Lessons from the Lives of our Ulema
Prepared & Translated by Shaikh Abbas Jaffer
abbas@jaffer.org
Ayatullah Burujerdi (R.A.)
It has been narrated
about the spiritual station of the great
marja, Ayatullah Muhammad Husein
Burujerdi (d.1961), that he had made a vow (nadhr)
that if he ever uttered inappropriate
words when angry, he would fast for a whole
year (to train his soul). Indeed, he had
a very lofty station.
He himself has said,
“Before I came to Qom, I used to hear the
voices of angels, but after I arrived here
and became occupied and busy in the role of
Marja, I lost that blessing!”
Ayatullah Burujerdi was a
marja whose credentials as a supreme
authority have been endorsed by Amir al-Mu’mineen
(A.S.) himself. Allamah Nahawandi relates
the following incident:
“When the late Ayatullah
Burujerdi came to Mashad, I gave him my
place in the holy shrine - that is, I asked
him to lead the prayers and I stood behind
him, out of respect.” He continues, “That
same year, I was blessed with the
opportunity to go to Najaf-al-Ashraf. The
great marja, Ayatullah Sayyid Abu’l
Hasan Isfahani, who was the leader of the
prayers in the courtyard of Amir
al-Mu’mineen (A.S.), insisted that I lead
the prayers. I was very surprised, that a
man of the status of Ayatullah Isfahani, to
whom even the Imam of our Age (A) had
written a letter stating: “Irkhas Nafsaka
- Make yourself easily accessible to the
people - waj�al
majlisataka fi al-dahliz
- and sit in the street outside your house
(so people can easily benefit from your
knowledge) - waqdhi hawaijan nas -
and fulfil the needs of the people -
nahnu nansuruka - we will help you -
made me stand at the head of the prayers and
himself stood behind me.”
Allamah Nahawandi says,
“I was still wondering as to why a scholar
of this great stature was following me in
prayer. As I prepared to say the opening
takbir, I heard the voice of Amir
al-Mu’mineen (A.S.)) coming from his sacred
tomb, “You showed respect to my son
Burujerdi, so we have also honoured and
respected you, by making Sayyid Abu’l Hassan
Isfahani pray behind you.”
Ayatullah Burujerdi had made a vow, in order
to train his soul, that if he ever said
something unbefitting in anger, he would
fast one whole year. One day he was sitting
teaching a class in Burujerd. At these times
he had a great presence and a special
dignity. A student began to argue with him,
and Agha answered his query. He raised
another objection, which was also answered.
However, when he objected a third time,
Ayatullah Burujerdi became momentarily angry
and with an annoyed tone, he said from the
pulpit, “Be quiet, young man”.
However, realising what
he had done, as soon as Agha finished his
class, he called that student and, in front
of the whole class, he bowed and kissed
his (student’s) hand and gave him a cloak
and 500 Tumans (a reasonable amount in those
days), and then said, “Forgive the
mistake of Burujerdi! I do not understand
how the reins of my soul slipped from my
hands and why I asked you to be quiet in
front of everyone.”
From the very next day, Ayatullah Burujerdi
began to fast - just for one harsh word,
which in itself was neither backbiting nor a
lie.
Taken from the speech of Haj Agha Hashimi
Najhad, as quoted in “Karamat wa Hikayate
Ashiqane Khuda” - “Miracles and Anecdotes
of the Close Servants of Allah”.
Translated AJ/091105.
Ayatullah Shaykh Ja’far Shustari (R.A.)
The eminent philosopher
and jurist, Marhum Ayatullah Shaykh Ja’far
Shustari is the author of the important book
of Maqtal: “Khasais al-Husainiyyah”,
meaning “The Attributes of Husain’s
Movement”. He relates the following
incident about his meeting with our 3rd
Imam, Imam Husain (A.S.):
“When I completed my
studies at the Hawza of Najaf and returned
to my home in Shustar, I found that there
was a need to make the people more aware of
the teachings of the Qur’an and Islam in
general. As a first step, I decided to
start giving public lectures every Friday.
When the month of Ramadhan came, I continued
with my lecturing. I would take Tafsir-e
Safi (of Mulla Muhsin Fayz Kashani) with me
and teach from it. I would always end my
talk with a few words of masaib of
Imam Husain (A.S.) from the book
“Rawdhatu’l Shuhada” (“The Garden of the
Martyrs”) because, as the popular saying
goes, every food requires salt, and the
salt of any religious lecture is the
remembrance of the tragedy of Kerbala.
However, no matter how
much I tried, I could not recite the masaib
of Imam Husain (A.S.) i.e. the tragedy of
Kerbala on the mimbar/pulpit without
reading from the book. As a result, it did
not have that much effect on the people. In
any case, I persisted in this manner for a
whole year. The following year, when the
month of Muharram arrived, I said to myself,
“How long will I have to carry on
reciting the masaib from a book? When will
I manage to recite from memory?” I knew
that I had to find a way out of this
undesirable situation, but no matter how
much I tried, I could not manage to find a
solution. I began to constantly worry about
it and one day, exhausted after thinking
about the same matter, I fell asleep.
That day, I dreamt that I was on the plains
of Kerbala, and that too, at the time when
Imam Husain (A.S.)’s caravan was there. I
entered the camp and greeted that holy and
radiant personality. The Imam (A.S.) seated
me next to himself and then said to Hazarat
Habib bin Mazahir, “Habib! Shaykh Ja’far is
our guest, and a guest must always be made
welcome. It is true that there is no water
in the camp, but there is some flour and oil
– so go and prepare some food for our
guest.”
At the words of Imam
(A.S.), Habib bin Mazahir rose up at once
and after sometime, returned and placed some
food in front of me. I will never forget
that there was a spoon in the dish of food
as well. I had eaten only a few spoonfuls
of that heavenly food when I woke up. I
found that because of the blessing of that
ziyarat of Imam Husain (A.S.) and
his kindness to me, I had been inspired
with a special knowledge about the family of
the Prophet (SWW), including many facts and
subtle details of their lives, which was not
known to anybody else before this.”
His valuable book,
“Khasais al-Husainiyyah”, contains many
such details and inferences which is
probably from the knowledge he received as a
result of his meeting with the Imam Husain
(A.S.), and which was not previously known
to anyone else.
Taken from:
“Khasais al-Husainiyyah”
p. 8, as quoted in
“Karamat wa Hikayate Ashiqane Khuda” -
“Miracles and
Anecdotes of the Close Servants of Allah”.
Translated AJ/141105.
Shaykh Abbas-e-Qummi (R.A.)
The writer of the Traditions of Ahlu’l Bayt
(AS)
Shaykh Abbas-e Qummi is
the author of the indispensable book of
du’as, called Mafatih-al-Jinan, (Keys
to the Heavens). He was an expert in
hadith, and for this reason, he is
famously known as Muhaddith-e Qummi.
Amongst his many other works, Manazil-e
Akhira and Safinatul-Bihar are
well-known.
He was a man of great
piety and a sincere lover of the Prophet (SWWS)
and his progeny (AS). Such was his faith
and conviction, that one day, when his son
was very ill, he took a glass of water, and
after mixing the water with his finger, he
gave it to his son to drink, saying, “Drink
this my son, you will soon be better,
because with this hand I have written many
ahadith (traditions) of the Ahlu’l
Bayt (AS).”
One of the senior
scholars of Najaf once said to Shaykh
Abbas-e-Qummi, “My foot is constantly
hurting me - please pray for me.” The
Shaykh replied, “If I say I will pray for
you, it is possible that my prayer may not
be answered if I have uttered something
sinful in the past. However, I will pass my
hand over your foot, because with this hand
I have written many ahadith of the
Ahlu’l Bayt (AS) and Insha’Allah Imam Sadiq
(AS) will effect a cure for you.” He rubbed
his hand over the scholar’s foot and the
pain left him immediately.
When he began to compile
the Mafatih, some scholars of Qum
advised him to use his vast knowledge to
write explanatory notes on some of the
complicated books, like Kifayah and
Makasib of Shaykh al-Ansari,
instead. “Are you just sitting writing a
book of du’as?” they asked. He replied, “I
will continue writing the Mafatih,
and I have dedicated its reward to the soul
of Fatima Zahra (AS), and, with her
blessings, it will become
Mafatih-al-Jinan - keys to the gardens
of Paradise.”
One day he was sitting
contemplating in the graveyard of Wadi-as-Salaam
in Najaf - where many great personalities
are buried. He saw that some people had
just buried a man. Suddenly, for a brief
moment, the veils were lifted from before
his eyes and he saw angels descending from
the heavens with whips of fire with which
they began to strike the dead man. He
started to scream and shriek in pain, but
none of the mourners heard or saw anything
unusual; there was a man sitting near the
grave reciting Qur’an and another was
distributing dates and fruits, and another
was weeping, but none saw what was happening
to that man. However, the terrible sight
that the Shaykh saw in those brief moments
made him ill for one whole week.
Source: “Karamat wa
Hikayate Ashiqane Khuda” - “Miracles and
Anecdotes of the Close Servants of Allah”,
pp 61-64. Translated AJ/231105
Sayyid Ali Qadhi Tabatabai (R.A.)
Marhum Qadhi was a
scholar of the highest calibre in Najaf in
the last century. He taught akhlaq,
aqaaid and ‘irfan, and was also well
versed in falsafah and fiqh. Many
great scholars of the previous generation
were his students. He had a special status
and piety, which enabled him to perform many
miraculous acts.
Brief Biography
Ayatullah Sayyid Mirza
Ali Tabatabai, famously known as Qadhi
(1285 - 1366 AH) was born in Tabriz in
Iran. He completed his basic hawza
studies in his hometown, and then at the age
of 28, migrated to Najaf to learn from the
great masters who taught him in the shadow
of the haram of Imam Ali (A.S.).
In time, Sayyid Qadhi
excelled in fiqh, usul, hadith, tafsir
and akhlaq and distinguished himself
as one of the most sought-after instructors
in Najaf, especially in the fields of
akhlaq and ‘irfan. He wrote
several books, including a partially
completed tafsir of the Qur’an, which
is a commentary up to verse 91 of Surah
al-An’am. Several of the top ranking
‘ulama and maraje of the last
generation were his students, including:
Grand Ayatullah Behjat (may Allah
prolong his life), Grand Ayatullah
Zanjani (may Allah prolong his life),
Grand Ayatullah Khui (R.A.),
Grand Ayatullah Najafi Mar’ashi (R.A.),
Grand Ayatullah Hadi Milani (R.A.),
Allamah Tabatabai (R.A.), Shahide
Mehrab Ayatullah Dasteghayb (R.A.),
Sayyid Hashim Haddad (R.A.) and many
others.
His Extraordinary
Abilities
Marhum Qadhi was a man of
exceptional abilities - many times his
illustrious students would describe their
memories of the wondrous acts they witnessed
in his blessed presence. The contemporary
scholar and student of Ayatullah Khui,
Ustad Fatimi Niya, relates the following
incident:
In the days when
Ayatullah Qadhi was in Najaf, Ayatullah Khui
came to him and requested, “I would like
you to instruct me in some matters.” He
(Ayt. Khui) probably meant ‘irfan and
Divine gnosis and Spiritual
Exercises. Agha Qadhi gave him some
special spiritual instructions which
Ayatullah Khui faithfully followed.
Then one night in the blessed Month of
Ramadhan, Ayt. Khui visited his illustrious
teacher, Ayt. Qadhi, who showed him (Ayt.
Khui) a vision of his future. Suddenly,
Ayt. Khui saw a man who resembled himself,
appear in front of him; the man slowly began
to age until his beard turned white. He saw
the man teaching students of hawza at
the highest level in the Masjid-e Hindi in
Najaf. He saw him beginning to issue edicts
(fatawa) and then saw that his
treatise of fiqh (risalaye amaliyyah)
was printed. After a long time he heard the
loudspeakers in the mosque of Kufa announce,
“The grand Ayatullah al-Khui has passed
away”.
When the vision was over, Ayt. Qadhi turned
to Ayt. Khui and said, “This was your
life, from now till your death. You have a
good future; now you may go.”
Ayatullah Nasiri
Dawlat Abadi
relates that his
teacher, Marhum Ayatullah Shaykh Abbas
Quchani narrated the following incident
to him:
In
Najaf al-Ashraf, we used to have special
sittings with Marhum Qadhi. Usually the
participants would inform each other about
the gatherings and we all used to know one
another. In one such gathering, I suddenly
saw a young Sayyid enter the room. Marhum
Qadhi interrupted his discussion with us and
showed great respect to the young Sayyid who
had just entered and then said to him,
“Agha Sayyid Ruhullah! Do not hesitate to
stand firm against the tyrant rulers and
unjust governments. You must resist them,
you must oppose their ignorance!”
