Alleged Hair of Prophet Mohamed arrives in Moscow
The relic will be on display during religious holidays
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Thousands of new visitors are expected at the Moscow’s Cathedral Mosque this week as it now houses a strand of hair believed to have belonged to the Prophet Mohamed.
The relic was a gift from the Chechen Republic leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, to honour the Moscow’s newest Mosque – one of the biggest in Russia - which had recently reopened to the public after a ten-year reconstruction.
As the video above shows, the hair will be permanently stored in a glass case inside the mosque and be displayed to the general public during religious holidays.
Its transportation from the Grozny, Chechnya, where it was previously stored, to Moscow was supervised by Ravil Gainutdin, the head of the Russian Mufti Council, a religious group representing the Muslim community of Russia.
"We are so nervous today, as this day is a new era, new history for us," he said to Russian News Agency TASS, expressing his hope that "the part of Prophet Mohamed will contribute to peace and friendship among peoples."
Mosques in the cities of Tver, central Russia, and Makhachkala, the capital of the North Caucasus republic of Dagestan, also possess strands of Prophet Mohamed’s hair.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments