this in any hadith. Allah mentioned it only in His account of those before us, who built a mosque over the grave of the Companions of the Cave. These were among those whom Allah forbade us to imitate, as the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said in an authentic hadith:

“Those before you used to take graves as places of worship. Beware! Do not take graves as places of worship, for I forbid you to do so.”

In this hadith he condemned those devoted to shrines, as he did in the other authentic hadiths, saying:

“May Allah curse the Jews and Christians: they took the graves of their prophets as places of worship.” He was warning against what they had done.

He also said:

“When a righteous man among them died, they would build a mosque over his grave and make those images within it. They will be the worst of creation before Allah on the Day of Resurrection.”

Moreover, many—or most—of their shrines are based on falsehood, for associating partners with Allah is frequently linked with lying in the Book of Allah. Allah Most High says:

“And avoid false speech, devoting yourselves to Allah alone, associating no partners with Him.”

The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“False testimony is equivalent to associating partners with Allah.” He said this three times.

Such is the shrine built in Cairo over the head of al-Husayn. This is a false claim, by the agreement of the scholars: al-Husayn’s head was never brought there at all. Its origins lie in Ascalon, and it has been said that the head was that of a monk. Al-Husayn’s head was not in Ascalon; this was only introduced toward the end of the rule of the heretical Banū ʿUbayd. Likewise, the shrine of ʿAlī—may Allah be pleased with him—was only established during the rule of Banū