Akhbari
Encyclopedia
The Akhbārīs are Twelver Shī‘a Muslim
s who reject the use of reasoning in deriving verdicts, and believe only the Qur'an
, aḥadīth
, (prophetic sayings and recorded opinions of the Imāms
) and consensus should be used as sources to derive verdicts (fatwas). The term Akhbārī (from khabara, news or report) is used in contrast to Usūlī (from aṣl, first principle). Unlike Usūlīs, Akhbārīs do not follow marja‘
s (models for imitation) who practice modern form of ijtihad
(independent legal reasoning).
They form a minority within Shī‘a Islam, with Usūlīs making up the majority. Akhbārīsm "crystalized" as a distinct movement with the writings of Muhammad Amin al-Astarabadi
(d. 1627 AD) and achieved its greatest influence in the late Safavid
and early post-Safavid era. However, shortly thereafter Muhammad Baqir Behbahani
(d. 1792), along with other Usuli mujtahids, crushed the Akhbari movement. Today it is found primarily in Basra
area of southern Iraq
where they form the majority in many districts, although no longer in the city. They are also found in the island nation of Bahrain
, with reportedly "only a handful of Shi'i ulema
" remaining Akhbari "to the present day." Furthermore, during the twentieth century a part of the Shiite community in the Indian city of Hyderabad declared to have become Akhbari with a couple of local scholars.
do not follow a Madhab but rather lay claim to following the Koran and the Hadith.
Others may even go further and compare both groups to Protestant Christianity and especially to the Puritans, many of whom wished to break away and "purify" the Church of England.
based on ijtihad, Akhbārīs also reject the permissibility of writing exegesis
of the Qur'an without quoting the narrations of the infallible Ahlu l-Bayt
. They quote the Hadith ath-Thaqalayn and several authentic traditions of the Twelve Imāms to prohibit the practice of exegesis. In short, the gist of Akhbārī ideology is that nothing but the aḥadīth of the Infallibles can serve as authoritative evidence in Islam. Akhbārīs also differ from Usūlīs in their rejection of the Guardianship of the Islamic Jurists, arguing that preachers of religion have no role in politics, as is evidenced by the lives of the Imāms and their followers.
Usūlism evolved on the basis of Usul al-fiqh
(the hypothetical concepts and perceptions of some scholars) centuries after the major occultation. Among the earliest Shī‘a ulamā such as Muhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Kulayni and Ibn Babawaiyya, the most important activity was transmission of aḥadīth.
At this time, the Shī‘a distinguished themselves from the Sunni in the category of law, which employed such methods as qiyas
"analogical reasoning" and exegesis". However, the Shī‘a developed law directly from the traditions of the Imāms.
Initially during the Buyid period, the Twelver ulamā' considered that since the Imām had gone into Occultation
and his Nā'ib al-Khass was no longer present, all the functions invested in the Imām had lapsed. The principal functions of the Imām had been:
However, it soon became apparent that the situation caused by lapse of functions of the Hidden Imām was extremely impractical and left the Twelver Shī‘a community at a great disadvantage, with no leadership, no organization and no financial structure.
Shaykhu t-Taifa considered the ulamā' the best agents of the donor to distribute religious taxes since they knew to whom it should be distributed. Nevertheless, individuals were free to do this themselves if they wished. He allowed fuqahā to organize Friday prayers in absence of the Imām or his special representative.
The prominent Shī‘a scholars who rejected this thesis were:
It is to be noted that `Alam al-Huda was from among the Shaykhu t-Taifa's group.
Furthermore, Shahīd ath-Thānī extended the range of those eligible to receive money from zakāt to include religious students and the ulamā' themselves, who thus became the recipients of the money as trustees of students. Even in the field of defensive jihād, Shahīd ath-Thānī identified a role for the ulamā'. Only in the field of offensive jihād did he allow that the role of Hidden Imām had lapsed pending his return.
Although the aforementioned scholars were not mujtahids in their full capacity, they introduced innovative concepts into Shī‘a theology which later formed the basis of the exegetical school. Their innovations were sharply criticized by prominent Shī‘a scholars of their time and thus, remained mostly theoretical.
