Allama Amini
 | |
| Personal Information | |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Abd al-Husayn Amini |
| Birth | 1902-3 |
| Demise | July 3, 1970 |
| Burial Place | Public Library of Imam Amīr al-Muʾminīn (a) |
| Academic Information | |
| Teachers | Sayyid Abū l-Ḥasan al-Iṣfahānī • Muḥammad Ḥusayn Nāʾīnī • Muḥammad Ḥusayn Gharawī Iṣfahānī |
| Works | Al-Ghadīr fī l-Kitāb wa l-Sunna wa l-Adab • Shuhadāʾ al-Faḍīla |
| Education | Fiqh and Uṣūl • Tarājim and Rijal • Hadith |
| Religion | Shiʿa |
| cultural information | |
| Field of Activity | Defense of Shiʿism |
| Reason for Notability | Authorship of Al-Ghadīr |
ʿAbd al-Ḥusayn Amīnī (1902-1970), known as Allama Amini and Ṣāḥib al-Ghadīr, was a Shiʿa scholar, researcher, bibliographer, and author of the book Al-Ghadīr.
Prominent Shiʿa scholars have described Allama Amini as a standard-bearer of knowledge and literature, a champion of the Islamic intellectual movement, a mujahid in defense of the Shiʿa faith, a propagator of the virtues of its great figures, a comprehensive master, a sagacious scholar, and a brilliant, diligent, skillful, truthful, truth-seeking, and insightful author.
Besides authoring books, ʿAbd al-Ḥusayn Amīnī's other activities are reported in two areas: establishing libraries and undertaking scholarly and missionary travels. Amini traveled to various countries such as Iran, India, Syria, and Turkey to explain the teachings of the Ahl al-Bayt (a) and for research. He established the Public Library of Amīr al-Muʾminīn (a) in Najaf for the benefit of researchers.
Apart from Al-Ghadīr, numerous works by ʿAbd al-Ḥusayn Amīnī have been published on Islamic history, fiqh, tafsir, and tarājim, including Shuhadāʾ al-Faḍīla and Sīratunā wa Sunnatunā Sīrat Nabīyinā wa Sunnatuh. Given ʿAbd al-Ḥusayn Amīnī's scholarly efforts, several authors have described his characteristics and academic personality, and have written monographs about him, such as Ḥamāsa-yi Ghadīr and Amīn-i Sharīʿat.
Standing and Influence
'Abd al-Ḥusayn Amīnī, known as Allama Amini and Ṣāḥib al-Ghadīr, was a Shi'a scholar, researcher, bibliographer, and author of the book Al-Ghadīr, who is considered to have played a prominent role in the revival, introduction, and defense of Ghadir.[1]
The Shi'a scholar and marja' al-taqlīd, Sayyid Abū l-Ḥasan al-Iṣfahānī (d. 1365 AH), called Allama Amini a standard-bearer of knowledge and literature and a champion of the Islamic intellectual movement.[2] He considered Amini a mujahid in defense of the Shi'a faith and a propagator of the virtues of its great figures.[3]
The Shi'a marja' al-taqlīd, Sayyid Ḥusayn Ṭabāṭabā'ī Qummī (d. 1366 AH), called Allama Amini a comprehensive master and a sagacious scholar.[4]
Sayyid Muḥammad Ḥusayn Gharawī Iṣfahānī (d. 1361 AH), a prominent Shi'a faqīh and uṣūlī, described Amini as a brilliant, diligent, skillful, truthful, truth-seeking, and insightful author.[5]
Āghā Buzurg Tehrānī, a prominent Shi'a bibliographer, called Allama Amini a valuable master, a true manifestation of religion, a source of pride for the faith, and a person of profound certainty.[6]
Amini's most important work is considered to be the book Al-Ghadīr, the authorship of which brought him fame and appreciation in the Islamic world.[7] It is said that great scholars from both Shi'a and Sunni traditions wrote commendations (taqrīẓ) for this book, praising Amini's scholarly and practical personality;[8] for example, Muḥammad Sa'īd Daḥdūḥ, a Sunni scholar from Aleppo who, along with his family, converted to Shi'ism after reading Al-Ghadīr,[9] wrote in a part of his letter to Amini: "Truly, you have inherited a method and ethics from the Household of Muḥammad that we will not find in anyone else, except for a few sincere pious individuals."[10]
