Al-Hilli
Encyclopedia
Jamal ad-Din Hasan ibn Yusuf ibn 'Ali ibn Muthahhar al-Hilli , also known as al-Allamah
al-Hilli , born December 15, 1250 CE (19 Ramadan
648 AH
), died December 18, 1325, was a Twelver Shia theologian
and mujtahid. Known as a Marja' (Grand Ayatollah
), he was one of the greatest Muslim
jurists and scholars of his time. His full name is Jamal al-Din Abu Mansur Hasan ibn Yusuf ibn Mutahhar al-Hilli. We know of at least a hundred books written by him, some of which are still in the form of manuscripts. Muhammad bin Al-Hassan al Hurr Al- Amili in his work Amal al Amil, p. 40, enumerated no less than 67 works of this learned author.
), commonly viewed as the centre of Shia Islam
when Sunni
leaders were in control over Baghdad
during his life. He entered in to a prominent family of Shia jurists
and theologians. His father, Sadid ul-Din al-Hilli, was a respected mujtahid and a leading figure in the Shia community. His maternal uncle Muhaqqiq al-Hilli
was also a renowned scholar.
He studied theology
and fiqh
(Islamic jurisprudence) in Hilla under the auspices of his father and his uncle, as well as other notable scholars, including: Ali bin Tawus and Ahmad bin Tawus. He also spent some time at the newly established Maragheh observatory
, where he studied Avicennan philosophy
and mathematics under Nasir al-Din al-Tusi
, and was also introduced to the works of Fakhr al-Din al-Razi
. Later, he travelled to Baghdad and became acquainted with the doctrines of Ibn Arabi
.
Among his other teachers were Najm al-Dīn al-Qazwīnī al-Kātibī
and Maitham Al Bahrani
. He also sat with the Sunni scholars to study Sunni Fiqh. Like Al Bahrani and Nasir, 'Allamah-i Hilli was contemporary with the Mongol
upheaval, and played a role similar to that of his teacher.
Allamah-i Hilli was a prolific writer whose bibliography comprises about one hundred and twenty titles. Some of his works have been published, while the manuscripts of others have still to be found.
After mastering philosophy, theology and astrology
as a pupil of the eminent scholars of his time, he began a prolific career as an authoritative writer in his own right. Some 500 works are attributed to him, although only a few have been published so far. He moved to Persia
in 705/1305, where he became most influential in spreading Shia Islam within Il-Khanid
court circles.
In 1305, Al-Hilli emigrated to Persia, to the court of the Ilkhan ruler Öljaitü
, whom it is believed he converted from Sunni to Shia Islam. As a result of his conversion, Öljaitü proclaimed Shia Islam as the state religion in Persia. Coins were minted in the names of The Twelve Imams. Both al-Hilli and his son, Fakhr ul-Muhaqqiqin were engaged in extensive theological and jurisprudential debates with the local Sunni scholars. Having impressed the Ilkhan, he was appointed to the traveling madrassah sayyarah. Al-Hilli, however, eventually returned to his hometown and spent the last years of his life teaching there.
ic commentary
. Of these, about sixty are still extant. Yet, only eight of these are published. They are "regarded by the Imami Shi'ia as the most authentic expositions of their dogma and practice". The popularity and influence of his writings on later scholars are demonstrated by the large number of manuscripts and great number of commentaries written on them. He himself is the best source of information on his own works as he has recorded all of his writings up to the year 1294 in his biographical work Khulasat ul-Aqwal (The Summary of Opinions).
n school of Mu'tazili
sm, as his earliest writing on theology Manhaj ul-Yaqin fi Usul il-Din, demonstrates. He was also deeply influenced by Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, and wrote a commentary on the latter's famous Tajrid ul-I'tiqad. This commentary is one of al-Hilli's most widely read works, being the first commentary written on the Tajrid and thus forming the basis of later commentators understanding of Tusi's work. Also due to his work in Tajrid ul-I'tiqad, Al-Hilli has been noted as one of the first Shia Imamiyyah scholars to use the term, ijtihad
(i’tiqad) in the sense of "putting in of the utmost effort in acquiring the knowledge of the laws of the Shariah
". From this point Shia accepted this term.
