AL ASAD, Iraq -- While many make think the name, Spring of the Lion, sounds like the latest martial arts movie to come out of a Hollywood production studio, it is actually the name of an oasis and holy site located here.
Eyen Al Asad is the Arabic name for the oasis located here, and March 14, the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing chaplain's office held its first of weekly guided tours of the holy site. The group of volunteers also visited the neighboring cemetery.
The office decided to follow the tradition set down by the 2nd MAW and introduce a little bit of Iraqi culture and history to the Marines and sailors here.
"My goal was to give those that volunteered an opportunity to see and understand the historical and religious significance of the area," said Navy Cmdr. Craig G. Muehler, chaplain, 3rd MAW.
According to Arab legend, Abraham, the patriarch of the Hebrew Bible, visited the oasis on his journey from Ur to Haran. Abraham reportedly stopped at the oasis, drank from the water and bathed himself in it. It is said that he and his family camped at the oasis a short time before moving on to Haran.
According to Maj. Gary V. Allison, aviation safety officer, 3rd MAW, the tour was great and allowed one to walk through the oasis and reflect on the millennia of history that has taken place there.
"During the walk through the oasis, it is easy to get lost in the history and culture," said Allison, a native of Hosmer, S.D. "It's amazing to think about the families that settled here and carved an existence out of the desert surrounding the oasis by planting date palm trees and building a modest village."
The second stop of the tour, a stark contrast to the lush date palm grove and small pond, was the resting place of several Iraqi nationals.
According to Maj. Steve K. Braund, wing avionics officer, 3rd MAW, regardless of one's religious background, everyone can appreciate the feeling of walking into the past and imagining what it was like.
"Walking through the Cemetery of Al Asad, we saw that there appeared to be numerous grave sights with similar dates of death," said Braund, a native of Cashton, Wis. "The cemetery was discovered while they were cleaning up this area after we took over the base."
According to Muehler, the cemetery is a stark reminder of the death that follows life.
"The cemetery was used to bury casualties from the Iraq-Iran War in the 1980s," said Muehler, a native of San Diego. "The graves are filled with soldiers, civilians, women and children. A project in May 2005 cleaned the area in an attempt to bring some respect for those buried here."
According to Sgt. Paul M. Swingle, data analysis noncommissioned officer-in-charge, 3rd MAW, the whole experience was humbling and thought provoking.
"Knowing that men of God had at one time stood where I was standing is an amazing thought," said Swingle, a native of Gahanna, Ohio. "People should be excited about seeing and being somewhere that holy men had once been and bathed."
According to Muehler, the tour was a great opportunity for Marines and sailors from Marine Wing Headquarters Squadron 3, 3rd MAW, to get out of their workspace.
"Those who volunteered to go on the tour got a chance to experience history and be a part of something special," he added.
The oasis itself is a testament to the people that have thrived in a land full of hardships.
"The oasis is more then just an amazing ecosystem in the middle of the desert," said Muehler. "It's a little bit of heaven in the middle of hell, and sometimes that's what service members need to just forget where they are."