This
was a time when there was not even a whisper
about any revolution in Iran. Marhum
Quchani used to say, “We were all very
surprised that day at this conversation, but
after many years, when the Islamic
revolution happened, we understood what
Marhum Qadhi had been referring to on that
day and why he had shown such great respect
to Ayatullah Khumayni.”
Ayatullah Khumayni would
often remember this great scholar. He once
said, “When it came to (understanding) the
deep and lofty meanings of tawhid,
Qadhi was a mountain.”
Source: “Karamaat-e
Ma’nawi” - “Spiritual Miracles”
p9 &10. Translated AJ/071205.
Part 2
A
great Scholar and ‘Arif
Teacher of Ayt. Khui, Ayt. Behjast, Allamah
Tabatabai and many other Ulema
Marhum Qadhi was a
scholar of the highest calibre in Najaf in
the last century. He taught akhlaq,
aqaaid and ‘irfan, and was also well
versed in falsafah and fiqh. Many
great scholars of the previous generation
were his students. He had a special status
and piety, which enabled him to perform many
miraculous acts, some of which his students
have described. One of the teachers at
the Hawza in Najaf reports:
“I had heard much about
the wondrous abilities of Marhum Qadhi, but
I doubted whether the stories were actually
true or not, until one day, when I met him
outside the mosque of Kufa. I greeted him
and we spoke together for a few moments.
When we reached the entrance of the mosque
of Kufa, (which was facing the open desert),
we sat outside facing the qiblah in
the shade of one of the walls of the mosque,
for some rest, before we entering the
mosque.
We began a discussion and
Marhum Qadhi related some matters about the
secrets and signs of Allah swt, the
definition of tawhid, the importance
of pondering deeply on this subject and the
fact that this is the true and the only
purpose of man’s creation. The talk
continued until the call for prayers came.
As
he spoke, I thought to myself, “Truly, we
are all confused and totally unaware of the
actual reality of our creation. How shameful
will it be if our lives end in this manner?
What he says is so true, and if we do not
take benefit from it, then woe to us!”
Suddenly, I saw a large
snake came out of its lair and began to
slide next to the wall of the mosque, coming
towards us. There were many snakes in that
region, and people would often see them, but
they did not usually attack anyone.
However, this snake came right next to
us, really frightening me. I noticed that
immediately Marhum Qadhi pointed at it (the
snake) and said, “mut, bi idhnillah”
– i.e. “die, by the permission of Allah!”
To my utter surprise, I saw that the snake
immediately withered away and died.
Then without even pausing for a moment, he
concluded his comments and then we stood up
to attend the prayers.
Marhum Qadhi recited his
prayers in the mosque and then retired to a
side room where he used to engage in
worship. I also performed some a‘mal,
and then decided to return to Najaf. Before
I left, a thought passed in my mind, “was
the snake truly dead or had this man somehow
tricked me, as some magicians do?” I
decided to go and examine the snake to see
if it was actually dead. I went out and saw
that it was exactly in the same place, dead
& dried up. I pushed it to check - it did
not move. I became ashamed of my doubts and
returned to the mosque to continue with
prayers, but I could not concentrate.
Marhum Qadhi remained in his room for some
time engrossed in his worship, and then came
out and left the mosque. I also came out and
we met again. As soon as he saw me, he
turned to me and with a smile said, “Well
sir, you tested me, you tested me!”
Allamah Tabatabai, the
author of Tafsir al-Mizan, reports
the following, about his teacher:
“My brother (Allamah
Mohamed Hasan Ilahi) had sent a question to
our teacher, Agha Qadhi through one of his
students that, “The carpet of Prophet
Sulayman (A.S.) on which he sat with his
entire court and travelled from the east to
the west; was it a physical thing,
manufactured from some components, or was it
a miracle of Allah that had nothing to do
with any physical object?” Marhum Qadhi
replied to the student, “I do not know the
answer. However, one of the creatures who
was alive at the time of Prophet Sulayman
(A.S.), and who participated in these
journeys, is still alive. I will go and ask
him.”