Another of his most famous theological works is The Eleventh Chapter (Al-Bab al-Hadi 'Ashar - the title is an allusion to an earlier work of his, Manhaj ul-Salah, which was composed of ten chapters), which he composed towards the end of his life as a concise summary of Shia doctrines for the learned lay person (rather than aspiring scholars). Judging by the number of commentaries written on it, and its translation into Persian
and English, it represents his most popular work.
He wrote several polemic
al treatises during his time at the court of the Ilkhan. These were largely directed against Sunni, Ash'ari
te theology. In them, he was largely concerned with espousing and defending the Shia view of the Imamate
and Mutazilite notions of free will
(as opposed to Asharite determinism
). He was also acquainted with Avicennan and Ishraqi
philosophy. He wrote several works of his own, dealing with subjects such as logic
, physics, metaphysics
and mathematics. In general he is very critical of the opinions held by Islamic philosophers
and sets out to rebut them whenever they appear to disagree with mainstream theology. According to the Encyclopaedia of Islam
, "his services were so much appreciated by the Shi'is that soon after his death his grave in Mashhad
became one of the centres of veneration for those who go on pilgrimage to the tomb of Imam
'Ali-al-Rida".
is of great importance. As well as several works and commentaries on usul al-fiqh
, he produced a voluminous legal corpus. Of this, two of the most important works are al-Mukhtalaf (The Disagreement) and al-Muntaha (The End). Mukhtalaf is a legal manual devoted to addressing legal questions in which the Shia jurists hold differing opinions, whereas the Muntaha is a systematic and detailed exposition of al-Hilli's own legal opinions. He also wrote a summarized legal manual, Qawa'id ul-Ahkam, which was popular amongst later scholars, judging by the number of commentaries that would be written on it. Amongst his later legal works is Tadhkirat ul-Fuqaha, which is a legal manual intended for use by lay persons. He also composed legal works on specific issues (for example, Hajj
or Salah).
, 'Allamah established a systematic version of the science of tradition (hadith
and akhbar), based on principles which were later to antagonise the usuliyun and the akhbariyun. In the kalam
tradition, he left a commentary on one of the very first treatises to be written by one of the oldest Imamite mutakallimun, Abu Ishaq Ibrahim al Nawbakhti, who died about 350/961. Similarly, he wrote commentaries on the two treatises by Nasir mentioned above, Tajrid and Qawa'id-commentaries which have been read and re-read, studied and commentated by generations of scholars. He left a summary of the vast commentary by his teacher Maytham al-Bahrani on the Nahj al-Balagha. Using the methods both of a man of the kalam and of a philosopher, he wrote studies on Avicenna
's Al-Isharat wa-‘l-tanbihat (Remarks and Admonitions) and Kitab Al-Shifaʾ
(The Book of Healing); attempted to solve the difficulties (hill al-mushkilat) of al-Suhrawardi's
Kitab al-talwihat (Book of Elucidations); wrote a treatise comparing (tanasub) the Ash'arites and the Sophists
; two other encyclopaedic treatises, The Hidden Secrets (al-Asar al-khaffyah) in philosophical sciences, the autographed version of which is at Najaf
, and a Complete Course of Instruction (Ta'lim tamm) on philosophy and the kalam, etc. He casts doubt on the principle Ex Uno non fit nisi Unum (only One can proceed from the One), as his teacher Nasir Tusi, inspired by al-Suhrawardi, had done before him, and he concedes the existence of an intra-substantial motion which heralds the theory of Mulla Sadra
.
2. Abu Mansur Hassan bin Yusuf Al-Hilla
Allamah
An Allamah , also spelled Allameh and Allama, is an honorary title carried by only the very highest scholars of Islamic thought, jurisprudence, and philosophy....
al-Hilli , born December 15, 1250 CE (19 Ramadan
Ramadan (calendar month)
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, and the month in which the Quran was revealed.Ramadan is the holiest of months in the Islamic calendar, and fasting in this month is one of the Five Pillars of Islam. The month is spent by Muslims fasting during the daylight hours from dawn to...
