A Pilgrimage of Wisdom: Mulla Sadra’s Historic House in Qom to Become a Hub for Astronomy and Philosophy
Pilgrims journeying to the holy city will soon be able to pair their ziyarat with stargazing, philosophy, and handicrafts at the Safavid-era home of the great Shia thinker.
For centuries, pilgrims have travelled to Qom to seek blessings at the luminous shrine of Hazrat Masoumeh (SA), to pray at Jamkaran, and to sit in the presence of the scholars of its renowned seminaries. Now, the spiritual journey through the holy city is set to gain a new dimension — one that unites the pilgrimage of the heart with the pilgrimage of the mind.
Local officials have announced plans to transform the historic house of the great Shia philosopher Mulla Sadra in Kahak, some 30 kilometres from Qom, into a hub for astronomy and philosophy tourism, enriching the province’s pilgrimage routes with science, contemplation, and art.
Weaving Wisdom into the Pilgrim’s Path
The plan was announced on Wednesday by Behnam Ahmadi-Farsani, director general of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts of Qom province, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the provincial department, the Kahak governorate, and the Kahak municipality.
The agreement seeks to promote the Mulla Sadra house and develop the value chain of religious, literary, and philosophical tourism in the city. Under its terms, the centuries-old house and its associated structures will host astronomy-related tourism alongside cultural and artistic events. Astronomy equipment has already been installed at the site, and the property will be made available to a knowledge-based company as a venue for astronomy and philosophy tourism events.
The initiative will also connect tourism with handicrafts and cultural gatherings — plans include a handicrafts bazaar at the historic house and philosophical tourism events focusing on Mulla Sadra and his intellectual legacy. The events will be incorporated into Qom province’s official tourism calendar, ensuring that pilgrims can plan their visit around them.
“The aim is to introduce the capacities of Kahak to pilgrims and tourism enthusiasts,” Ahmadi-Farsani said, adding that the province hopes to better promote Kahak’s cultural heritage, tourism, and handicrafts potential.
In the Footsteps of the Master of Transcendent Wisdom
The house is associated with Sadr al-Din Muhammad Shirazi, known as Mulla Sadra, who lived in Kahak during a period of withdrawal from public life. Born in Shiraz around 1571, he is regarded as one of the most significant Islamic philosophers after Avicenna, and his school of “Transcendent Wisdom” (al-hikma al-muta’aliya) has profoundly shaped Shia intellectual and spiritual thought to this day.
The Safavid-era building, registered as Iranian national heritage property No. 1821, is constructed from adobe, mud mortar, and timber, following a cross-shaped layout with a central domed space and surrounding rooms — a quiet architecture of contemplation that once sheltered one of Islam’s greatest minds.
A Journey for the Soul and the Stars
For the pilgrim, the new programme offers something rare: the chance to stand where Mulla Sadra withdrew to think, and then raise their eyes to the night sky in guided stargazing sessions — recalling the Quranic invitation to reflect on the heavens as signs of the Divine. It is a fitting addition to Qom’s pilgrimage landscape, where ziyarat of the shrine, the seminaries, and now the philosopher’s house and the stars above Kahak form a single, seamless journey of devotion, wisdom, and wonder.