Life and Family
'Abd al-Ḥusayn Amīnī Najafī was born in Tabriz in 1320 AH (1281 SH).[11] Allama Amini's family is described as a family of knowledge, virtue, piety, and ethics, with a history of religious services.[12]
Allama Amini's father, Mīrzā Aḥmad Amīnī (1287-1370 AH), was among the pious scholars of Tabriz.[13] Amini's grandfather, Mullā Najafqulī (1257-1340 AH), also known as Amīn al-Shar', was considered one of the virtuous and pious individuals of Tabriz, and their family name originated from this title.[14]
Demise
According to Muḥammad Riḍā Ḥakīmī, 'Abd al-Ḥusayn Amīnī, who had gone to Tehran for treatment, passed away at noon on Friday, Tir 12, 1349 SH (Rabī' II 28, 1390 AH).[15] His body was escorted in funeral processions in Tehran and Najaf, and finally buried in his own library.[16]
Education
According to some sources, Amini completed his preliminary education in Tabriz under his father and later entered the Ṭālibiyya School in Tabriz.[17] He completed the introductory and intermediate levels of fiqh and uṣūl at this school, and in 1342 AH, at the age of twenty-two, he went to Najaf to continue his studies.[18]
In Najaf, he pursued advanced studies in fiqh and uṣūl under the prominent teachers of the time and received ijazat of ijtihad and hadith narration from some of them.[19] After completing his education, he returned to Tabriz for two years for missionary work, but then returned to Najaf to engage in research and scholarship.[20]
Teachers
Sources mention the following teachers of ʿAbd al-Ḥusayn Amīnī in Tabriz and Najaf:
- Aḥmad Amīnī (Allama Amini's father) in Tabriz
- Sayyid Muḥammad b. ʿAbd al-Karīm Mūsawī, known as Mawlānā, in Tabriz
- Sayyid Murtaḍā Ḥusaynī Khusrawshāhī in Tabriz
- Ḥusayn b. ʿAbd ʿAlī Tūtančī in Tabriz
- Mīrzā ʿAlī Aṣghar Malikī in Tabriz
- Sayyid Muḥammad Bāqir Ḥusaynī Fīrūzābādī in Najaf
- Sayyid Abū Turāb Khwānsārī in Najaf
- Mīrzā ʿAlī Īrawānī in Najaf
- Mīrzā Abū l-Ḥasan Meshkīnī in Najaf[21]
Cultural and Social Activities
'Abd al-Husayn Amini's cultural and social activities have been categorized into two areas: establishing a library and academic and missionary travels:
Establishing a Library
According to Muḥammad Riḍā Ḥakīmī, when 'Allama Amini decided to begin writing al-Ghadir, he realized that any researcher intending to compile a comprehensive and documented collection on a subject would face a serious shortage of printed and manuscript sources.[22] This shortage was either because such sources were not available in the public libraries of Najaf at the time, or if they were, their number was small, and their use was limited to a short period, which was insufficient for deep and precise research.[23]
According to Ḥakīmī, these shortcomings led Amini to decide, with strong motivation, to establish a large and comprehensive library containing first-hand manuscript and printed sources; a library that would solve researchers' problems and prevent the repetition of his own and others' efforts in research trips.[24] In this endeavor, his personality and reputation attracted the cooperation of scholars, philanthropists, and culture-loving people of Iran.[25] The result of this effort was the establishment of a valuable library in Najaf, which is considered one of the most prominent academic libraries in the Islamic world.[26]