648 AH
Islamic calendar
The Hijri calendar , also known as the Muslim calendar or Islamic calendar , is a lunar calendar consisting of 12 lunar months in a year of 354 or 355 days. It is used to date events in many Muslim countries , and used by Muslims everywhere to determine the proper day on which to celebrate Islamic...
), died December 18, 1325, was a Twelver Shia theologian
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
and mujtahid. Known as a Marja' (Grand Ayatollah
Ayatollah
Ayatollah is a high ranking title given to Usuli Twelver Shī‘ah clerics. Those who carry the title are experts in Islamic studies such as jurisprudence, ethics, and philosophy and usually teach in Islamic seminaries. The next lower clerical rank is Hojatoleslam wal-muslemin...
), he was one of the greatest Muslim
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...
jurists and scholars of his time. His full name is Jamal al-Din Abu Mansur Hasan ibn Yusuf ibn Mutahhar al-Hilli. We know of at least a hundred books written by him, some of which are still in the form of manuscripts. Muhammad bin Al-Hassan al Hurr Al- Amili in his work Amal al Amil, p. 40, enumerated no less than 67 works of this learned author.
Names and titles
Al-Hilli’s name can give great insight on his life. "His Kunyat was Abu Mafsoor and his first title was Allama, the second Jamal al Deen and the third Jamal al Millat wal Haq wal Deen. His given name was Hassan and his father was Yusuf."Life
Al-Hilli also known as the sage of Hilla, was born in the still existent town of Al Hillah (in what is now IraqIraq
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....
), commonly viewed as the centre of Shia Islam
Shi'a Islam in Iraq
An estimated 65% of the population of Iraq consider themselves Shi'a Muslims.The question of religious demographics is controversial and some Iraqis who follow Sunni Islam dispute these figures, including an ex-Iraqi ambassador, referring to American sources. claiming that many reports only include...
when Sunni
Sunni Islam
Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam. Sunni Muslims are referred to in Arabic as ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah wa āl-Ǧamāʿah or ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah for short; in English, they are known as Sunni Muslims, Sunnis or Sunnites....
leaders were in control over Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
during his life. He entered in to a prominent family of Shia jurists
Ulama
-In Islam:* Ulema, also transliterated "ulama", a community of legal scholars of Islam and its laws . See:**Nahdlatul Ulama **Darul-uloom Nadwatul Ulama **Jamiatul Ulama Transvaal**Jamiat ul-Ulama -Other:...
and theologians. His father, Sadid ul-Din al-Hilli, was a respected mujtahid and a leading figure in the Shia community. His maternal uncle Muhaqqiq al-Hilli
Muhaqqiq al-Hilli
Najm ul-Din Abul-Qasim Ja'far bin al-Hasan bin Yahya bin al-Hasan bin Sa'id, famous as al-Muhaqqiq al-Hilli was an influential Shi'i Mujtahid born in the city of al-Hilla, Iraq. He played an important role in shaping Twelver Shi'ism's legal doctrines works...
was also a renowned scholar.
He studied theology
Islamic theology
Islamic theology is a branch of Islamic studies regarding the beliefs associated with the Islamic faith. Any religious belief system, or creed, can be considered an example of aqidah. However, this term has taken a significant technical usage in Islamic history and theology, denoting those...
and fiqh
Fiqh
Fiqh is Islamic jurisprudence. Fiqh is an expansion of the code of conduct expounded in the Quran, often supplemented by tradition and implemented by the rulings and interpretations of Islamic jurists....
(Islamic jurisprudence) in Hilla under the auspices of his father and his uncle, as well as other notable scholars, including: Ali bin Tawus and Ahmad bin Tawus. He also spent some time at the newly established Maragheh observatory
Maragheh observatory
Maragheh observatory is an astronomical observatory which was established in 1259 CE by Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, an Iranian scientist and astronomer...
, where he studied Avicennan philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and mathematics under Nasir al-Din al-Tusi
Nasir al-Din al-Tusi
Khawaja Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad ibn Ḥasan Ṭūsī , better known as Naṣīr al-Dīn al-Ṭūsī , was a Persian polymath and prolific writer: an astronomer, biologist, chemist, mathematician, philosopher, physician, physicist, scientist, theologian and Marja Taqleed...
