hams, Golgotha, Laddak, Lehi, Shur and Succoth of ancient Syria. This constitutes one of the strongest proofs of the fact that the ancestors of the people of Afghanistan, Kashmir and the adjoining provinces came from ancient Syria, representing the lost tribes of Israel.

Historical records further reveal that Jesus came to India by way of Persia and Afghanistan so that he might accomplish his supreme task of delivering his message to people of that country. In short, Jesus came to the Punjab by way of Afghanistan and after paying visits to Benares, Nepal and Tibet, finally arrived in Kashmir and where he settled.

Holy Quran says: “And We made the son of Mary and his mother a sign, and gave them shelter on an elevated land of green valleys and springs of running water”. (23:50) According to Arabic Lexicons, the description of a place mentioned in this verse fully fits on the valley of Kashmir where a part of the ten tribes of Israel had settled. The people of Kashmir to this day bearing a striking resemblance to the children of Israel (Bani Israel). Jesus was welcomed and accepted by the Jewish tribes of the diaspora among whom he became known as Yus Asaf, the Prince Prophet.

Jesus spent his last years in Kashmir. He lived to the ripe old age of over 120 years and when he died he was buried in the Khanyar Street in Srinagar, Kashmir. His tomb is still preserved and is a place of pilgrimage.

The dead never return from their otherworldly abode. Once departed, none has ever paid a second visit to begin mixing with the living. Neither has God brought back any dwellers of the past. Those who literally wait the return of Jesus may continue to do so till eternity. He will never come. The Holy Bible also lends support to the view that Jesus himself would not return to this world, in the verses which refer to the second coming of Elijah. According to II Kings (2:11) Elijah ascended to heaven in a chariot drawn by horses and the Jews were expecting his physical return to earth which would precede the coming of the Messiah promised to them. However Elijah never appeared in the manner they expected but instead the prophecy was fulfilled in John the Baptist who came in the power and spirit of Elijah.

The Holy Bible says: “And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elijah must first come? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elijah truly shall first come, and restore all things. But I say unto you that Elijah is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them? Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist”. (Matt 17:10 – 13)

In these verses Jesus refers to the second coming of Elijah which actually took place in the person of John. The Jews did not recognize John as the second coming of Elijah, and thus persecuted him. Jesus says plainly that likewise he must suffer, i.e. his second coming would be not in his own person, but in the person of someone else. Jesus also said: “For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord’ (Matt 23:39). Here Jesus is telling his disciples in plain language that they shall be able to recognize him only when they shall realize that someone else, rather than he, the Jesus of history, will come and that he will come in Jesus’ name.

Moreover, the second manifestation of the advent of Jesus, will not be understood by those who claim to his followers until they are able to recognize the spiritual impact of his teachings, that the one who will come, will come only in his name, having similar characteristics and bearing the same Messianic qualities, just as John the Baptist came in the spirit and power of Elijah.

Moreover, in the New Testament, we find remarkable signs being mentioned by Jesus about his second coming. What comes readily is Jesus’ reference to the place, the rapidity with which the message will be conveyed, the political instability that will prevail and the abnormality of natural phenomena. We have witnessed that all the signs mentioned by Jesus have been fulfilled.

The Bible also says, ‘Take heed that no man deceives you. For many shall come in my name, saying I am Christ; and shall deceive many’ (Matt 24:4,5). If any reason, Jesus was scheduled to descend in all glory in his flesh and blood, as a physical entity, escorted by an angelic host, then how could anyone be possibly deceived? There would then be no room for deception. It would have been as plain as daylight and many would then be witnesses of his miraculous descent, since no one is mentioned, in any of the four canonical gospels, as having witnessed his physical ascent. Here, the key to note is, ‘many shall come in my name’, that is to say, that his second advent will be such, that there would be room for deception by false claimants.

Therefore, what was meant by Jesus’ second coming was that someone having his attributes would be born and the descent of Jesus, peace be on him, not to be in his physical person but that a Messiah was to come in his image and spirit.