It is reported that 'Abd al-Husayn Amini established the Maktabat al-Imam Amir al-Muʾminin al-ʿAmma (a) (Public Library of Imam Amir al-Muʾminin (a)) in Najaf on Jumada I 3, 1373 AH.[27] According to Ḥakīmī, this library was inaugurated on Eid al-Ghadir in 1376 AH, with the presence of scholars, including Shaykh Āghā Buzurg Tehrani.[28] A report from 2003 CE (1382 SH/1424 AH) stated that the number of manuscript books, printed books, and periodicals in this library was half a million copies, with its manuscripts considered significant in terms of quantity and quality.[29]
Academic and Missionary Travels
It is said that after the compilation of al-Ghadir, as 'Abd al-Husayn Amini's scholarly personality became known worldwide, he traveled to various cities and countries to explain the teachings of the Ahl al-Bayt (a) and for research; these travels included:
- Several trips to Iran, one of which was a one-month journey to Isfahan and Najafabad in 1376 AH, the report of which is found in the book Yak Māh dar Iṣfahān (One Month in Isfahan) by Farhang Nakha'i.[30] Among the libraries where Amini studied and researched during his trips to Iran were: Astan Quds Razavi Library (Mashhad), Sepahsalar School Library (Tehran), National Library (Tehran), Library of the Islamic Consultative Assembly (Tehran), Hajj Ḥusayn Malik Library (Tehran), Ayatollah Burujirdi Library (Burujird), and the library of the late Shaykh Sardār Kābulī (Kermanshah).[31]
- A four-month trip to India in 1380 AH, during which Amini visited libraries in various Indian cities, including Agra, Aligarh, Allahabad, Mumbai, Lucknow, Rampur, Thane, and Hyderabad.[32] It is said that during this academic journey, Amini acquired about eighty-six valuable books and made extensive use of them.[33] Amini documented this trip in the fourth volume of Thamarāt al-Asfār ilā l-Aqṭār.[34]
- A four-month trip to Syria in 1384 AH, during which Amini utilized the al-Ẓāhiriyya National Library and the Library of the Academy of the Arabic Language in Damascus, the Awqāf Library and the National Library of Aleppo, and other academic schools and centers.[35] In these centers, he obtained 253 books, articles, and pamphlets, from which he greatly benefited.[36] Amini documented this trip in the fourth volume of Thamarāt al-Asfār ilā l-Aqṭār.[37]
- A trip to Turkey, which resulted in his familiarity with and study of fifty-five important books and the acquisition of hundreds of manuscripts.[38]
Works
According to some sources, numerous works by 'Abd al-Husayn Amini have been published on the subjects of Islamic history, fiqh, tafsir, and biographies:
| Row | Book / Treatise Title | Type of Work | Year / Date of Publication | Author / Translator / Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | al-Ghadir fi l-Kitab wa l-Sunna wa l-Adab | eleven volumes | — | — |
| 2 | Shuhadāʾ al-Faḍīla | Biographies of one hundred thirty Shi'a scholars | — | Persian translation: Shahīdān-e Rāh-e Faḍīlat by Jalāl al-Dīn Fārsī |
| 3 | Kāmil al-Ziyārāt | Research and commentary | 1356 AH | al-Maṭbaʿat al-Mubāraka al-Murtaḍawiyya |
| 4 | Adab al-Zāʾir li-man Yammam al-Ḥāʾir | Book | 1424 AH | Muʾassasat al-Balāgh / Translation: Ādāb-e Kūy-e Jānān by Muḥsin Rajabī |
| 5 | al-Maqāṣid al-ʿAliyya fī l-Maṭālib al-Saniyya | Fiqh book | 1392 SH | Bonyad-e Muḥaqqiq Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Dār al-Tafsīr |