, and was also introduced to the works of Fakhr al-Din al-Razi
Fakhr al-Din al-Razi
Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Umar ibn al-Husayn al-Taymi al-Bakri al-Tabaristani Fakhr al-Din al-Razi , most commonly known as Fakhruddin Razi was a well-known Persian Sunni Muslim theologian and philosopher....
. Later, he travelled to Baghdad and became acquainted with the doctrines of Ibn Arabi
Ibn Arabi
Ibn ʿArabī was an Andalusian Moorish Sufi mystic and philosopher. His full name was Abū 'Abdillāh Muḥammad ibn 'Alī ibn Muḥammad ibn `Arabī .-Biography:...
.
Among his other teachers were Najm al-Dīn al-Qazwīnī al-Kātibī
Najm al-Dīn al-Qazwīnī al-Kātibī
Najm al-Dīn al-Qazwīnī al-Kātibī was a Persian Islamic philosopher and logician of the Shafi`i school. A student of Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, he is the author of two major works, one on logic, Al-Risala al-Shamsiyya, and one on metaphysics and the natural sciences, Hikmat al-'Ain.-Logic:His work on...
and Maitham Al Bahrani
Maitham Al Bahrani
Sheikh Maytham bin Ali Al Bahrani was a leading 13th Century Twelver Shi'a Islamic theologian who lived in Bahrain. Al Bahrani wrote on Twelver doctrine, affirmed free will, the infallibility of prophets and imams, the appointed imamate of `Ali, and the occultation of the Twelfth Imam...
. He also sat with the Sunni scholars to study Sunni Fiqh. Like Al Bahrani and Nasir, 'Allamah-i Hilli was contemporary with the Mongol
Mongols
Mongols ) are a Central-East Asian ethnic group that lives mainly in the countries of Mongolia, China, and Russia. In China, ethnic Mongols can be found mainly in the central north region of China such as Inner Mongolia...
upheaval, and played a role similar to that of his teacher.
Allamah-i Hilli was a prolific writer whose bibliography comprises about one hundred and twenty titles. Some of his works have been published, while the manuscripts of others have still to be found.
After mastering philosophy, theology and astrology
Medieval Islamic astrology
The medieval Arabs took a keen interest in the study of heavens; partly because they considered the celestial bodies to be divine, partly because the dwellers of desert-regions often travelled at night, and relied upon knowledge of the constellations for guidance in their journeys...
as a pupil of the eminent scholars of his time, he began a prolific career as an authoritative writer in his own right. Some 500 works are attributed to him, although only a few have been published so far. He moved to Persia
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...
in 705/1305, where he became most influential in spreading Shia Islam within Il-Khanid
Ilkhanate
The Ilkhanate, also spelled Il-khanate , was a Mongol khanate established in Azerbaijan and Persia in the 13th century, considered a part of the Mongol Empire...
court circles.
In 1305, Al-Hilli emigrated to Persia, to the court of the Ilkhan ruler Öljaitü
Öljaitü
Öljeitü, Oljeitu, Olcayto or Uljeitu, Öljaitu, Ölziit , born Muhammad Khodabandeh , was the eighth Ilkhanid dynasty ruler in Iran from 1304 to 1316...
, whom it is believed he converted from Sunni to Shia Islam. As a result of his conversion, Öljaitü proclaimed Shia Islam as the state religion in Persia. Coins were minted in the names of The Twelve Imams. Both al-Hilli and his son, Fakhr ul-Muhaqqiqin were engaged in extensive theological and jurisprudential debates with the local Sunni scholars. Having impressed the Ilkhan, he was appointed to the traveling madrassah sayyarah. Al-Hilli, however, eventually returned to his hometown and spent the last years of his life teaching there.
Intellectual output
According to some sources, Al-Hilli wrote more than a thousand works (including short treatises and epistles) on Islamic law, jurisprudence, theology and Qur'anQur'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...
ic commentary
Tafsir
Tafseer is the Arabic word for exegesis or commentary, usually of the Qur'an. Ta'wīl is a subset of tafsir and refers to esoteric or mystical interpretation. An author of tafsir is a mufassir .- Etymology :...
