Muhammad-Kadhim al-Modarresi | |
|---|---|
السيد محمد كاظم الحسيني المدرسي | |
| Title | Ayatollah |
| Personal life | |
| Born | 1911 |
| Died | April 5, 1994(1994-04-05) (aged 82–83) |
| Resting place | Fatima Masumeh Shrine |
| Nationality | Iranian |
| Children |
|
| Parent | Muhammad-Jawad al-Modarresi |
| Relatives | Mirza Mahdi al-Shirazi (father-in-law) Muhammad al-Shirazi (brother-in-law)[3] Abd al-A'la al-Sabziwari (brother-in-law)[4] Mohammed Kadhim al-Qazwini (brother-in-law), Mohammed Taqi Morvarid (cousin) |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Islam |
| Denomination | TwelverShīʿā |
AyatollahSayyidMuhammad-Kadhim al-Husayni al-Modarresi (Persian:محمد كاظم حسينى مدرسى;Arabic:محمد كاظم الحسيني المدرسي; 1911[5]–April 5, 1994) was anIranian-Iraqi Shiascholar andmystic.[6] He was a prominent teacher at the seminaries ofMashhad andKarbala, teaching Islamic philosophy.[7] He held theQuranic exegesis chair of the Karbala seminary and taughtaqaed in the al-Hindiya and al-Badkubeh schools.[6]
Al-Modarresi was constantly in pursuit of spiritual self-discipline by means of self-reflection and other ascetic, religious and ethical practices.[8]
Al-Modarresi was born into a distinguished religious Shia family in Mashhad inIran. His father was Ayatollah Sayyid Muhammad-Jawad al-Modarresi, the son of grand Ayatollah Sayyid Muhammad-Baqir Golpayegani (also known asJorfadiqani).[9] His mother was the daughter of Ayatollah Sheikh Ali Akbar Morvarid. He claims descent fromZayd ibn Ali (died c. 740 AD), the great-great-grandson of theIslamic prophet,Muhammad.[10]
Al-Modarresi studied and graduated from the religious seminaries of Mashhad. One of al-Modarresi's main teachers was Mirza Mahdi al-Isfahani (d. 1945), the founding father of thetafkiki school of jurisprudence in its new manifestation.Tafkik–as described by Muhammad-Reza Hakimi–"comprises the belief that the truths about religion and the correct knowledge of it are the ones stated in the Quran and have been taught by the Prophet and afterwards by his appointed successors, who have inherited his knowledge." al-Modarresi was a firm believer that acquiring knowledge by other ways than the way shown by theAhl al-Bayt is tantamount to denying them, i.e. disbelief.[11]
In the 1940s, he emigrated toNajaf with his father, who later died and was buried there. After his father died he moved to Karbala, and joined the religious seminary as a teacher. As well as other sciences, he specialised in teaching the methodologies of al-Isfahani in jurisprudence.
By 1970, due to the rising pressures of theBaathist anti-Shia sentiment, al-Modarresi left for Kuwait with his family.[12][13] After the Iranian revolution, al-Modarresi relocated toQom. Over there he established a library, and one of the most interesting books in his collection was a hand-written copy ofNahj al-Balagha, written by Muhammadbin Ali al-Hamdani in October, 1179.[14]
Some of his most notable students included:
Al-Modarresi married the daughter of grand Ayatollah MirzaMahdi al-Shirazi in Karbala.[3] He had three daughters, and seven sons, whom are all clerics.[8]They are:
His sons-in-law were, Faeq Alkazemi, the son of Kuwaiti businessmanZaid Alkazemi; Sayyid Husayn al-Radhawi, the son of SayyidSajjad al-Radhawi; and Bahraini scholar, Sayyid Mahmud al-Musawi al-Bahrani.
Al-Modarresi died of heart failure in the early hours of April 5, 1994 inTehran, whilst he was performingFajr prayer.[16]
The night before, his son-in-law narrated that he overheard al-Modarresi talking to himself, saying: "O' Kadhim, enough of this life, do not worry. This is the path that the others have taken. O' Kadhim this is your final night. Strengthen your faith in Allah and do not be fearful."[17]
He was buried in the courtyard ofFatima Masumeh in Qom, in room no. 41, near the grave of SheikhFazlollah Nuri.[18]
Al-Modarresi authored one of the leading books on thetafkiki school of jurisprudence namedBuhuth Fi al-Ilm (Research in Knowledge).