The traditional Shī‘a doctrine was, by its nature, fatal to leadership of any regime except that of Imām al-Mahdi since they believed that an Islamic state can be established only under the leadership of an infallible Imām. Thus, the Shī‘a had little role to play in supporting the decisions of the state, in contrast with the Sunni tendency of offering their full support to the Ottoman Empire
.
This caused a great deal of paranoia to the states where the Shī‘a were in majority. By the end of Safavid era the situation had become intense due to the rise of imperialism on a global scale. It was necessary to develop an alternate ideology for the survival of Iran
ian state. This is when a group of ulamā' were encouraged to squeeze out the possibility of extending the state's control over the shia majority; by whatever means necessary.
The revival of Akhbārism, or "neo-Akhbārism" as it became known, was under the dean of Karbala scholarship, Yusuf Al Bahrani
(1695–1772), who led an intellectual assault on Usuli thought in the mid-18th century. An Akhbārī critique of Usulism had emerged in Bahrain at the beginning of the 18th century, partly spurred by the weaknesses of the Usuli sponsoring Safavid empire. By succeeding to the role of dean of Karbala as one of the pre-eminent scholars of the age, al-Bahrani's extended this Bahrain-based debate to the rest of the Shī‘a world.
who challenged and defeated (by use of physical force, his militia called mirghadabs) the Akhbaris and eventually became the most politically influential cleric in Karbala in 1772. Bihbahani's theology was not welcomed by the Akhbaris. Although this controversy had begun as a minor disagreement on a few points, it eventually grew into a bitter, vituperative dispute culminating in Bihbahani's declaration that the Akhbārīs were infidels
(Kuffar). However, the dispute remained purely intellectual.
At first there was a large population of Akhbārī activists at the shrine cities of Iraq but it was Bihbahani who, at the end of 18th century, reversed this and completely routed the Akhbārīs at Karbala
and Najaf
. South Iraq
, Bahrain and a few cities in Iran such as Kirman remained Akhbārī strongholds for a few more decades but eventually the Usuli triumph was complete and only a handful of Shī‘a ulamā' remained Akhbārī to the present day.
After the theological coup brought about by al-Wahid Bihbahani by military methods, the Usuli school became instrumental to the Iranian regime.
, Fath Ali Shah's son and heir, Abbas Mirza
, who was conducting the campaign, turned to the new ulama and obtained from Shaykh Ja'far Kashif al-Ghita' and other eminent clerics in Najaf and Isfahan a declaration of jihad against the Russians, thus implicitly recognizing their authority to issue such a declaration – one of the functions of the Hidden Imām. Kashif al-Ghita used the opportunity to extract from the state acknowledgment of the ulama's right to collect the religious taxes of Khums
. ."
This followed the pattern of other transgressions by overthrowing the limits of its prior (fourth) transgression.
, the Usūlī school has gained popularity among previously Akhbārī communities.
Akhbārīs claim that only the Imāms may be described as āyat Allahs (Ayatollahs, "signs of God") based on the Hadith-i Tariq, and that no one else has the right to ascribe this divine title to themselves. For example, the Hadith-i Tariq says:
Historically it was only in the early 19th century that ordinary mujtahids began to describe themselves as 'Ayatollahs.'
Regarding Islamic laws, there are various issues faced by Muslims in their daily lives. e.g. doubts in namāz and their corrections, conditions which invalidate a fast and the relevant compensations, rulings vis à vis correctness or incorrectness of various social and business practices e.g. Investing in Mutual Funds, Use of alcohol based perfumes and medicines, etc. Yet, Akhbaris say that the Imams mentioned general-rules that we may use to know the ruling of modern issues.
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s who reject the use of reasoning in deriving verdicts, and believe only the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
, aḥadīth
Hadith
The term Hadīth is used to denote a saying or an act or tacit approval or criticism ascribed either validly or invalidly to the Islamic prophet Muhammad....