. Of these, about sixty are still extant. Yet, only eight of these are published. They are "regarded by the Imami Shi'ia as the most authentic expositions of their dogma and practice". The popularity and influence of his writings on later scholars are demonstrated by the large number of manuscripts and great number of commentaries written on them. He himself is the best source of information on his own works as he has recorded all of his writings up to the year 1294 in his biographical work Khulasat ul-Aqwal (The Summary of Opinions).
Theology
In theology, Al-Hilli was clearly acquainted with the BasraBasra
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...
n school of Mu'tazili
Mu'tazili
' is an Islamic school of speculative theology that flourished in the cities of Basra and Baghdad, both in present-day Iraq, during the 8th–10th centuries. The adherents of the Mu'tazili school are best known for their having asserted that, because of the perfect unity and eternal nature of God,...
sm, as his earliest writing on theology Manhaj ul-Yaqin fi Usul il-Din, demonstrates. He was also deeply influenced by Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, and wrote a commentary on the latter's famous Tajrid ul-I'tiqad. This commentary is one of al-Hilli's most widely read works, being the first commentary written on the Tajrid and thus forming the basis of later commentators understanding of Tusi's work. Also due to his work in Tajrid ul-I'tiqad, Al-Hilli has been noted as one of the first Shia Imamiyyah scholars to use the term, 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....
(i’tiqad) in the sense of "putting in of the utmost effort in acquiring the knowledge of the laws of the Shariah
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
". From this point Shia accepted this term.
Another of his most famous theological works is The Eleventh Chapter (Al-Bab al-Hadi 'Ashar - the title is an allusion to an earlier work of his, Manhaj ul-Salah, which was composed of ten chapters), which he composed towards the end of his life as a concise summary of Shia doctrines for the learned lay person (rather than aspiring scholars). Judging by the number of commentaries written on it, and its translation into Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
and English, it represents his most popular work.
He wrote several polemic
Polemic
A polemic is a variety of arguments or controversies made against one opinion, doctrine, or person. Other variations of argument are debate and discussion...
al treatises during his time at the court of the Ilkhan. These were largely directed against Sunni, Ash'ari
Ash'ari
The Ashʿari theology is a school of early Muslim speculative theology founded by the theologian Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari...
te theology. In them, he was largely concerned with espousing and defending the Shia view of the Imamate
Imamah (Shi'a doctrine)
Imāmah is the Shia doctrine of religious, spiritual and political leadership of the Ummah. The Shīa believe that the A'immah are the true Caliphs or rightful successors of Muḥammad, and further that Imams are possessed of divine knowledge and authority as well as being part of the Ahl al-Bayt,...
and Mutazilite notions of free will
Free will
"To make my own decisions whether I am successful or not due to uncontrollable forces" -Troy MorrisonA pragmatic definition of free willFree will is the ability of agents to make choices free from certain kinds of constraints. The existence of free will and its exact nature and definition have long...
(as opposed to Asharite determinism
Determinism
Determinism is the general philosophical thesis that states that for everything that happens there are conditions such that, given them, nothing else could happen. There are many versions of this thesis. Each of them rests upon various alleged connections, and interdependencies of things and...
). He was also acquainted with Avicennan and Ishraqi
Illuminationism
Illuminationism is a doctrine in theology according to which the process of human thought needs to be aided by God. It is the oldest and most influential alternative to naturalism in the theory of mind and epistemology...
philosophy. He wrote several works of his own, dealing with subjects such as logic
Logic in Islamic philosophy
Logic played an important role in Islamic philosophy .Islamic Logic or mantiq is similar science to what is called Traditional Logic in Western Sciences.- External links :*Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy: , Routledge, 1998...
, physics, metaphysics
Metaphysics
Metaphysics is a branch of philosophy concerned with explaining the fundamental nature of being and the world, although the term is not easily defined. Traditionally, metaphysics attempts to answer two basic questions in the broadest possible terms:...
and mathematics. In general he is very critical of the opinions held by Islamic philosophers
Islamic philosophy
Islamic philosophy is a branch of Islamic studies. It is the continuous search for Hekma in the light of Islamic view of life, universe, ethics, society, and so on...
and sets out to rebut them whenever they appear to disagree with mainstream theology. According to the Encyclopaedia of Islam
Encyclopaedia of Islam
The Encyclopaedia of Islam is an encyclopaedia of the academic discipline of Islamic studies. It embraces articles on distinguished Muslims of every age and land, on tribes and dynasties, on the crafts and sciences, on political and religious institutions, on the geography, ethnography, flora and...
