A very beautiful mosque is in Naqsh-e Jahan Square, in front of the magnificent Ali Qapu Mansion, which is called the Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque.
The name of the mosque comes from a scientist, whose name the Shah chose to put on the mosque because of his devotion to him.
The story of Sheikh Lotfollah is as follows:
With the establishment of the Safavid government, the Ottomans increased pressure on the Shiites of southern Lebanon and the Levant.
Sheikh Lotfollah Maysi, his father Abdul Karim and his grandfather Sheikh Ibrahim, were among the greatest religious scholars of Lebanon.
They, along with some of Jabal Amil’s grandees, who also were under pressure from the Ottomans, went on a pilgrimage to the eighth Shiite Imam’s shrine in Khorasan, with the intention of acquiring more knowledge as well.
Following the Uzbeks’ invasion of Khorasan, Sheikh Lotfollah went to Qazvin and became engaged in academic activities and teaching.
With the transfer of the capital from Qazvin to Isfahan, he moved to Isfahan at the invitation of Shah Abbas I and became involved in scientific and religious activities.
It is said that for Shah Abbas’ easy access to the Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque, an underground route was built, which made the Shah’s meeting with this scholar feasible.
The route was located between the Ali Qapu Palace and the Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque, and after arriving at the entrance of the mosque, the person had to walk through a winding path to finally reach the main building of the mosque.
Along the route, the guards stood and protected the harem women and their comings and goings to the mosque.
The doors of the building were always kept closed. Today, these doors are open to visitors, but the doors of the underground path are still closed.
The Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque is the only mosque among all Islamic mosques that has no courtyard and minaret.
Since this mosque was for the courtiers and the Shah’s family, no minaret was built over it so that the public didn’t go there.
When Professor Pope, a famous Iranologist, saw this mosque, he said: “It is hard to believe that this building is made by humans.”