(Article written by A. Abdul Aziz, Sri Lanka in the Asian Tribune, Sat, 22nd March, 2008, to find out more visit www.alislam.org)

You can visit the Tomb of Jesus Christ in Khanyar Street

THE fundamental doctrines of Christian Church are based upon the death of Jesus on the Cross, his resurrection and his bodily ascension to heaven. Though Christian masses continue to render lip service to these fictions, few thinkers even in Christian lands today believe in or dare assert the historic authenticity of these supposed events. There are not even prima facie considerations to sustain the theory of death upon the cross and there is no sure evidence to support the unnatural phenomena of the resurrection and the ascension.

Indeed the Gospels themselves furnish the most formidable refutations of these myths. The basic doctrine of the Church has been that Jesus being the son of God appeared in the human shape to take upon himself the accumulated burden of humanity’s sins and to expiate them on the Cross so that mankind might attain salvation through belief in the atonement. Being the son of God Himself and through his death upon the cross he became “accursed” for mankind’s sake and remained in that state for three days to atone for the sins of mankind. He, then, came back to life and ascended bodily to heaven. He will descend to the earth again in the latter days and judge mankind.

There is nothing in the authentic sayings and teachings of Jesus to support or justify any of this. According to him he was a prophet raised among Israel particularly for the guidance of the “lost sheep of the House of Israel.” (Matthew 15: 24). Were it true that he was the very God himself and that the sole purpose of his sojourn upon earth was to expiate mankind’s sins upon the cross, he would not have prayed in agony and asked his disciples to pray in the Garden of Gethsemane that if possible, the cup (of death upon the Cross) may be turned away (Matthew 26 : 39). Jesus believed that God heard his prayers. He must have believed that this prayer would also be heard. If the whole purpose of his advent was to atone for the sins of mankind through his death upon the cross why this agonized prayer to be spared such a death? This prayer is a complete refutation of the whole alleged purpose of his advent.

He must have received Divine assurance of deliverance in answer to his prayers (Hebrews 5:7). For, when, as a mortal being he perceived upon the cross that all apparent chance of his being delivered from his humiliating and agonizing demise upon the cross had disappeared, he was afflicted with the apprehension lest some default on his part should have defeated the Divine purpose of deliverance of which he had received assurance after his earnest prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. This brought on fresh agony and he cried out “My God, my God! Why hast Thou forsaken me” ? ( Matthew 27: 46). If the death of Jesus upon the cross was the fulfillment of the very purpose for which he had been sent among mankind, the realization that death was now creeping upon him and that he was fast slipping into unconsciousness, should have filled him with a sense of exultation that he had now almost fulfilled the purpose of his advent, and that within a few hours that purpose would be completely achieved. Had that been so, his cry, instead of being one of agony and almost of despair, would have been a shout of exultation. He would have proclaimed, “Oh glory! Oh glory! the purpose is fulfilled. Mankind is redeemed through me,” instead of crying in anguish “My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me.’

Had he died upon the cross and come back to life again, he would have proceeded to the highest vantage point in Jerusalem and proclaimed his triumph over death to the unbelieving Jews, and putting forward this irrefutable proof of his being the son of God, would have invited them to believe in him as such. He did not do this. Instead, he met the disciples a few times to convince them of the fact that he had not died upon the cross, had not become “accursed” and was still alive in his physical body (Matthew 28: 9, 10). He charged the disciples not to spread this news about him and he took precautions to meet them only in secret (Matthew 23: 19). There is not a single instance on record of any contemporary Jew or gentile having believed in him because he had died and had come to life, and yet had that been the case what greater miracle could anybody have desired to see? All this completely refutes the assertion that death upon the cross was the very purpose of his advent and that purpose had been fulfilled.