, (prophetic sayings and recorded opinions of the Imāms
Imamah (Shi'a twelver doctrine)
Imāmah means "leadership" and it is a part of the Shi'a theology. The Twelve Imams are the spiritual and political successors to Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, in the Twelver or Ithna Ashariya branch of Shia Islam....
) and consensus should be used as sources to derive verdicts (fatwas). The term Akhbārī (from khabara, news or report) is used in contrast to Usūlī (from aṣl, first principle). Unlike Usūlīs, Akhbārīs do not follow marja‘
Marja
Marja , also known as a marja-i taqlid or marja dini , literally means "Source to Imitate/Follow" or "Religious Reference"...
s (models for imitation) who practice modern form of ijtihad
Ijtihad
Ijtihad is the making of a decision in Islamic law by personal effort , independently of any school of jurisprudence . as opposed to taqlid, copying or obeying without question....
(independent legal reasoning).
They form a minority within Shī‘a Islam, with Usūlīs making up the majority. Akhbārīsm "crystalized" as a distinct movement with the writings of Muhammad Amin al-Astarabadi
Muhammad Amin al-Astarabadi
Muhammad Amin al-Astarabadi was an Iranian theologian and founder or proponent of the conservative strand in Twelver Shi'a Islamic belief, that is, those who favor hadith over fatwās....
(d. 1627 AD) and achieved its greatest influence in the late Safavid
Safavid dynasty
The Safavid dynasty was one of the most significant ruling dynasties of Iran. They ruled one of the greatest Persian empires since the Muslim conquest of Persia and established the Twelver school of Shi'a Islam as the official religion of their empire, marking one of the most important turning...
and early post-Safavid era. However, shortly thereafter Muhammad Baqir Behbahani
Muhammad Baqir Behbahani
Muhammad Baqir ibn Muhammad Akmal al-Wahid Bihbahani, also Vahid Behbahani , was a Twelver Shia Islamic scholar. He is widely regarded as the founder or restorer of the Usuli school of Twelver Shi'a Islam and as playing a vital role in narrowing the field of orthodoxy in Twelver Shi'a Islam by...
(d. 1792), along with other Usuli mujtahids, crushed the Akhbari movement. Today it is found primarily in Basra
Basra
Basra is the capital of Basra Governorate, in southern Iraq near Kuwait and Iran. It had an estimated population of two million as of 2009...
area of southern Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
where they form the majority in many districts, although no longer in the city. They are also found in the island nation of Bahrain
Bahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
, with reportedly "only a handful of Shi'i ulema
Ulema
Ulama , also spelt ulema, refers to the educated class of Muslim legal scholars engaged in the several fields of Islamic studies. They are best known as the arbiters of shari‘a law...
" remaining Akhbari "to the present day." Furthermore, during the twentieth century a part of the Shiite community in the Indian city of Hyderabad declared to have become Akhbari with a couple of local scholars.
Similar phenomenon
Many, and this is subject to debate and controversy, may opine that the way the Akhbari Shi`ites state that they follow only the Koran and the Hadith and the Ahl al-Bayt is similar in some respects to how Salafis (called Wahhabis by some) or influenced groups such as the Ahl-e-Hadith or certain factions of the Muslim BrotherhoodMuslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers is the world's oldest and one of the largest Islamist parties, and is the largest political opposition organization in many Arab states. It was founded in 1928 in Egypt by the Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna and by the late 1940s had an...
do not follow a Madhab but rather lay claim to following the Koran and the Hadith.
Others may even go further and compare both groups to Protestant Christianity and especially to the Puritans, many of whom wished to break away and "purify" the Church of England.
