Sayyid Jamal Al-Din Va'iz
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Sayyid Jamal al-Din "Va'iz" Esfahani (; also known as Seyed Jamal Vaez The Preacher" 1862–1908) was a popular pro-constitutional preacher and writer in
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
. He was one of the founders of a constitutional movement in
Isfahan Isfahan or Esfahan ( ) is a city in the Central District (Isfahan County), Central District of Isfahan County, Isfahan province, Iran. It is the capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is located south of Tehran. The city ...
in 1890s. He wrote for the reformist newspapers - especially for ''Al Jamal''. He wrote mostly about the economy and the financial autonomy of Persia, which he compared it to
jihad ''Jihad'' (; ) is an Arabic word that means "exerting", "striving", or "struggling", particularly with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it encompasses almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with God in Islam, God ...
. He is the father of Iranian writer Mohammad Ali Jamalzadeh.


The Constitutional Revolution

One major concern of Akhund Khurasani and other Marja's was to familiarize the public with the ideas of a democratic nation-state and modern constitution. Akhund Khurasani asked Iranian scholars to deliver sermons on the subject to clarify doubts seeded by Nuri and his comrades. Hajj Shaikh Muhammad Va'iz Isfahani, a skillful orator of Tehran, made concerted efforts to educate the masses. Another scholar, Sayyid Jamal al-Din Va'iz continuously refuted Nuri's propaganda and said that religious tyranny was worse than the temporal tyranny as the harm that the corrupt clerics inflict upon Islam and Muslims is worse. He advised the Shia masses to not pay attention to everyone with a turban on his head, rather they should listen to the guidelines of the sources of emulation in
Najaf Najaf is the capital city of the Najaf Governorate in central Iraq, about 160 km (99 mi) south of Baghdad. Its estimated population in 2024 is about 1.41 million people. It is widely considered amongst the holiest cities of Shia Islam an ...
. Va'iz was an opponent to Mohammad-Ali Shah Qajar. "As to the
ulama In Islam, the ''ulama'' ( ; also spelled ''ulema''; ; singular ; feminine singular , plural ) are scholars of Islamic doctrine and law. They are considered the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam. "Ulama ...
in the constitutional revolution, there were varying degrees of support for a constitution and of awareness of its implications. Among the popular preachers there were a number in the tradition of Afghani — men brought up with a religious education and filling, more than Afghani, religious functions, notably preaching, but who were not themselves believers in any usual sense. These included most notably two preacher friends from Isfahan — Malek al-Motakallemin and Sayyed Jamal ad-Din Esfahani, the former the father of the historian of the constitutional revolution,
Mehdi Malekzadeh Mehdi () is a common Arabic masculine given name, meaning "rightly guided". People with the name Mehdi generally originate from Iran, with other notable countries of origin being India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Azerbaijan, France, Mo ...
, and the latter the father of Iran's first great modern short-story writer, Mohammad-Ali Jamalzadeh. Malek al-Motakallamin was long an
Azali Azali may refer to: * an adherent of Subh-i-Azal * Azali (tribe), ancient Illyrian tribe * Azali (film), 2018 film directed by Kwabena Gyansah * Azali, a given name notably borne by ** Azali Assoumani (born 1959), President of the Comoros { ...
Bábí, although by the time he became a preacher in the revolution he appears to have lost even this belief, while Sayyed Jamal ad-Din Esfahani was described by his son as a
freethinker Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an unorthodox attitude or belief. A freethinker holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and should instead be reached by other meth ...
. They both recognized the appeal of
Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
to the masses and
bazaar A bazaar or souk is a marketplace consisting of multiple small Market stall, stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia, North Africa and South Asia. They are traditionally located in vaulted or covered streets th ...
is, however. ..In
Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...
, the two became major preachers of the revolutionary and constitutional cause, explaining it in familiar Muslim terms emphasizing such Islamic concepts, particularly central in
Shi'ism Shia Islam is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political Succession to Muhammad, successor (caliph) and as the spiritual le ...
, as Justice and Oppression. Mohammad-Ali Shah considered them among the most dangerous of his enemies and had them both killed in 1908, as he did the editor of '' Sur-e Esrafil'',
Mirza Jahangir Khan Mirzā Jahāngir Khān (; , Shiraz — June 23, 1908, Tehran), also known as Mirzā Jahāngir Khān Shirāzi and Jahāngir-Khān-e Sūr-e-Esrāfil, was an Iranian peoples, Iranian writer and intellectual, and a revolutionary during the Iranian ...
, also of Bábí background.""After an unsuccessful attempt on his ohammad-Ali Shah'slife, the shah achieved, following a failed coup, a successful coup d'état with the help of the Russian-led Cossack Brigade in June 1908. The
majles (, pl. ') is an Arabic term meaning 'sitting room', used to describe various types of special gatherings among common interest groups of administrative, social or religious nature in countries with linguistic or cultural connections to the Mus ...
was closed and many popular nationalist leaders, especially those of more advanced views, were arrested and executed. The radical preachers Jamal ad-Din Esfahani (caught while trying to flee), Malek al-Motakallemin and the editor of ''Sur-e Esrafil'', Mirza Jahangir Khan (the last two had Azali Bábí ties), were among those killed. Taqizadeh along with some others found refuge in the British
Legation A legation was a diplomatic representative office of lower rank than an embassy. Where an embassy was headed by an ambassador, a legation was headed by a minister. Ambassadors outranked ministers and had precedence at official events. Legation ...
, whence he went abroad for a time." Nikki R. Keddie, ''op. cit.'', p. 70.


Publications

*''Lebas ot taqva'' - against import of goods *''The True Dream'' with Majd al- Islam Kirmani (1872–1922)


See also

*
Sadr (name) Al-Sadr () is a Lebanese-Iraqi-Iranian clerical Shia family originating from Jabal Amel in Lebanon. They are a branch of Musawi family tracing to Musa Ibn Jaafar the seventh Shia Imam. History Sadr is a branch of Charafeddine () family from ...


Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jamal Al-Din Va'iz Esfahani, Sayyid Iranian journalists Writers from Isfahan 1862 births 1908 deaths Musawis