Jesus himself never taught this. He insisted that the way to salvation was through keeping “the law and the prophets.” Which Law? Obviously, the Mosaic Law. Which prophets ? Clearly the Prophets who had succeeded Moses in Israel. He reiterated that he had not come to destroy the Law but to fulfill it. “Till heaven and earth pass, not one jot or title shall in no wise pass from the law.” (Matthew 5: 17, 18). He exhorted his disciples and followers to do what the Scribes and Pharisees told them to do, for they sat in Moses’ seat and were thus the authorized and traditional interpreters of the Law of Moses though he warned against imitation of their deeds for “they say and do not.” (Matthew 23: 2, 3).

The whole body of doctrine, based upon the Law being accursed and salvation being possible only through atonement, is a later innovation and finds no support whatever in anything that Jesus said or did. It is asserted that he described himself as the son of God, but this was clearly a metaphorical use of the expression common in sacred scriptures. When charged with this he turned upon his accusers saying that if those to whom the Word of God came were called God or even the first born of God, why should he be charged with blasphemy for using the very words. If they had the right to explain them metaphorically, why should this right be denied him.( John 10: 34, 35). The Bible describes Israel (Jacob) as God’s son, even the “first born”.’(Exodus 4:22). The peace-makers are described as the “Children of God” (Matthew 5: 9). In the Lord’s prayer God is addressed by the faithful as Father, the faithful being thus the sons of God. The Bible has frequently used this expression metaphorically to describe the chosen of God, the righteous people and even the whole of mankind.

Jesus had announced that his “wicked and adulterous” generation would be given no sign except the sign of the prophet Jonas.( Matthew 16: 4.). It is worth remembering that Jonas entered the belly of the whale alive, remained there alive, though unconscious, and emerged there from alive. So was Jesus taken down from the cross alive though unconscious, he remained in the sepulchre alive and emerged therefrom alive. Had he died upon the cross, there would have been no resemblance between his case and that of the Prophet Jonas, unless one were also to believe that Jonas too had died in the belly of the whale and had come back to life after he emerged there from, a theory which would scarcely be acceptable to the Church.( Jonah Chapter 2).

It is significant that the text of the Revised Standard Version (1946) of the New Testament, published by Thomas Nelson and Sons, New York, no longer makes mention of the bodily ascension of Jesus to heaven.

THE Muslims believe, as taught by the Holy Quran, that Jesus was a righteous Prophet raised by God among Israel. He himself emphasized that, and if the Jews rejected him the kingdom of heaven would pass to another people. Therefore, prophethood came to an end among Israel and the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, was raised from among the descendants of Ishmael, that is to say, from among the brethren of Israel.”(Deutronomy 18: 18). He was the last Law-bearing Prophet and the Law proclaimed him in the Word of God, the Holy Quran, is “all truth” through which mankind has been guided, as proclaimed by Jesus. (John, 16: l3).

The earnest prayer of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, his agonized cry from the cross, the precautions taken by him when meeting his disciples after his recovery from the swoon into which he had been plunged upon the cross – are all consistent with the truth as taught by the Holy Quran. The prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane was inspired by the natural desire of Jesus to escape the humiliation and agony of death upon the cross. This desire was all the more keen as he realized that in case the Jews succeeded in compassing his death upon the cross, they would ever after claim, as they in fact do up to this day, that Jesus having died upon the cross became ‘accursed’ and could not, therefore, have been a righteous Prophet (Deuteronomy, 21: 23). Far from being anxious to become “accursed” for the sake of mankind, Jesus was most anxious to escape such a stigma, for the sake of his people, so that this should not become for them a permanent barrier against their acceptance of him as a righteous Prophet. The notion of becoming “accursed” even for a short period for the sake of mankind was so alien to his mind that he assured one of the two thieves who were put upon the cross at the same time with him that the latter would be with him in Paradise that very day. By that time Jesus, finding that there was no apparent way of escape left, was beginning to be somewhat reconciled to the prospect of death, if that was the inscrutable Will of God, though he still shrank from the dreadful consequence for the Jews, if he once became “accursed” in their eyes. He thus assured the thief that if both of them did cross the valley of the shadow of death that day, they would be together in paradise!” (Luke 23:43.)