| 6 | Sīratunā wa Sunnatunā Sīrat Nabīyinā wa Sunnatihi | Book | 1427 AH | Muʾassasat al-Balāgh |
| 7 | Tafsīr Fātiḥat al-Kitāb | Book | 1395 AH | Maktabat al-Imam Amir al-Muʾminin 'Ali (a) |
| 8 | al-Sujūd ʿalā al-Turba al-Ḥusaynīya ʿinda al-Shīʿa al-Imāmīya | Book | — | Nashr-e Majnūn |
| 9 | Iʿlām al-Anām fī Maʿrifat al-Malik al-ʿAllām | Book | — | — |
| 10 | Thamarāt al-Asfār ilā l-Aqṭār | four volumes | 1429 AH | Markaz al-Amīr li-Iḥyāʾ Turāth al-Islāmī |
| 11 | Kitāb Sulaym b. Qays al-Hilālī | Treatise | — | — |
| 12 | Riyāḍ al-Ins | two volumes | — | — |
| 13 | Risāla dar bāra-ye Niyyat | Treatise | — | — |
| 14 | Risāla dar Bayān-e Ḥaqīqat-e Ziyārāt | Treatise | — | — |
| 15 | Risāla dar ʿIlm-e Dirāyat al-Ḥadīth | Treatise | — | — |
Biography of 'Allama Amini in Other Works
It has been reported that, in light of 'Abd al-Husayn Amini's scholarly endeavors, a number of authors have described his characteristics and academic personality, and have authored monographs about him; including:
| Row | Title of Book / Article | Author / Compiler | Type of Work / Description | Number of Pages / Publisher |
| 1 | One Month in Isfahan | 'Allama Amini | Report of a one-month journey | eighty-three pp. / Farhang-e Nakha'i |
| 2 | Epic of Ghadir | Muhammad Rida Hakimi | Book | 348 pp. / Intisharat-e Dalil-e Ma |
| 3 | Rub' Qarn ma' al-'Allama al-Amini | Husayn Shakiri | Book / Memoirs of twenty-five years accompanying Amini (Persian: Hamrahi-ye Khidr) | — / — |
| 4 | Yadnama-ye 'Allama Amini | Sayyid Ja'far Shahidi and Muhammad Rida Hakimi | Commemoration Volume | 648 pp. / Intisharat-e Bustan-e Kitab |
| 5 | Amin-e Shari'at | A group of writers | Commemoration Volume | 336 pp. / Intisharat-e Bunyad-e Muhaqqiq Tabataba'i |
| 6 | 'Allama Amini | Muhadditha Gudharzniya | Book | ninety pp. / Intisharat-e Madrasa |
| 7 | Amin-e Zaman | Ahmad Habibnizhad | Book | 104 pp. / Intisharat-e Markaz-e Pazhuhishha-ye Sada wa Sima |
| 8 | Dadkhwah-e Jorm-e Tarikh (The Era and Works of 'Allama Amini - the Author of al-Ghadir) | 'Ali Abu l-Hasani (Mundhir) | Article / Short book | sixty-three pp. / Intisharat-e Mu'assisa-ye Tahqiqat wa Nashr-e Ma'arif-e Ahl al-Bayt (a) |
| 9 | 'Allama Amini, the Indefatigable Reformer | 'Alireza Sayyid Kabari | Book | 128 pp. / Shirkat-e Chap wa Nashr-e Bayn al-Milal-e Sazman-e Tablighat-e Islami |
| 10 | 'Allama Amini, the Drinker of Ghadir | Mahdi Lutifi | Book | 272 pp. / Intisharat-e Ansari |
| 11 | Biography and Scholarly and Cultural Services of the Late 'Allama 'Abd al-Husayn Amini | Sadra Saduqi | Book | 299 pp. / Intisharat-e Anjuman-e Athar wa Mafakhir-e Farhangi |
| 12 | Research Guide on 'Allama Amini and His Works | Hamid Salim Gandumi | Article / Safina Quarterly, no. thirty-eight | — |
Footnotes
- ↑ Hamrahi-yi Khiḍr, pp. 15–19; Allama Amini Jur'a-nūsh-i Ghadīr, pp. 14–26.
- ↑ Shahīdān-i Rāh-i Faḍīlat, pp. 11–12.
- ↑ Shahīdān-i Rāh-i Faḍīlat, pp. 11–12.
- ↑ Shahīdān-i Rāh-i Faḍīlat, p. 13.
- ↑ Shahīdān-i Rāh-i Faḍīlat, pp. 14–17.
- ↑ Shahīdān-i Rāh-i Faḍīlat, pp. 17–18.
- ↑ Hamrahi-yi Khiḍr, pp. 39–40; Allama Amini Jur'a-nūsh-i Ghadīr, pp. 17–26.
- ↑ Allama Amini Jur'a-nūsh-i Ghadīr, p. 127.
- ↑ Allama Amini Jur'a-nūsh-i Ghadīr, p. 130.
- ↑ Al-Ghadīr, vol. 1, part 2, p. 25.
- ↑ Du Kitābkhāna dar Pahlū-yi Ham, p. 19.
- ↑ Du Kitābkhāna dar Pahlū-yi Ham, p. 21.
- ↑ Du Kitābkhāna dar Pahlū-yi Ham, pp. 20–21.
- ↑ Du Kitābkhāna dar Pahlū-yi Ham, p. 21.
- ↑ Du Kitābkhāna dar Pahlū-yi Ham, p. 32.
- ↑ Du Kitābkhāna dar Pahlū-yi Ham, p. 33.
