Grand Ayatollah Marji ( ar, مرجع, transliteration: ''marjiʿ''; plural: ''marājiʿ''), literally meaning "source to follow" or "religious reference", is a title given to the highest level of Twelver Shia authority, a Grand Ayatollah with the authority giv ...

Hajj The Hajj (; ar, حَجّ '; sometimes also spelled Hadj, Hadji or Haj in English) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried ...

Sheikh Sheikh (pronounced or ; ar, شيخ ' , mostly pronounced , plural ' )—also transliterated sheekh, sheyikh, shaykh, shayk, shekh, shaik and Shaikh, shak—is an honorific title in the Arabic language. It commonly designates a chief of a ...

Abdolkarim Haeri Yazdi ( fa, عبدالکریم حائری یزدی; ar, عبد الكريم الحائري اليزدي ; 1859 – 30 January 1937) was a

Twelver Twelver Shīʿīsm ( ar, ٱثْنَا عَشَرِيَّة; '), also known as Imāmīyyah ( ar, إِمَامِيَّة), is the largest branch of Shīʿa Islam, comprising about 85 percent of all Shīʿa Muslims. The term ''Twelver'' refers t ...

Shia Muslim Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, most ...

scholar and marja. He was the founder of an important Islamic

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

(

hawza A hawza ( ar, حوزة) or ḥawzah ʿilmīyah ( ar, حوزة علمیة) is a seminary where Shi'a Muslim scholars are educated. The word ''ḥawzah'' is found in Arabic as well as the Persian language. In Arabic, the word means "to hold so ...

) in Qom,

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. He was described as "studied disinterest in politics". Among his students was

Ruhollah Khomeini Ruhollah Khomeini, Ayatollah Khomeini, Imam Khomeini ( , ; ; 17 May 1900 – 3 June 1989) was an Iranian political and religious leader who served as the first supreme leader of Iran from 1979 until his death in 1989. He was the founder of ...

Early life

Haeri was born in the city of

Meybod Meybod ( fa, Meybod) is a city in and capital of Meybod County, Yazd Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 58,295, in 15,703 families. Meybod is a major desert city in Yazd Province, Iran, with a population of about 75,000 ma ...

in Mehrjard village in southeastern

. He studied at

Yazd Yazd ( fa, یزد ), formerly also known as Yezd, is the capital of Yazd Province, Iran. The city is located southeast of Isfahan. At the 2016 census, the population was 1,138,533. Since 2017, the historical city of Yazd is recognized as a Worl ...

, then at

Samarra Samarra ( ar, سَامَرَّاء, ') is a city in Iraq. It stands on the east bank of the Tigris in the Saladin Governorate, north of Baghdad. The city of Samarra was founded by Abbasid Caliph Al-Mutasim for his Turkish professional army ...

under

Grand Ayatollah Mirza Hassan Shirazi al-Mujadid al-Shirazi, ar, المجدد الشيرازي , birth_name = , birth_date = April 25, 1815 , birth_place = Shiraz, Qajar Iran , death_date = , death_place = Samarra, Ottoman Iraq , resting ...

, and completed his training at

Najaf Najaf ( ar, ٱلنَّجَف) or An-Najaf al-Ashraf ( ar, ٱلنَّجَف ٱلْأَشْرَف), also known as Baniqia ( ar, بَانِيقِيَا), is a city in central Iraq about 160 km (100 mi) south of Baghdad. Its estimated popula ...

with

Mohammad-Kazem Khorasani Ayatullah Sheikh Muhammad Kazim Khurasani ( fa, ; 1839 – 12 December 1911), commonly known as Akhund Khurasani ( fa, ) was a Shia jurist and political activist. He is known for using his position as a Marja as legitimizing force behind the ...

and Muhammad Kazim Yazdi. In 1906, he reportedly became disenchanted with the politicization from the

Iranian Constitutional Revolution The Persian Constitutional Revolution ( fa, مشروطیت, Mashrūtiyyat, or ''Enghelāb-e Mashrūteh''), also known as the Constitutional Revolution of Iran, took place between 1905 and 1911. The revolution led to the establishment of a par ...

and moved back to

, Iraq. When Najaf became political, he moved to

Karbala Karbala or Kerbala ( ar, كَرْبَلَاء, Karbalāʾ , , also ;) is a city in central Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad, and a few miles east of Lake Milh, also known as Razzaza Lake. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorat ...

until political excitement cooled in 1913 when he moved back to Arak in Iran. By 1921, he was a "well-known and respected teacher" and "good administrator" and he accepted an invitation of

Mullahs Mullah (; ) is an honorific title for Shia Islam, Shia and Sunni Muslim clergy or a Muslim mosque leader. The term is also sometimes used for a person who has higher education in Islamic theology and Sharia, sharia law. The title has also b ...

in Qom "to act as doyen" to the circles of learning in that Shrine town. Under Haeri, Qom moved from a respectable provincial

Madrasah Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , pl. , ) is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whether for elementary instruction or higher learning. The word is variously transliterated '' ...

to a major center of learning close to the level of Najaf. Although "some of his contemporaries outshone" him as jurisconsults, Haeri became the marja for "many religious Iranians." Haeri's quietism was reflected in his willingness to meet cordially with both Shah

Ahmad Shah Qajar Ahmad Shah Qajar ( fa, احمد شاه قاجار; 21 January 1898 – 21 February 1930) was Shah of Persia (Iran) from 16 July 1909 to 15 December 1925, and the last ruling member of the Qajar dynasty. Ahmad Shah was born in Tabriz on 21 Janu ...

and Prime Minister

Reza Khan , , spouse = Maryam Savadkoohi Tadj ol-Molouk Ayromlu (queen consort)Turan AmirsoleimaniEsmat Dowlatshahi , issue = Princess Hamdamsaltaneh Princess ShamsMohammad Reza Shah Princess Ashraf Prince Ali Reza Prince Gholam Reza Prin ...

Qom Seminary

Students

Ayatollah Borqei Ayatollah ( ; fa, آیت‌الله, āyatollāh) is an Title of honor, honorific title for high-ranking Twelver Shia clergy in Iran and Iraq that came into widespread usage in the 20th century. Etymology The title is originally derived from ...

* Abolhasan Rafii Qazvini *

Mohammad-Reza Golpaygani Grand Ayatollah Mohammad-Reza Golpaygani (March 20, 1899 – December 9, 1993) was an Iranian Shia Muslim and ''marja scholar and was born in 1899 in Gogad village near the city of Golpaygan, Iran. He was taught preliminary studies by his fa ...

Mohammad Ali Araki , location = , Title = Grand Ayatollah , Period = , Predecessor = , Successor = , ordination = , post = , birth_date = , birth_place = Arak, Iran , death_date = , death_place = Qom, Iran ...

* Sayeed Shahabuddin Marashi Najafi * Jafar Eshraghi * Sayeed Ahmad Zanjan * Ayatollah Haj Mirza Khalil Kamareyi * Mohammad Mohaghegh Damad * Shamseddin Mataji Kojouri *

Mirza Hashem Amoli Ayatollah Mirza Hashem Amoli Larijani ( fa, لاریجانی میرزا هاشم آملی; 26 February 189925 February 1993) was an Iranian Shia Marja' and scholar of jurisprudence. Biography Hashem Amoli Larijani was born on 26 February 189 ...

References

Sources

* 1859 births 1937 deaths Iranian grand ayatollahs People from Yazd Pupils of Muhammad Kadhim Khorasani Burials at Fatima Masumeh Shrine People of Qajar Iran {{iran-reli-bio-stub

Early life

Qom Seminary

Students

See also

References

Sources