Spires of Qom's Shrine of Fatimeh

Book Excerpt

The shrine we were heading towards is one of the holiest, and due both to its location in Iran and its recent history, also one of the most conservative, in Shia Islam. Shia pilgrims and religious scholars come from all over the world to visit the Shrine of Fatima but, everyone plus the guidebooks told me, non-Muslims are never allowed inside. This is not a recent rule – even some of the historical accounts I’d read of non-Muslims visiting Persia tell how people outside of Islam are prevented from entering the grounds of the shrine. We can view it from close-by, and take pictures from outside the walls, but under no circumstances are we allowed inside the actual complex.