Maqam Info

Address: 37 Palmer Road, Singapore 079424
Visiting Hours:

MAQAM HABIB NOH IS CLOSED FOR REFURBISHMENT WORKS FROM 18TH JUNE 2024 TILL MIDDLE OF 2025.

About Maqam Habib Noh

Maqam Habib Noh is a shrine dedicated to the Muslim saint Sayyid Noh bin Mohamad bin Ahmad Al-Habsyi, popularly known as Habib Noh. The shrine houses his maqam (tomb) and is visited by pilgrims from as far away as China.

Habib Noh was a highly regarded pious individual who passed away on 27 July 1866AD at the age of 78. His coffin was said to have become immovable as it was being lifted for the journey to the usual Muslim cemetery. It was only when someone recalled that Habib Noh had wished to be buried on the peak of Mount Palmer then could the coffin be lifted. Habib Noh often spent time meditating on this hill.

Folklore has it that a Parsi (also spelled as Parsee) owned Mount Palmer and was reluctant to have a tomb on it. He thus demanded an exorbitant fee for allowing Habib Noh’s tomb to be placed on the hill. The money was raised almost miraculously, but the Parsi was mysteriously struck dead in three days. As more family members of the Parsi became similarly afflicted, the family decided to return the money to Habib Noh’s family, thus ending their tragic losses

The maqam sits on top of a flight of 49 steps. The long flight of steps is flanked by a garden alongside the stairs.. The steps lead to the shrine that houses the maqam of Habib Noh. The entrance to the shrine is decorated with curtains and  tie-backs. It opens up into an inner room where the maqam is located. The maqam lies within a four-post frame adorned with curtains. A chandelier hangs over the tomb, with the tombstones wrapped with a green cloth.

The tomb of Habib Abdurrahman bin Hasyim Al-Habsyi, he was said to be a cousin of Habib Noh, rests behind the maqam. Habib Abdurrahman was said to be Singapore’s first qadhi (or qadi; a judge in a Muslim community) who died in 1867.