Basic facts about the city of Qom don’t give out much about the true meaning of this city for the history, or the modern times of Iran. Today, Qom is the seventh largest city in Iran and it is the capital of Qom province. It lays on the banks of the Qom river, nearly one hundred and forty kilometers to the south of Teheran. Qom’s prosperity comes from being a regional center of gas and petrol products as well as from being on the route of important gas and petrol pipelines that run through him from Bandar Anzali and Teheran to the Abandan refinery in the Persian Gulf. #travel #qom #iran

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Archeological discoveries indicate that Qom existed as a residential area from the fifth millennium BC. Pre Islamic remaining relics and historical texts suggest that Kom, as Qom was called before the Arab conquest of Iran, was a large city. The turbulent history of the city and the surrounding area continued from the earliest times until the 20th century when Ayatollah Khomeini chose Qom to be the base for his opposition to the Pahlavi dynasty. #travel #iran #qom #archeological

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Apart from being a lively business center, Qom is also considered to be a holy town for members of Shi’a Islam religion, as it is the site of the shrine of Fatimah bint Musa, or Fatima Masumeh, sister of Imam Ali ibn Musa Rida. Her brother gave her the title “Masumeh”, which means infallible or sinless. In Shi’ism, women either become saints by their own merits or because they are sisters, daughters, or wives of other saints. Fatima Masumeh is a saint because of her own holiness and wisdom.

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If you decide to visit Qom, you might be confused by the sight of it. To a foreigner, Qom might sound like a wondrously looking desert town, resembling stories from Arab nights, but if you expect something like that, you will immediately be dispelled by the dusty route leading into the town and many uninspiring shacks and petrol stations that border it from both sides, slowly giving away to bland, featureless houses. However, once you find yourself near the shrine of Fatima Masumeh, its golden dome, mosaic tilework and minarets soaring into the sky will leave you in amazement. #travel

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Following his reputation for being one of the holiest places for the Shi’a Muslims, Qom is well known for its many religious seminaries and institutes that offer advanced religious studies. There are an estimated 50,000 seminarians in the city coming from 80 countries, including 6,000 from Pakistan alone. Qom has seminaries for women and some non-Shia students, too. Most of the seminaries teach their students modern social sciences and Western thought as well as traditional religious studies. #travel #iran #qom #muslims #religion

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