Even at the very moment when the body of Jesus was about to be taken down from the cross to be handed over to Joseph of Arimathea and was pricked in the side (possibly in the region of the pleura) by a Roman soldier with his spear, blood and water came out, a sure testimony that life was not extinct. (John 19: 2332).

It may, therefore, be accepted as beyond controversy that Jesus did not die upon the cross. He was in a swoon when his body was taken down from the cross. He was lovingly tended and cared for and healing ointments and herbs were applied to his wounds from which he recovered sufficiently by the third day to be able to leave the sepuchre. Thereafter, he met his disciples on different occasions (there is a good deal of confusion with regard to this in the Gospel account) always taking precaution lest his presence among them and, therefore, his escape from death, should become known to his enemies. Having fully established testimony to his not having died upon the cross he resolved, under Divine Command, to leave Palestine and to journey through the lands where the lost tribes of Israel then dwelt so that he could carry the Divine message to them.

THUS Jesus completed his mission, died a natural death and was buried in Srinagar, Kashmir. Guided by Divine revelation and subsequent research, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement, located his tomb in the Khanyar Street of the city of Srinagar where it can still be visited. This discovery has dispelled any doubts as to the fact that Jesus did not die on the cross and has removed all uncertainty which had enshrouded the Life of Jesus for many centuries. May God rest his soul in peace and have mercy on him!

(For more information on this topic visit

http://www.alislam.org/topics/jesus/)

Jesus Son of Mary: Islamic Beliefs

Islam is a religion which requires belief in not only the Prophethood of Muhammad^saw but all the prophets of God, including Jesus (Qur’an 2:137).

The Holy book of Islam, the Quran, relates in detail the story of Jesus, including his birth, mission as a Prophet to the Israelites, and his crucifixion. Muslims believe that this story is in harmony with the Bible too. Indeed, a whole chapter in the Qur’an is named after the mother of Jesus (Chapter 19 – Maryam).

Birth of Jesus
In Islam, Mary is described as a pious and righteous woman who symbolizes righteous believers blessed with Divine inspiration. Islam then affirms the fatherless birth of Jesus and rejects outright the opposing claim that his birth was illegitimate.

Whereas, Islam recognizes the virgin birth of Jesus as a miraculous event, it does not consider it unnatural; the laws of nature are never broken. It just reflects the inability of man to fully understand the science behind various phenomena observed in nature. Numerous scientists have explained the virgin births.

In Islam, the immaculate conception of Jesus is not interpreted to mean that he was in some way a Divine Being. He was still a human being (Qur’an 19:31).

Divinity of Jesus
Islam presents Jesus as a human who believed in the absolute Unity and Indivisibility of God (Qur’an 3:52).

Muslims consider the doctrine of Divinity of Jesus and Trinity as later changes to the teachings of Jesus. The New Testament itself furnishes abundant evidence to show that Jesus was only a human being whom God chose for the reformation of His people, and repeatedly contradicts the Divinity of Jesus. Jesus always referred to himself as having been sent by God (John 17:3) and his followers, too, considered him a man approved by God (Qur’an 19:37; Acts 2:22, John 3:2).

He was undoubtedly called the son of God, but this title has only been employed metaphorically and in fact is used for all the chosen ones of God (Matt 5:9, Exodus 4:22). The literal connotation of ‘son of God‘ as a Divine Being and hence the subsequent development of Trinity Dogma was the result of Hellenistic influences on Christianity as it spread in the Gentile world. The Semitic usage of ‘son of God‘ was misunderstood and forgotten and disputes about the exact status of Jesus erupted, as recorded in the early Church history.

Jesus prayed to God like all other God-fearing individuals (Luke 5:16), and engaged in spiritual exercises such as fasting (Matt 4:2). Furthermore, Jesus lacked knowledge of the future (Mark 13:32), as only the Divine Being possesses perfect and complete knowledge.