- ↑ Allama Amini Jurʿa-nūsh-i Ghadīr, pp. 29–30.
- ↑ Allama Amini, Ghawwāṣ-i Ghadīr, p. 43.
- ↑ Allama Amini Jurʿa-nūsh-i Ghadīr, pp. 30–31; Hamrahi-yi Khiḍr, p. 26.
- ↑ Allama Amini Jurʿa-nūsh-i Ghadīr, pp. 31–32.
- ↑ Allama Amini Jurʿa-nūsh-i Ghadīr, pp. 30–31.
- ↑ Ḥamāsa-ye Ghadīr, p. 305.
- ↑ Ḥamāsa-ye Ghadīr, p. 306.
- ↑ Ḥamāsa-ye Ghadīr, p. 306.
- ↑ Ḥamāsa-ye Ghadīr, p. 306.
- ↑ Ḥamāsa-ye Ghadīr, p. 306.
- ↑ Ḥamāsa-ye Ghadīr, p. 307.
- ↑ Ḥamāsa-ye Ghadīr, p. 307.
- ↑ “Gozarī bar Kitābkhāna-ye Amīr al-Muʾminīn (a) dar Najaf,” pp. 126–127.
- ↑ Yak Māh dar Iṣfahān, pp. 30–48.
- ↑ Hamrāhī-ye Khiḍr, p. 109.
- ↑ Hamrāhī-ye Khiḍr, pp. 109–110.
- ↑ Hamrāhī-ye Khiḍr, p. 110.
- ↑ Thamarāt al-Asfār ilā l-Aqṭār, vol. 4, pp. 15–122.
- ↑ Hamrāhī-ye Khiḍr, p. 110.
- ↑ Hamrāhī-ye Khiḍr, p. 110.
- ↑ Thamarāt al-Asfār ilā l-Aqṭār, vol. 4, pp. 127–279.
- ↑ Hamrāhī-ye Khiḍr, pp. 110–111.
References
- Thamarāt al-Asfār ilā al-Aqṭār; 'Abd al-Husayn Amini, Beirut: Markaz al-Ghadir li l-Dirasat al-Islamiyya, 1429 AH.
- Hamasa-ye Ghadir; Muhammad Rida Hakimi, Qom: Intisharat-e Dalil-e Ma, 1386 SH.
- Two Libraries Side by Side: A Reflection on the Biography of 'Allama 'Abd al-Husayn Amini; Muhammad Rida Hakimi, in Biography and Scholarly and Cultural Services of the Late 'Allama 'Abd al-Husayn Amini, edited by Sadra Saduqi, Tehran: Intisharat-e Anjuman-e Athar wa Mafakhir-e Farhangi, 1398 SH.
- Shahidan-e Rah-e Fazilat; 'Abd al-Husayn Amini, translated by Jalal al-Din Farsi, Tehran: Intisharat-e Ruzbih, 1362 SH.
- Allama Amini, the Diver of Ghadir; Sayyid 'Alireza Sayyid Kabari, in Farhang-e Kawthar, no. two, Urdibihisht 1376 SH.
- 'Allama Amini, the Drinker of Ghadir (with an appendix of excerpts from al-Ghadir); Mahdi Lutifi, Qom: Intisharat-e Ansari, 1382 SH.
- al-Ghadir; 'Abd al-Husayn Amini, translated by Muhammad Taqi Wahidi, Tehran: Intisharat-e Kitabkhana-ye Buzurg-e Islami, 1368 SH.
- A Visit to the Library of Amir al-Mu'minin 'Ali (a) in Najaf; Nasir Najmi, translated by Hamid Rida Azhir, in Nashriyya-ye Mishkat, no. eighty-one, Winter 1382 SH.
- Hamrahi-ye Khidr: Bist-o Panj Sal Hamrah-e 'Allama Amini, Gushihayi az Zindigani-ye 'Allama Amini; Husayn Shakiri, translated by Muhsin Raf'at, Tehran: Intisharat-e Payam-e Safid, 1389 SH.
- Yik Mah dar Isfahan aw Guzarish-e Musafarat-e 'Allama Mu'azzam Hazrat Ayatullah al-'Uzma Aqay Hajj Shaykh 'Abd al-Husayn Amini bih Isfahan; n.p.: Chapkhana-ye Khurasan, n.d.