, "his services were so much appreciated by the Shi'is that soon after his death his grave in Mashhad
Mashhad
Mashhad , is the second largest city in Iran and one of the holiest cities in the Shia Muslim world. It is also the only major Iranian city with an Arabic name. It is located east of Tehran, at the center of the Razavi Khorasan Province close to the borders of Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. Its...
became one of the centres of veneration for those who go on pilgrimage to the tomb of Imam
Imam
An imam is an Islamic leadership position, often the worship leader of a mosque and the Muslim community. Similar to spiritual leaders, the imam is the one who leads Islamic worship services. More often, the community turns to the mosque imam if they have a religious question...
'Ali-al-Rida".
Jurisprudence
Al-Hilli's role in shaping Twelver jurisprudenceJurisprudence
Jurisprudence is the theory and philosophy of law. Scholars of jurisprudence, or legal theorists , hope to obtain a deeper understanding of the nature of law, of legal reasoning, legal systems and of legal institutions...
is of great importance. As well as several works and commentaries on 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...
, he produced a voluminous legal corpus. Of this, two of the most important works are al-Mukhtalaf (The Disagreement) and al-Muntaha (The End). Mukhtalaf is a legal manual devoted to addressing legal questions in which the Shia jurists hold differing opinions, whereas the Muntaha is a systematic and detailed exposition of al-Hilli's own legal opinions. He also wrote a summarized legal manual, Qawa'id ul-Ahkam, which was popular amongst later scholars, judging by the number of commentaries that would be written on it. Amongst his later legal works is Tadhkirat ul-Fuqaha, which is a legal manual intended for use by lay persons. He also composed legal works on specific issues (for example, Hajj
Hajj
The Hajj is the pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is one of the largest pilgrimages in the world, and is the fifth pillar of Islam, a religious duty that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by every able-bodied Muslim who can afford to do so...
or Salah).
Works
One of his works on the concept of the Shia Imamate (Minhaj al-karamah) was criticized by the Sunni scholar Ibn Taymiyyah in his nine volume work Minhaaj As-Sunnah An-Nabawiyyah. Besides various treatises on religious lawReligious law
In some religions, law can be thought of as the ordering principle of reality; knowledge as revealed by a God defining and governing all human affairs. Law, in the religious sense, also includes codes of ethics and morality which are upheld and required by the God...
, 'Allamah established a systematic version of the science of tradition (hadith
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....
and akhbar), based on principles which were later to antagonise the usuliyun and the akhbariyun. In the kalam
Kalam
ʿIlm al-Kalām is the Islamic philosophical discipline of seeking theological principles through dialectic. Kalām in Islamic practice relates to the discipline of seeking theological knowledge through debate and argument. A scholar of kalām is referred to as a mutakallim...
tradition, he left a commentary on one of the very first treatises to be written by one of the oldest Imamite mutakallimun, Abu Ishaq Ibrahim al Nawbakhti, who died about 350/961. Similarly, he wrote commentaries on the two treatises by Nasir mentioned above, Tajrid and Qawa'id-commentaries which have been read and re-read, studied and commentated by generations of scholars. He left a summary of the vast commentary by his teacher Maytham al-Bahrani on the Nahj al-Balagha. Using the methods both of a man of the kalam and of a philosopher, he wrote studies on Avicenna
Avicenna
Abū ʿAlī al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Sīnā , commonly known as Ibn Sīnā or by his Latinized name Avicenna, was a Persian polymath, who wrote almost 450 treatises on a wide range of subjects, of which around 240 have survived...
's Al-Isharat wa-‘l-tanbihat (Remarks and Admonitions) and Kitab Al-Shifaʾ
The Book of Healing
The Book of Healing is a scientific and philosophical encyclopedia written by Abū Alī ibn Sīnā from Asfahana, near Bukhara in Greater Persia. Despite its English title, it is not in fact concerned with medicine...
