Grand Ayatullah
Sayyid Ali al-Husayni al-Sistani was born on 9th Rabi al-Awwal 1349
A.H. in the Holy City of Mashhad. Eid al-Zahra falls on 9th of
Rabi al-Awwal! He was brought up in a family known for its religious back
ground. At the age of 5, His Eminence started learning the Glorious Qur’an. In
the beginning of 1360 A.H, he started learning basic Hawzah lessons. In late
1368 A.H., he migrated to Qum to accomplish his studies of Fiqh and Usul. He
was benefitted by two well known scholars, Sayyid Husayn Tabatabai and Grand
Kuhkamari. In early 1371 A.H., His
Eminence left for Najaf al-Ashraf and started attending Ayatullah Khu’i and
Shaikh Husayn Hilli’s lectures in Jurisprudence and Fundamentals of Jurisprudence for a considerably long time.
Meanwhile, he attended the lectures of other prominent scholars like Ayatullah
Hakim and Ayatullah Shahryudi (May Allah Bless them). In 138 A.H., Ayatullah
Sistani travelled back to Mashad. During
the same year, he was awarded a permit by Imam al-Khu’i and Shaikh Hilli
certifying that he has attained the level of Ijtehad-deduction of legal judgment in matters of religion.
He was also awarded a diploma by the distinguished
traditionalist and scholar Shaykh
Agha Buzurg Tehrani testifying to his skill in the science of “Rijal”
biographies of Hadees, Prophetic traditions, and narrators of those hadees.
Some professors of Howzah advised late Grand Ayatullah
Khu’i to groom someone for the office of Supreme Religious Authority. Hence the
choice fell on His Eminence Grand Ayatullah Sistani for his merits,
eligibility, knowledge, and impeccable character. Accordingly, he started
leading the prayer in Imam al-Khu’i Mosque in al-Khadra in his life time in 1408
A.H and continued leading the prayer until the mosque was closed in 1414 A.H.
His Eminence performed Hajj three times.
The Salient
features of His Eminence’s methods of teaching are:
He speaks about the history of the research.
He always connects between the thoughts of Howzah and the
contemporary civilizations.
He always looks after the principles in relation to Fiqh.
His believes that a faqih must penetrate into the real
meaning behind the text.
He believes that a faqih must be acquainted with Arabic
literature, civilizations, oratory, poems, grammar etc.
He always compares his research or discussion with two
main centers of knowledge; Mashhad and
Qum.
Characteristics of his personality:
He exercises equity and respect for other’s opinions.
He is Polite in discussions.
As a teacher, he regards his work as a heavenly mission
practiced with love, care and full responsibility.
He is a pious man leading a simple life.
He is modern faqih with genuine principles.
His work includes
books on “Current Legal Issues, A Code of Practice for Muslims living in the
West, Hajj Rituals, Islamic Laws, and Jurisprudence Made Easy.”There are thirty
two other published works which have to be translated into English.
On March 4, 2014,
the Daily Telegraph commentator Colin Freeman published an article naming Grand
Ayatullah Sayyid Ali al-Husayni al Sistani, as the most appropriate Nobel Peace
Prize candidate. Similarly, The Tehran Times reported that a group of members
of the Iraqi Parliament announced that they intend to nominate His Eminence for
the 2014 Noble Peace Prize.
There are about 43
Institutions all over the world rendering social, educational, medical, and
religious services under His Eminence Grand Ayatullah Sistani.
There is a huge
network of web-sites catering to needs of Muslims and non-Muslims alike.
Sources used:
WIKIPEDIA
SISTANI.ORG
IRAQ:Grand Ayatullah Ali al-Sistani.com
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