Imamzadeh Sayyid Ali

By Dr. Hussain Qarachanloo, Ph.D, Tehran University
The holy shrine of Imamzadeh Sayyid Ali is situated northeast of the city of Qom enroute to the Rey city, formerly called `Rey Gate'. At present the Tehran-Qom by-pass freeway passes by the side of this holy shrine, once again bringing it to the focus of attention.
As per the genealogical tree engraved on the stone tablet covering the tomb of Imamzadeh Sayyid Ali, his genealogy is as follows:
"Al-Sayyid Ali ibn-e Ibrahim ibn-e Ja'far ibn-e Abbas ibn-e Imam of the pious believers, the Commander of the Faithful, Ali ibn-e Abi Talib (AS). However, the common locals mistakenly believe him to be a descendent of Hazrat Abul-Fazl Abbas (AS) - Imam Hussain's (AS) brother - which is a false belief.
In all probability the genealogy of this Imamzadeh is different from what is written on his tomb. According to the author of "The History of Qom" - he is a descendent of Muhammad ibn-e Hanafiyeh, the son of Imam Ali (AS), in which case his genealogy would be "Sayyid Ali ibn-e Muhammad ibn-e Ali ibn-e Abdullah ibn-e Ja'far ibn-e Muhammad ibn-e Ali ibn-e Abi Taleb (AS).
Imamzadeh Sayyid Ali was a generous member of the Bani Hashem (the Prophet's tribe) and was famous and popular for his greatness, magnanimity, etc. He had 19 sons of whom Obeidullah ibn-e Ali was a knowledgeable, pious and courageous personality who spent most of his time travelling.
The shrine is a non-symmetrical octagonal construction from inside with a 9- meter tall and 6-meter wide entrance. It has four verandas on four sides of the tomb, which are 2.5 meters wide and 2.5 meters deep, each having a door opening to the outer courtyards.
The shrine has a parabolic dome that is 7 meters long and 7 meters in diameter, which stands on a 2.4-meter long cylindrical neck. The dome is decorated with colorful tiles.
The tomb is covered with a green-colored wooden mesh (zarih) covered with a green colored silk curtain. The tomb is 1.2 meters high, 2 meters long and 1.5 meters wide and is decorated with colorful designed tiles belonging to the period of Fath Ali Shah's rule in Iran.
It is also to be mentioned that Haj Muhammad Aqazadeh who was one of the pious and generous people of the holy city of Qom constructed the main shrine and its dome.
Sources:
1. Torbat-e Pakan, vol. 2, p. 103
2. Ganjineh Athar-e Qom, vol. 2, pp. 626-662
3. Nasirul Shariah, Tarikh-e Qom, p. 130
4. Qomi, Abdul Malek, Tarikh-e Qom, p. 234
5. Anjom-e Foruzan, pp. 144-145.