Kadam Rasul are shrines, venerated in various parts of the Muslim World, where a stone containing the footprint of the Prophet Muhammad (Sm) is supposedly kept. Traditionally, Muslims have believed that whenever Prophet Muhammad (Sm) trod on a rock his foot had left an imprint. But such beliefs in prophetic miracles, have never had the sanction of orthodoxy. Perhaps these footprints in stone, being portable, were brought back by pilgrims from Makka. They are venerated in shrines known as Kadam Sharif or Kadam Rasul Allah.

Shrines such as Kadam Rasul have antecedents in both Judaism and Christianity, while in India the tradition of worshipping of sacred footprints goes back to Buddhist and Hindu times. The earliest and most famous of the footprint-shrines is the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, which marks the place from where the Prophet (Sm) took off on his Night Journey (mir'aj). Before he set off, his foot is supposed to have left a depression on the rock. Other footprints are preserved in Damascus, Cairo and Istambul.

In India there are Kadam Rasuls in Delhi and Bahraich (Uttar Pradesh), Ahmedabad (Gujarat), Cuttack (Orissa), and gaur and murshidabad (West Bengal). In Bangladesh they are found in Nabiganj (Narayanganj district) and Chittagong. In Bengal the oldest and most famous shrine is in Gaur and was erected by Sultan nusrat shah in 1530-31. According to tradition, the footprint came from the meditation room of the 13th century saint jalaluddin tabrizi of pandua. It was moved to Gaur by Sultan husain shah (1494-1519), Nusrat Shah's father. From Gaur it was transferred to Murshidabad, the last capital of Bengal, by Nawab sirajuddaula (1756-57). Gaur Kadam Rasul is also important for its place in the development of the Bengali regional style of architecture, which reached its maturity under the Sultanate. Designed like a hut, it is a square room with verandahs on three sides. The central domed room contains a small, carved pedestal of black stone that holds the relic.

In Bangladesh the best known Kadam Rasul is that of Nabiganj, on the eastern bank of the River Lakhya, opposite Narayanganj. According to Mirza Nathan's baharistan-i-ghaibi, written during the early seventeenth century, this footprint was purchased from Arab merchants by masum khan kabuli, an Afghan chief who had rebelled against Emperor akbar. At the time a fortress built on raised ground marked the site. Inside it a shrine was erected in 1191 AH/1777-78 AD by Ghulam Nabi, a landlord of Dhaka. It is a single-domed structure with a verandah in front. In the middle of the chamber is the altar of the relic, which is usually kept in a metal dish submerged in rose water. The shallow imprint, which measures 24 ´ 10cm, is cut in the shape of a foot; circular dents just below the upper edge indicate the toes. Incense, flowers, and money are offered at the shrine. Its importance can be seen from the two-storey monumental gateway built in 1220 AH/1805-6 AD by Ghulam Muhammad, Ghulam Nabi's son.

The Mughal administrator Yasin Khan built another Kadam Rasul in 1719 in Chittagong. It has a mosque in the centre, with two rooms on either side; one houses the footprint of the Prophet (Sm), and the other that of Abdul Qadir Gilani, a 12th century saint of Baghdad.

There is another Kadam Rasul in Bagicha Hat within Chandanaish upazila of Chittagong district. [Perween Hasan]