Marhum Qadhi set off for
an area, which was mountainous. When he
reached a particular mountain, a creature
who resembled a human being came out, and
they began to talk with one another. The
student, who had accompanied Marhum Qadhi,
could not understand anything of their
conversation, but when Marhum Qadhi
returned, he said, “He (the creature from
the mountain) says that it was from the
miracles of Allah swt, (through wind
currents which Hazarat Sulayman (A.S.) was
allowed to control) and there was no
apparent physical apparatus involved at
all.”
This was Marhum Qadhi, who not only was able
perform miracles like Prophets, but was also
able to communicate with ancient creatures
in their own languages. May Allah swt’s
peace and blessings be on him and on all our
Ulema, (Ameen).
Source: “Karamat wa
Hikayate Ashiqane Khuda” - “Miracles and
Anecdotes of the Close Servants of Allah”,
p40 & “Mehr-e-Tabaan” – “The
Radiant Sun”, p373. Translated
AJ/301105.
Ayatullah Shaykh Muhammad Taqi Bahlool
(R.A.)
Short Biography:
Shaykh Muhammad Taqi Bahlool was an
unusually gifted scholar and a famous orator
of the present era. He was born in 1908 in
Khurasan and left this world just about 4 to
5 months ago, at a ripe age of nearly 100
years. Ulema and Islamic Scholars
throughout the world, led by Ayatullah
Khamenai, paid a glowing tribute to his
brilliant life and work.
His father was a mujtahid, and he
ensured that his son received the best
education and the correct training from his
early age. Thus,
Shaykh Bahlool memorised the Qur’an at the
tender age of 8 years, and even at this
young age, one would see him giving lectures
from the pulpit.
Shaykh Muhammad Taqi
Bahlool was a talented and gifted elderly
scholar who lived in Qum. Although he had
studied fiqh and usul to the
level of ijtihad, he preferred to
give public lectures to the masses. His
lectures were popular because of his very
eloquent, yet down-to-earth style of
oratory. In addition to memorizing the
complete Qur’an by heart, he had also
memorised thousands of verses of the poetry
of Hafez. He had also composed poetry
himself.
After completing his
studies, Shaykh Bahlool returned to Iran
where he became a powerful voice against
anti-Islamic policies of the government of
the day. The
government was alarmed and worried at his
popularity. During the Gawharshad riots in
the 50s, he was targeted by the government
of the time. Although he tried to avoid
them by moving to Afghanistan, he was
captured and imprisoned. He spent 13 long
years of his youthful life in prison.
Source: “Karamat-e
Ma’nawi” - “Spiritual Miracles” p. 34.Translated
AJ/141205
Shaykh Muhammad Taqi Bahlool was an
unusually gifted scholar and a famous orator
of the present era. Behind his small
stature, simple dress and modest manners,
there was a talented, eloquent and pious
individual, who never hesitated in speaking
the truth as well as defending it. .
He was born in 1908 in
Khurasan. His father was a mujtahid,
and he ensured that his son received the
best education and the correct training from
his early years. Thus,
Shaykh Bahlool memorised the Qur’an at the
tender age of 8 years, and even at this
young age, one would see him giving lectures
from the pulpit.
He finished his
preliminary Hawza studies under his father,
and then came to Qum, where his teachers
were the Grand Ayatullah Aakhund, Mulla
Ali Ma’sumi and Grand Ayatullah
Mar’ashi Najafi. Later he also studied
in Najaf under Grand Ayatullah Abu’l
Hasan Isfahani. This last illustrious
teacher told him to use his talents to enter
politics and participate in the resistance
movement against the dangerous policies of
Shah Razakhan, the Shah of Iran.
After completing his
studies, Shaykh Bahlool returned to Iran
where he became a powerful voice against
anti-Islamic policies of the government of
the day. The
government was alarmed and worried at his
popularity and as a result, put him in the
prison. For defending the truth, he
spent 13 long years of his youthful life in
prison. He was released from the
prison in a miraculous way, which
Insha’Allah we will look at next week.
After his release from the prison, he spent
sometime in Egypt and Syria, familiarising
himself with the current situation, before
returning to Iran. He was very active in
the run up to the Islamic Revolution.
