Rahim Arbab
Encyclopedia
Ayatollah-al-ozma Haj Agha Rahim Arbab (born 1875 - d. 1975) was born in Chermaheen in Iran
, near Shahre Kord
, to a family of scholars.
Ayatollah-al-ozma is the highest rank in traditional Twelver Shi'a studies. Ayatollah Arbab is among three Ayatollahs who never wore the traditional turban. He believed that the turban is for prophets and that he did not possess the scholarly permission to wear a turban. All of his 50 students ranked as Ayatollah after graduation. Among them, Allameh Jalal Homaei, Reza Alishah Tabandeh and Ayatollah Mirdamadi are well known.
and Bostan, the two books of the great Persian poet Sadi
, along with Qur'an
ic studies. When he was five his teachers sent him back to his father, Haj Arbab, who was a scholar himself, stating that he had mastered all of the required fields and knew those books by heart. They requested that he be sent to hawzeh (a high level school also known as Madrassa). This promise encouraged his parents to move to the city of Isfahan
.
, who was later known as Sheida-ye-Esfahani. He attended the Sadr
Madrassa and finished his academic studies in jurisprudence (fiqh
) and its principles (usul
), theosophy (hekmat), and the other Islamic intellectual (‘aqli) and transmitted (naqli) sciences, under the supervision of philosophers and scholars such as Jahangir Khan Ghashghaei and Ayatollah Akhond Kashi. Ayatollah Haj Agha Rahim Arbab showed extraordinary abilities in formal and informal studies such as Persian and Arabic literature, mathematics, philosophy, mysticism and astronomy. He graduated to the rank of Ayatollah when he was only fourteen.
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...
, near Shahre Kord
Shahrekord
-External links:**...
, to a family of scholars.
Ayatollah-al-ozma is the highest rank in traditional Twelver Shi'a studies. Ayatollah Arbab is among three Ayatollahs who never wore the traditional turban. He believed that the turban is for prophets and that he did not possess the scholarly permission to wear a turban. All of his 50 students ranked as Ayatollah after graduation. Among them, Allameh Jalal Homaei, Reza Alishah Tabandeh and Ayatollah Mirdamadi are well known.
Childhood
Ayatollah Arbab grew up in Chermaheen, and nature and simple living had a very deep effect on the development of his philosophy and theology. He learned to read and write at the age of four and started reading Persian literature at that age. As is tradition, he started with learning GulistanGulistan of Sa'di
The Gulistan is a landmark literary work in Persian literature, perhaps its single most influential work of prose. Written in 1259 CE, it is one of two major works of the Persian poet Sa'di, considered one of the greatest medieval Persian poets. It is also one of his most popular books, and...
and Bostan, the two books of the great Persian poet Sadi
Saadi (poet)
Abū-Muḥammad Muṣliḥ al-Dīn bin Abdallāh Shīrāzī better known by his pen-name as Saʿdī or, simply, Saadi, was one of the major Persian poets of the medieval period. He is not only famous in Persian-speaking countries, but he has also been quoted in western sources...
, along with 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...
ic studies. When he was five his teachers sent him back to his father, Haj Arbab, who was a scholar himself, stating that he had mastered all of the required fields and knew those books by heart. They requested that he be sent to hawzeh (a high level school also known as Madrassa). This promise encouraged his parents to move to the city of Isfahan
Isfahan (city)
Isfahan , historically also rendered in English as Ispahan, Sepahan or Hispahan, is the capital of Isfahan Province in Iran, located about 340 km south of Tehran. It has a population of 1,583,609, Iran's third largest city after Tehran and Mashhad...
.
Formal studies
Ayatollah Arbab started attending the classes required for the traditional schools at a very young age, along with his cousin, Mirza Abbas Khan SheidaMirza Abbas Khan Sheida
Mirza Abbas Khan Sheida, or Sheida-ye-Esfahani , was an Iranian sufi, poet and Journalist.Sheida was born in 1873 in Shahre-Kord near Isfahan. His father Mirza Es-hagh Dehkordi, was the governor-general of Shahre Kord and the province of Chahar Mahaal o Bakhtiari...
, who was later known as Sheida-ye-Esfahani. He attended the Sadr
Sadr
Sadr may refer to:*Gamma Cygni, a star.*Sadr City, a neighbourhood in northeastern Baghdad.*Sadr, a family name originating in Lebanon.*Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic , the government-in-exile of the Polisario Front....
Madrassa and finished his academic studies in jurisprudence (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....
) and its principles (usul
Usul
In Ottoman classical music, usul is an underlying rhythmic cycle that complements the melodic rhythm and sometimes helps shape the overall structure of a composition. An usul can be as short as two beats or as long as 128 beats. Usul is often translated as "meter", but usul and meter are not...
), theosophy (hekmat), and the other Islamic intellectual (‘aqli) and transmitted (naqli) sciences, under the supervision of philosophers and scholars such as Jahangir Khan Ghashghaei and Ayatollah Akhond Kashi. Ayatollah Haj Agha Rahim Arbab showed extraordinary abilities in formal and informal studies such as Persian and Arabic literature, mathematics, philosophy, mysticism and astronomy. He graduated to the rank of Ayatollah when he was only fourteen.