Background
In addition to rejecting fatāwaFatwa
A fatwā in the Islamic faith is a juristic ruling concerning Islamic law issued by an Islamic scholar. In Sunni Islam any fatwā is non-binding, whereas in Shia Islam it could be considered by an individual as binding, depending on his or her relation to the scholar. The person who issues a fatwā...
based on ijtihad, Akhbārīs also reject the permissibility of writing exegesis
Exegesis
Exegesis is a critical explanation or interpretation of a text, especially a religious text. Traditionally the term was used primarily for exegesis of the Bible; however, in contemporary usage it has broadened to mean a critical explanation of any text, and the term "Biblical exegesis" is used...
of the Qur'an without quoting the narrations of the infallible Ahlu l-Bayt
Ahl al-Bayt
Ahl al-Bayt is an Arabic phrase literally meaning People of the House, or family of the House. The phrase "ahl al-bayt" was used in Arabia before the advent of Islam to refer to one's clan, and would be adopted by the ruling family of a tribe. Within the Islamic tradition, the term refers to the...
. They quote the Hadith ath-Thaqalayn and several authentic traditions of the Twelve Imāms to prohibit the practice of exegesis. In short, the gist of Akhbārī ideology is that nothing but the aḥadīth of the Infallibles can serve as authoritative evidence in Islam. Akhbārīs also differ from Usūlīs in their rejection of the Guardianship of the Islamic Jurists, arguing that preachers of religion have no role in politics, as is evidenced by the lives of the Imāms and their followers.
Usūlism evolved on the basis of Usul al-fiqh
Usul al-fiqh
Uṣūl al-fiqh is the study of the origins, sources, and principles upon which Islamic jurisprudence is based. In the narrow sense, it simply refers to the question of what are the sources of Islamic law...
(the hypothetical concepts and perceptions of some scholars) centuries after the major occultation. Among the earliest Shī‘a ulamā such as Muhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Kulayni and Ibn Babawaiyya, the most important activity was transmission of aḥadīth.
At this time, the Shī‘a distinguished themselves from the Sunni in the category of law, which employed such methods as qiyas
Qiyas
In Islamic jurisprudence, qiyās is the process of deductive analogy in which the teachings of the Hadith are compared and contrasted with those of the Qur'an, in order to apply a known injunction to a new circumstance and create a new injunction...
"analogical reasoning" and exegesis". However, the Shī‘a developed law directly from the traditions of the Imāms.
Initially during the Buyid period, the Twelver ulamā' considered that since the Imām had gone into Occultation
The Occultation
The Occultation in Shia Islam refers to a belief that the messianic figure, or Mahdi, who in Shi'i thought is an infallible male descendant of the founder of Islam, Muhammad, was born but disappeared, and will one day return and fill the world with justice. Some Shi'is, such as the Zaidi and...
and his Nā'ib al-Khass was no longer present, all the functions invested in the Imām had lapsed. The principal functions of the Imām had been:
- Leading the Holy War (jihad)
- Division of the booty (qismat al-fay)
- Leading the Friday Prayer (salat al-juma)
- Putting judicial decisions into effect (tanfidh al-ahkam)
- Imposing legal penalties (iqamat al-hudud)
- Receiving the religious taxes of zakātZakatZakāt , one of the Five Pillars of Islam, is the giving of a fixed portion of one's wealth to charity, generally to the poor and needy.-History:Zakat, a practice initiated by Muhammed himself, has played an important role throughout Islamic history...
and khumsKhumsKhums is the Arabic word for One Fifth . According to Shia Islamic legal terminology, it means "one-fifth of certain items which a person acquires as wealth, and which must be paid as an Islamic tax"....
.
However, it soon became apparent that the situation caused by lapse of functions of the Hidden Imām was extremely impractical and left the Twelver Shī‘a community at a great disadvantage, with no leadership, no organization and no financial structure.
First transgression
As early as the 5th century A.H. / 11th century CE, more than 150 years after the Occultation of the 12th Imām, Shaykhu t-Ta'ifa reinterpreted the doctrine to allow delegation of the Imām's judicial authority to those who had studied fiqh. Although he implies in his writings that this function should only be undertaken by the ulama if there is no one else to do it.Shaykhu t-Taifa considered the ulamā' the best agents of the donor to distribute religious taxes since they knew to whom it should be distributed. Nevertheless, individuals were free to do this themselves if they wished. He allowed fuqahā to organize Friday prayers in absence of the Imām or his special representative.