He left this world just
about 4 months ago, at a ripe age of over
100 years. Ulema and Islamic Scholars
throughout the world, led by Ayatullah
Khamenai paid a glowing tribute to his
brilliant life and work. We pray to Allah
swt to Grant the Marhum the choicest place
in the proximity of Ma’sumeen (A.S.).
Anecdote: In the eyes of Shaykh
Bahlool, Salatu’l Layl (i.e. Namaze Shab)
had a special prestigious place. He often
used to say that “in Salatu’l Layl, there
lies the benefit of this world and the
hereafter. When I urge you all never to
miss its recital, I have a personal proof of
its benefit”.
This is one of the
incidents he has narrated regarding his
habit of regularly praying Salatu’l Layl: He
says, “In my
student days when I was in Madressa-e-
Faydhiyyah in Qum, it was a very
difficult time and we had very little money,
even for our basic necessities.
One
year, in which the night of 15th
Sha’ban coincided with the coldest days of
winter, the weather in Qum was so cold that
even water would turn into ice in a few
moments. That night I had gone for a
Majlis, which had been arranged in honour of
our 12th Imam, Imam al-Mahdi
(A.S.). When I returned, the doors of the
Madressa were already locked. The doors of
the Haram were also closed. The night was
also bitterly cold. However, because of my
unfailing habit of reciting Salatu’l Layl
regularly, I stood next to the outside door
of the Haram, and began to pray in the open.
No
sooner had I finished my prayers, I saw that
a pilgrim who was speaking in Turkish had
come to the doors. He asked me when the
Haram would open. I said, ‘it would open in
about one to two hours’. Hearing this, he
said, “Because my friends are waiting for
me, I cannot wait that long. But please do
me a favour. Take these candles for me, and
place them wherever it is dark in the Haram,
and light them on my behalf.” Before I
could say anything, he gave me those candles
and a bag of money as a gift and then he
quickly departed.
I took
the candles and the money he gave me as a
gift. When I counted the money, I saw that
it was 500 Tumans, which was a considerable
sum in those days. I thought for a long
time that why would a pilgrim give such a
large gift to an unknown person like me.
However, later on it dawned on
me that this must be a divine plan by Allah
swt and the barakat of regularly praying
Salatu’l Layl.
That
money helped me solve many of the
difficulties I was facing at the time. And
indeed, this is only one small example of
the benefit of Salatu’l Layl, both in this
world and Insha’Allah in the next.”
Source: “Karamat-e
Ma’nawi” - “Spiritual Miracles” p. 33.translated
AJ/141205
Anecdote 1 -
How
Janabe Fatemah (A.S.) guarantees his release
from the prison: An
incident took place when he was in prison.
Shaykh Bahlool narrates in his own worlds:
“One night, during my 13 year term in prison
(at the hands of the former Shah), I saw my
mother in a dream. She told me, “My dear
son! I have met Fatimah Zahra (A.S.) and she
has guaranteed me that you will be released
soon.” When I woke up, I began to recite
poetry in praise of Lady Fatima (A.S.) and I
also composed several verses about her. In
any case, I saw this dream on Thursday, and
on Saturday, after 13 years, I was
released.”
Anecdote 2 –
How
(possibly) 12th Imam (A.S.) helps
him in time of need:
Shaykh
Bahlool narrates: “Once
I had gone to Mashad and was the guest of a
Sayyid friend of mine. As it happened, his
wife just had twins. One rainy night, my
friend was away for some work and I noticed
that his wife was unwell. I said to her,
“You go to rest and I will look after the
children.”
Being
tired, she went to sleep. In the middle of
the night both the children began to cry. I
noticed that they had soiled themselves. I
went out to the courtyard to bring out the
old diapers from the clothesline, but the
rain had made them completely wet. I came
back inside the house, tore my abaa (cloak)
into 4 pieces and used these to clean up and
change the babies. I carried them around,
resting them on my shoulders, until they
were settled.
When
the adhan for Fajr came, I went
towards the Haram of Imam Ridha (A.S.) to
pray and pay my respect to my Imam (A.S.).