(The Book of Healing); attempted to solve the difficulties (hill al-mushkilat) of al-Suhrawardi's
Shahab al-Din Suhrawardi
Other important Muslim mystics carry the name Suhrawardi, particularly Abu 'l-Najib al-Suhrawardi and his paternal nephew Abu Hafs Umar al-Suhrawardi."Shahāb ad-Dīn" Yahya ibn Habash as-Suhrawardī was a Persian...
Kitab al-talwihat (Book of Elucidations); wrote a treatise comparing (tanasub) the Ash'arites and the Sophists
Sophism
Sophism in the modern definition is a specious argument used for deceiving someone. In ancient Greece, sophists were a category of teachers who specialized in using the tools of philosophy and rhetoric for the purpose of teaching aretê — excellence, or virtue — predominantly to young statesmen and...
; two other encyclopaedic treatises, The Hidden Secrets (al-Asar al-khaffyah) in philosophical sciences, the autographed version of which is at 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...
, and a Complete Course of Instruction (Ta'lim tamm) on philosophy and the kalam, etc. He casts doubt on the principle Ex Uno non fit nisi Unum (only One can proceed from the One), as his teacher Nasir Tusi, inspired by al-Suhrawardi, had done before him, and he concedes the existence of an intra-substantial motion which heralds the theory of Mulla Sadra
Mulla Sadra
Ṣadr ad-Dīn Muḥammad Shīrāzī also called Mulla Sadrā was a Persian Shia Islamic philosopher, theologian and ‘Ālim who led the Iranian cultural renaissance in the 17th century...
.
His famous books
His most famous books are the following:- Kashf al-Yakin fi Fada'il Amir al-Mu'minin, a short treatise on the excellence of AliAli' |Ramaḍān]], 40 AH; approximately October 23, 598 or 600 or March 17, 599 – January 27, 661).His father's name was Abu Talib. Ali was also the cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and ruled over the Islamic Caliphate from 656 to 661, and was the first male convert to Islam...
('Ali Ibn Abi Talib'). - Kihalastah al-Nisab, a treatise on the descendantsDescendants of Ali ibn Abi TalibAli was the first Imam of Shia Islam. He was a cousin of the Muslim prophet Muhammad, as well as Muhammad's son-in-law. He had several children by Fatima, Muhammad's daughter, as well as children by other wives...
of Ali, Alawi. This treatise also includes the descendants of Ali who migrated to other countries after the rise of Umayyad Caliphate. - Minhadj al-Salah fi kktisar al-Misbah, a work on religious duties especially prayer.
- Minhadj al-Karima fi Marifat al-Imama, a vindication of the Shia doctrine on Imamate.
- Manahij al-yaqin fi usul al-din, a treatise on the fundamental principles of the Shia creed.
- Ma'aridj al-Fahm, a commentary by the author on his own work Nazm al Barahin.
- Nahdj al-hakk wa Kashf al Sidk, a refutation of the theology and legal system of the Sunnis.
- Nazm al Baruhin fi Usul al-Din, a work on scholastic theology.
- Tadhkirat al-Fukaha, a work on Shia jurisprudence in three volumes.
- Tahdhib al-wusul ila 'ilm al-usul.
- Qawa'id al-Ahlcam
Fatwa, his one legal opinion
He died in 726/1325 and was buried in Mushhad, where his grave became an object of veneration.Sources
- Hilli, al-. (2006). Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved March 21, 2006, from Encyclopædia Britannica Premium Service http://wwwa.britannica.com/eb/article-9040478
- Tehrani, Aga Buzurg. (date unknown). Tabaqat 'Alam il-Shi'ah. Tehran: Ismailian Publishers. (Arabic
- Schmidkte, S. ḤELLI, ḤASAN B. YUSOF B. MOṬAHHAR. Encyclopædia Iranica (www.iranicaonline.org, accessed: 28.09.09)
External links
1.Ismaili and other Arabic manuscripts: a descriptive catalogue of manuscripts.2. Abu Mansur Hassan bin Yusuf Al-Hilla