The grave of Sayyidah Maryam, mother of Nabi Isa (AS), lies in a rock-cut chamber in Jerusalem’s Kidron Valley. Known in Arabic as قبر السيدة العذراء مريم,…
The grave of Sayyidah Maryam, mother of Nabi Isa (AS), lies in a rock-cut chamber in Jerusalem’s Kidron Valley. Known in Arabic as قبر السيدة العذراء مريم, the grave stands at the foot of the Mount of Olives, east of the Old City and near the eastern wall of Masjid al-Aqsa. A long twelfth-century stairway descends from the valley into the church built around the chamber. Chosen and purified in the Qur’an Sayyidah Maryam was born into the family of Imran. Before her birth, her mother dedicated her to the service of Allah. Sayyiduna Zakariyya (AS) became her guardian, and the Qur’an relates that he found her receiving provision in the sanctuary. “And ˹remember˺ when the angels said, ‘O Mary! Surely Allah has selected you, purified you, and chosen you over all women of the world. O Mary! Be devout to your Lord, prostrate yourself ˹in prayer˺ and bow along with those who bow down.’” Surah Ali ‘Imran 3:42–43 Allah gave Sayyidah Maryam the glad tidings of Nabi Isa (AS), whom she bore without a father. The Qur’an names her as truthful and chaste, and presents Sayyidah Maryam and Nabi Isa (AS) together as a sign for humanity. Her life is closely tied to Bayt al-Maqdis, where she was raised in worship. The grave in the Kidron Valley The chamber originated as a natural cave adapted for burial. A Byzantine church was established above it, while the surviving entrance and descending stairway largely belong to the rebuilding undertaken in the early twelfth century. The grave occupies the eastern part of the lower rock-cut chamber. Muslim historians included the site among the honoured places of Jerusalem. Mujir al-Din al-Ulaymi, the Jerusalemite qadi and historian who died in 928 AH/1522 CE, recorded that the church containing the grave of Sayyidah Maryam was known to Muslims and Christians. His own grave stands nearby in the Kidron Valley. Sayyiduna Umar’s prayer and the mihrab Mujir al-Din al-Ulaymi also transmitted that Sayyiduna Umar ibn al-Khattab (RA), the second caliph, passed the Church of Sayyidah Maryam after entering Jerusalem in 17 AH/638 CE and prayed two rak‘ahs there. A large mihrab, the prayer niche marking the direction of Makkah, survives south of the grave and records the site’s place within Jerusalem’s Muslim sacred geography.