The prominent Shī‘a scholars who rejected this thesis were:
- `Alam al-Huda
- Ibn Idris
- Allamah al-Hilli
It is to be noted that `Alam al-Huda was from among the Shaykhu t-Taifa's group.
Second transgression
By the 13th century, Muhaqqiq al-Hilli was able to advance these concepts very considerably. He extended the judicial role of the ulama to iqamat al-hudud the imposition of penalties by ulama themselves. In his writings it is possible to see the evolution in his thinking whereby the fuqahā' develop from the deputies of the donor for the distribution of religious taxes in his early writings to being the deputies of the Hidden Imām for collection and distribution of the taxes in his later works. In effect, transgressing the limits set by Shaykhu t-Taifa (two centuries earlier) in his first transgression.Third transgression
Muhaqqiq al-Karkhi (About 300 years after the second transgression) was the first to suggest, arguing from the hadith of ‘Umar ibn Hanzala, that the ulama were the Nā'ib al-'Amm (general representative) of the Hidden Imām. But he restricted his application of this argument to the assumption of the duty of leading Friday prayers.Fourth transgression
It was Shahīd ath-Thānī who took the concept of Nā'ib al-'Amm to its logical conclusion in the religious sphere and applied it to all of the religious functions and prerogatives of the Hidden Imām. Thus the judicial authority of the ulamā' now became a direct reflection of the authority of the Imām himself. It was now obligatory to pay the religious taxes directly to the ulamā' as the trustees of the Imām for distribution and the donor who distributed these himself was considered to obtain no reward. This is in direct contradiction to limits set by prior transgressions.Furthermore, Shahīd ath-Thānī extended the range of those eligible to receive money from zakāt to include religious students and the ulamā' themselves, who thus became the recipients of the money as trustees of students. Even in the field of defensive jihād, Shahīd ath-Thānī identified a role for the ulamā'. Only in the field of offensive jihād did he allow that the role of Hidden Imām had lapsed pending his return.
Although the aforementioned scholars were not mujtahids in their full capacity, they introduced innovative concepts into Shī‘a theology which later formed the basis of the exegetical school. Their innovations were sharply criticized by prominent Shī‘a scholars of their time and thus, remained mostly theoretical.
The traditional Shī‘a doctrine was, by its nature, fatal to leadership of any regime except that of Imām al-Mahdi since they believed that an Islamic state can be established only under the leadership of an infallible Imām. Thus, the Shī‘a had little role to play in supporting the decisions of the state, in contrast with the Sunni tendency of offering their full support to the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
.
This caused a great deal of paranoia to the states where the Shī‘a were in majority. By the end of Safavid era the situation had become intense due to the rise of imperialism on a global scale. It was necessary to develop an alternate ideology for the survival of Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian state. This is when a group of ulamā' were encouraged to squeeze out the possibility of extending the state's control over the shia majority; by whatever means necessary.
The revival of Akhbārism, or "neo-Akhbārism" as it became known, was under the dean of Karbala scholarship, Yusuf Al Bahrani
Yusuf Al Bahrani
Yusuf ibn Ahmed al-Bahrani was a Bahraini theologian and a key figure in the intellectual development of Twelver Shia Islam.Al-Bahrani grew up in Safavid-ruled Bahrain, at a time of intellectual ferment between Akhbari and Usuli Shi'ah Islam. His family were Usuli clerics who also worked as pearl...
(1695–1772), who led an intellectual assault on Usuli thought in the mid-18th century. An Akhbārī critique of Usulism had emerged in Bahrain at the beginning of the 18th century, partly spurred by the weaknesses of the Usuli sponsoring Safavid empire. By succeeding to the role of dean of Karbala as one of the pre-eminent scholars of the age, al-Bahrani's extended this Bahrain-based debate to the rest of the Shī‘a world.