Mission of Jesus
The mission of Jesus was confined to the Children of Israel (Qur’an 3:50, Matt. 10:5-6; 15:24). He was commissioned by God to revive the true spirit of the Torah in the hearts of the Israelites and clear any misunderstandings about the Law. He purified and revitalized Judaism. As Jesus was a follower of Moses, he did not change or reject the Mosaic Law. He had come to fulfill the Law (Matt 5:17).

Miracles of Jesus
The Holy Qur’an mentions several miracles of Jesus, including his ability to create birds, his ability to cure the leprous and the blind, and raising the dead to life. The ability to create birds is a metaphor meaning ordinary people who accepted the teachings of Jesus were spiritually transformed into birds soaring high into the lofty regions of the spiritual firmament above all worldly concerns. The healing powers can also be understood in the spiritual sense. He restored sight to those people who were spiritually blind, and gave life to those spiritually dead. Jesus specifically referred to the Pharisees of his day as being blind because, among other maladies, they were hypocritical in nature.

Indeed, all reformers from God are spiritual physicians since the disbelievers are deaf, dumb and blind according to Islam (Qur’an 2:19).

Crucifixion of Jesus
The disbelievers of Jesus wished to bring about his death upon the cross for the purpose of calling him accursed in accordance with the pronouncement in Deut 21:23 which declares, “he that is hanged is accursed of God.” His death on the cross would thus confirm him as a false Messiah. Islam contradicts the assertion that Jesus died an accursed death on the cross.

Thus, Ahmadi Muslims believe that God frustrated the plan of the disbelievers of Jesus. Although Jesus was nailed to the cross, he did not perish on it. He was removed from the cross in a state of unconsciousness (Qur’an 4:158). The Gospels, too, provide extensive evidence of his escape from the accursed death on the cross.

According to Islam, Jesus did not preach salvation through atonement of sins by his death on the cross. This philosophy of someone atoning for the sins of another is emphatically rejected in the Old Testament as well (Deut. 24:16, Ezekiel 18:2 and 20).

Ahmadi Muslims believe that Jesus came under the care of his devoted followers after he was removed from the cross. He was placed in the tomb where he recovered from his ordeal. The Gospels too describe that Jesus was still in his earthly body of flesh and bones after emerging from the tomb (Luke 24:39). An analysis of the post-crucifixion period described in the Gospels reveals that Jesus led a low-profile existence. He hurriedly traveled away from the locality of the crucifixion (Qur’an 23:51; Matt 28:10, Mark 16:7).

Migration to the East Ahmadi Muslims believe that the physical ascension of Jesus to Heaven is a later interpolation. The term “heaven” is used for spiritual bliss which the righteous enjoy after a mortal life.     Jesus was sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Matt. 15:24). Out of twelve tribes of Israel, only two were in the region where Jesus preached. The other ten tribes, as a result of exile, were domiciled in the eastern countries, especially in Afghanistan and Kashmir. It was imperative for Jesus to migrate eastwards to complete his mission. There is overwhelming evidence that the people of Afghanistan, Kashmir and neighbouring regions are of Israelite ancestry. Their physical features, languages, folklore, customs, and festivals attest to their Israelite heritage. Evidence also comes from the names they give to their villages, their monuments, and ancient historical works and inscriptions.

Jesus in India The presence of Jesus in India is recorded in the ancient Indian literature, and records of Kashmir. Jesus came to Kashmir from the Holy Land during the reign of Raja Gopadatta (49-109 AD) to proclaim his prophethood to the Israelites. He was known as Yusu (Jesus) of the children of Israel. It is recorded that great number of people recognized his holiness and piety and became his disciples.       Tomb of Jesus According to Ahmadi Muslims, Jesus’ mission was completed. He died a natural death at the approximate age of 120 in Kashmir, India. (Hadith: Kanzul Imal) The tomb of Jesus, known as the tomb of Prophet Yus Asaf, still exists in the Khanyar quarter of the city of Srinagar, Kashmir. It has been venerated for centuries. The local inhabitants refer to the tomb as Rauzabal, meaning “The Honoured Tomb”.   (For more information on this topic visit  http://www.alislam.org/topics/jesus/)