However, on the way to Haram, I was
horrified to see 4 dogs, which appeared in
front of me, blocking my path. I was
shocked and was wondering as what to do
next, when I saw a Sayyid suddenly appeared
from nowhere. He rescued me and drove off
the dogs. Then, before I could say
anything, he turned towards me and said,
“Shaykh, should we not help, assist and
drive away 4 dogs from that person who has
spent the whole night tending to and looking
after our children?” When I looked again,
he had disappeared.
Imam Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini (R.A.)
Teaching us the spirit of Christmas – from
the historical archives
Lebanese writer and
thinker Dr. Hasan AZ-Zain writes, “Imam
Khomeini represents a great current in
history. The name Khomeini is synonymous
with Islamic movement and is something fresh
and everlasting. It is impossible to
separate the ideas of Imam Khomeini and the
movement he generated in view of what is
taking place all over the Islamic world and
beyond. The Imam’s idea and path are alive
and invigorating.”
Imam Khomeini embodied
such noble characteristics, on the basis of
which he generated the tidal wave of the
Islamic revolution and revived in people the
spirit of truth, justice, liberty,
brotherhood, self sacrifice and defence of
righteousness.
Even non-Muslims were
greatly impressed by the dynamic personality
of Imam Khomeini. French physician, Dr.
Louie, who was in his teens in the closing
months of 1978, when the Imam made the Paris
suburb of Nofel Le Shato as his temporary
residence prior to his historic return form
exile to Tehran, says, “That day when my
father returned home from work he angrily
took off his coat, sat on the sofa and said,
“This year I have been stalked by
misfortune. On one hand the company is
facing bankruptcy and on the other, our
suburb has lost its peace.” My mother
consoled him saying, “Don’t worry, it is
said that Ayatollah Khomeini will leave
within some days to Iran, so this place will
become tranquil soon.”
Louie adds, “I was
curious to see this great religious leader
of Iran who was in our neighbourhood. I
joined reporters who were daily converging
on the area and went to the edge of the
orchard where Imam Khomeini was staying. I
saw an old but enlightened man in robes
sitting cross-legged under a shady tree and
talking in cool and calm voice. An aura of
spirituality oozed from him. I did not
realise how quickly that hour passed. I
returned home in state of ecstasy and
enthusiasm on having seen this divine
person.”
Dr Louie continues, “I
told my father that if he wanted to see a
personality who inspired the same feelings
as Jesus (PBUH), than he should come and
hear Ayatollah Khomeini.” My father was at
first indifferent and said there was no
difference since all priests have the same
resemblance. I finally managed to convince
my father and the next day we went together
to see this great spiritual leader from
Iran.
Ayatollah Khomeini’s punctuality very much
impressed me. He came on time and sat at
the usual place where he used to meet the
press. All stood up as a sign of respect to
this great Ayatollah. He soon started
speaking. Translators were on hand to
render his speech into French. Minutes
later, I looked at my father’s face. He was
listening carefully. There was a glint in
his eyes and it was apparent that he was
very much impressed by Ayatollah Khomeini.
A few
days later it was Christmas. We sat for the
celebrations, when the doorbell suddenly
rang. My father went towards the door and I
followed him. A man with a bouquet of
flowers and package of confectionery was
standing at the door. He greeted us
cheerfully and handed to my father the
bouquet and the confectionery, saying,
“This is a present from Ayatollah
Khomeini.” He congratulated us on the
birthday of Jesus (PBUH) and asked
forgiveness in a courteous manner if he had
disturbed our Christmas celebration. My
father thanked the man and stood amazed at
all this love and affection from a Muslim
divine.”
This was a practical
lesson from the Marja’ of the time for all
of us as to how we should conduct ourselves
during this festive season when more than
half the world is celebrating the birthday
of Nabi Isa (A.S.). Should we just say,
‘this festival is not for me, or it does not
relate to me or I am not interested in it,
etc. or should we use this occasion for
Tabligh work and portray to the world how
beautifully Allah swt has described the
sacred birth of Nabi Isa (A.S.) and the
spiritual status of his mother, Janabe
Maryam (A.S.) in Al-Qur’an?’
It
is said that this one incident inspired not
only Dr. Louie but also many others in
France to investigate and conduct research
on Islam and specially shi’ism.
Other Incredible Stories of Ulema
|
Meetings of Ulema with Imam (atfs)