جمعه: 1403/01/10
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Message of Shia Grand Ayatollah Saafi Golpaygani for the Seminar on the renowned Scholars of the Madrasa on Jurisprudence and Scholastic Theology of Lucknow with focus on the commemoration of Allama Sayyid Dildar Ali Ghufran Ma’ab (r.a.) / India – 1440 H.
Message of Grand Ayatollah for the Seminar on the Scholars of Lucknow Seminary.

In the name of Allah, the All-Beneficent, the All-Merciful

 

Imam Ali Naqi Al-Hadi (peace be upon him) said:

{لَولا مَن یَبقی بَعد غیبةِ قائِمنا عَلیه‌‌السلام مِن العُلَماء الدَّاعینَ إلیهِ وَ الدَّالِّین عَلیه وَ الذَّابِّین عَن دِینه ... لَما بَقِی أحدٌ إلّا ارتدّ عَن دینِ الله}

As Salaamo Alaikum Wa Rehmatullah

With regards and greetings for the honorable clerics, scholars and elite students, especially the respected Indian scholars and clerics who have attended this significant gathering., I would like to thank and acknowledge the efforts of the organizers of this devotional seminar which shall serve as the introducer of the true conditions of the Shia knowledge seminaries.

 

His holiness Imam Hadi (peace be upon him) said:

“If during the age of our Qayem’s (peace be upon him) occultation, there isn’t any religious cleric who invites towards his holiness and guides the people, and defends his religion, people will turn against the divine religion and become apostate”.

It means the survival of religion and the survival of people on the path of religion is possible only through the existence of such clerics. No description is better than this description. Protection of the clear religion, fight against heresies and heretics, invitation towards good deeds and support of the weak and oppressed, these are the attributes which every cleric, jurisprudent and religious head must manifest in him.

 

During the long occultation period of Allah’s final Argument, Imam Mahdi (may the entire universe be sacrificed for him), when the enemies of the Shia community are planning and plotting against them in different ways, with the intention of implementing their wicked motives by establishing and propagating misguiding and misleading sects, only a valiant cleric and an aware religious head who can stand like a firm barrier on their path and guide the people to the right path, can deliver them from deviance and misguidance of faith; may Allah (s.w.t.) reward them for their efforts with the best of rewards and remunerations.

The great Indian nation has been a cradle of knowledge for several years. It has nurtured hundreds of great clerics, genius scholars and devotees. The religious seminaries which exist in the big cities of India like Lucknow, Hyderabad, Faizabad, Banaras, Delhi, Jaunpur, Allahabad, Mumbai, Calcutta etc. have stood witness to the presence of valuable clerics and scholars, each one of them being a source of abundant good.

 

One of the significant families of this country is the family of Ghufran-Ma’ab which has nurtured great clerics through generations and the Indian Shias have immensely benefitted from the intellectual and spiritual works of the house of knowledge and jurisprudence of Ghufran Ma’aab.

One of the brave and aware clerics of this family was the founder of the Madrasa of jurisprudence and scholastic theology of Lucknow, India, Late Allama Sayyid Dildar Ali Ghufran Ma’aab (may Allah elevate his position). He belonged to the lineage of his holiness, Imam Ali Naqi Al-Hadi (peace be upon him) and was rightly an example of the holy narration quoted from his honorable great grandfather.

They invited people towards the divine religion and the Sharia of the Seal of Prophets (peace be upon him and his progeny) and the enlightening teachings of the Holy Progeny (peace be upon them) and in this path, they fought against heresies and misguidance, wrote books in rejection of the misguiding sects and it was through these activities that Shia community became strong in India and experienced a remarkable advancement.

Among the students who graduated from his Madrasa was the likes of Late Allama Mir Hamid Husain (may Allah elevate his rank) who is the author of the great book Abaqaat al-Anwar. They were all a source of pride and honor for the Islamic world and their precious writings, significant compilations and the works of their students in different fields of Islamic sciences, are of immense benefit for the teachers in religious seminaries and a source of research for students.

May Allah (s.w.t.) further elevate the ranks of this great religious authority and his sons and their family, who have proved to be the shining stars and guiding light of knowledge, action, endeavor and religious authority, and may He provide us the opportunity to perform our duty which is to protect the invaluable heritage of Shias, and the spiritual and intellectual treasures of our clerics and jurisprudents, and guide us to the path of honoring these great personalities.

In conclusion, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude towards the organizers of this seminar and hope that this seminar organized to commemorate and honor knowledge and jurisprudence, becomes a source of pleasure for the Guardian of Time, Imam Mahdi (may Allah hasten his reappearance).

Was Salaamo Alaikum Wa Rehmatullahi Wa Barakatuh.

 

Lotfullah Saafi

Jamadi Al-Thaniya, 1440 Hijri.

 

Friday / 29 March / 2024