Bihbahani
Under al-Bahrani, Usuli scholarship was considered impure but Bahrani was not politically influential, although his student, the famous Sheikh Al-Hurr al-Aamili in his book Amal al-amil writes "He was a mountain and ocean of knowledge, No one from among the previous scholars preceded his knowledge or reached his status". It was Muhammad Baqir ibn Muhammad Akmal al-Wahid BihbahaniMuhammad Baqir Behbahani
Muhammad Baqir ibn Muhammad Akmal al-Wahid Bihbahani, also Vahid Behbahani , was a Twelver Shia Islamic scholar. He is widely regarded as the founder or restorer of the Usuli school of Twelver Shi'a Islam and as playing a vital role in narrowing the field of orthodoxy in Twelver Shi'a Islam by...
who challenged and defeated (by use of physical force, his militia called mirghadabs) the Akhbaris and eventually became the most politically influential cleric in Karbala in 1772. Bihbahani's theology was not welcomed by the Akhbaris. Although this controversy had begun as a minor disagreement on a few points, it eventually grew into a bitter, vituperative dispute culminating in Bihbahani's declaration that the Akhbārīs were infidels
Apostasy in Islam
Apostasy in Islam is commonly defined in Islam as the rejection in word or deed of one's former religion by a person who was previously a follower of Islam...
(Kuffar). However, the dispute remained purely intellectual.
At first there was a large population of Akhbārī activists at the shrine cities of Iraq but it was Bihbahani who, at the end of 18th century, reversed this and completely routed the Akhbārīs at Karbala
Karbala
Karbala is a city in Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorate, and has an estimated population of 572,300 people ....
and Najaf
Najaf
Najaf is a city in Iraq about 160 km south of Baghdad. Its estimated population in 2008 is 560,000 people. It is the capital of Najaf Governorate...
. South Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Bahrain and a few cities in Iran such as Kirman remained Akhbārī strongholds for a few more decades but eventually the Usuli triumph was complete and only a handful of Shī‘a ulamā' remained Akhbārī to the present day.
After the theological coup brought about by al-Wahid Bihbahani by military methods, the Usuli school became instrumental to the Iranian regime.
Fifth transgression
During the first Russo-Persian War (1804-1813)Russo-Persian War (1804-1813)
The 1804-1813 Russo-Persian War, one of the many wars between the Persian Empire and Imperial Russia, began like many wars as a territorial dispute. The Persian king, Fath Ali Shah Qajar, wanted to consolidate the northernmost reaches of his Qajar dynasty by securing land near the Caspian Sea's...
, Fath Ali Shah's son and heir, Abbas Mirza
Abbas Mirza
Prince, Field-Marshal Abbas Mirza born Amol city , was a Qajar crown prince of Persia. He developed a reputation as a military commander during wars with Russia and the Ottoman Empire, as an early modernizer of Persia's armed forces and institutions, and for his death before his father, Fath Ali...
, who was conducting the campaign, turned to the new ulama and obtained from Shaykh Ja'far Kashif al-Ghita' and other eminent clerics in Najaf and Isfahan a declaration of jihad against the Russians, thus implicitly recognizing their authority to issue such a declaration – one of the functions of the Hidden Imām. Kashif al-Ghita used the opportunity to extract from the state acknowledgment of the ulama's right to collect the religious taxes of Khums
Khums
Khums is the Arabic word for One Fifth . According to Shia Islamic legal terminology, it means "one-fifth of certain items which a person acquires as wealth, and which must be paid as an Islamic tax"....
. ."
This followed the pattern of other transgressions by overthrowing the limits of its prior (fourth) transgression.
Iranian Revolution
Following the Iranian RevolutionIranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the...
, the Usūlī school has gained popularity among previously Akhbārī communities.
Rejection of the Mujtahids
Akhbārīs reject and even curse mujtahids. They practice this based on the last letter Imām Mahdi wrote to ‘Alī ibn Muhammad, fourth deputy of the Lesser Occultation. In the letter, Imām Zaman said:Akhbārīs claim that only the Imāms may be described as āyat Allahs (Ayatollahs, "signs of God") based on the Hadith-i Tariq, and that no one else has the right to ascribe this divine title to themselves. For example, the Hadith-i Tariq says:
Historically it was only in the early 19th century that ordinary mujtahids began to describe themselves as 'Ayatollahs.'
Pro-Akhbārī
- It can be noticed that the Usuli ulama have usurped one by one all the functions of the Hidden Imām, virtually ascribing themselves with his Imāmate.
- Since Bahbahani's coup, the Usuli ulama have made countless transgressions from Wilayat al-Faqih to Ittihad Bayn al-Muslimeen (at the cost of Shia beliefs). The convergence of these trends can be seen heading towards the caliphateCaliphateThe term caliphate, "dominion of a caliph " , refers to the first system of government established in Islam and represented the political unity of the Muslim Ummah...
of mujtahideen, although with a different naming scheme. - The Usuli allegation that Akhbārism is a movement that started four centuries ago and was intellectually defeated is false.
- It is established that generalization that causes a fallible man's decision to gain the status of divine law is against the gist of Shia Islam. The Usuli appeal to "reason" ('Aql'Aql‘Aql , is an Arabic language term used in Islamic theology or philosophy to the intellect the rational faculty of the soul or mind. It is the normal translation of the Greek term nous...
) is similar to the Sunni qiyasQiyasIn Islamic jurisprudence, qiyās is the process of deductive analogy in which the teachings of the Hadith are compared and contrasted with those of the Qur'an, in order to apply a known injunction to a new circumstance and create a new injunction...
, though all early Shī‘a authorities are unanimous in rejecting qiyas (analogy).
Anti-Akhbārī
Akhbārīs claim to follow Hadith directly, without the need for generalisation, or of finding the reason for the decision. This, according to Usulis, is a logical impossibility. Hadith takes the form of case law, that is to say the narration of decisions taken in a concrete situation. To "follow" such a decision one must know which features of the situation are or are not relevant to the decision, as exactly the same set of facts will never occur twice. Therefore some degree of generalisation is unavoidable, even on the most literal view: the choice is simply between mechanical generalisation and intelligent generalisation.Regarding Islamic laws, there are various issues faced by Muslims in their daily lives. e.g. doubts in namāz and their corrections, conditions which invalidate a fast and the relevant compensations, rulings vis à vis correctness or incorrectness of various social and business practices e.g. Investing in Mutual Funds, Use of alcohol based perfumes and medicines, etc. Yet, Akhbaris say that the Imams mentioned general-rules that we may use to know the ruling of modern issues.
Prominent Akhbārī scholars
- Shaikh al-Hur al-AamiliShaikh al-Hur al-AamiliMuhammad bin al-Ḥassan b. Ali b. al-Ḥusayn al-ʿĀmili al-Mashghari , commonly known as Al-Ḥurr Al-ʿĀmili , was a muhaddith and a prominent Twelver Shi’a scholar of the Akhbari school of thought...
- Shaikh Hashim Al Bahrani
- Yusuf Al BahraniYusuf Al BahraniYusuf ibn Ahmed al-Bahrani was a Bahraini theologian and a key figure in the intellectual development of Twelver Shia Islam.Al-Bahrani grew up in Safavid-ruled Bahrain, at a time of intellectual ferment between Akhbari and Usuli Shi'ah Islam. His family were Usuli clerics who also worked as pearl...
- Abdullah al SamahijiAbdullah al SamahijiAbdullah bin Saleh al Samahiji was a Bahraini Shia Islamic scholar who lived during the Safavid period. He was born in the village of Samaheej on Muharraq Island, and like many of his Bahraini contemporaries, he was a follower of the Akhbari theological school—although his father was a pure...
- Salih Al-KarzakaniSalih Al-KarzakaniSheikh Salih Al-Karzakani was a seventeenth century Bahraini theologian who was appointed by the Safavid empire as a religious court judge in Shiraz. Al Karzakani left Bahrain along with his friend and fellow cleric Sheikh Ja`far bin Kamal al-Din Sheikh Salih Al-Karzakani was a seventeenth...
- Shaykh Muhammad Amin Zayn al-Din
- Sayyid Aqeel Fadhil Jamal al-Den
- Syed Riyaz ud din Hyder Jaffery (self claimed neo-akhbari)