Died 1849 | ||
Muhammad Hasan al-Najafi (Arabic: محمد حسن النجفي, Muḥammad Ḥasan al-Najafī; 1788–1850 AD), author of Jawahir al-kalam fi sharh shara’i‘ al-islam, a 42-volume work on fiqh, was a Shia Marja' and jurist.
Contents
Birth
Though the time of Muhammad Hasan's birth is unclear, Agha Bozorg Tehrani puts his birth at around 1212 lunar Hijri (1797 AD). His father, Shaykh Muhamad Baqir Najafi, was the nephew of Abd Al Rahim Sharif, who emigrated from Iran to Iraq. His family lineage includes numerous religious scholars. His brother, Muhammad Hossein, who was killed as a young man,was considered to be an eminent scholar. Muhammad Hasan had eight sons as well as some daughters. Shaykh Muhammad (known as Homayyed), Shaykh Abdul Hosein, Sheykh Hosein, and Sheykh Hasan were his sons.
Scientific movement and Najaf seminary
The appearance of Muhammad Hasan was the result of the development in which important persons existed.Najaf seminary in was the place as for appearing of Akhbarism at the time Mohammad Hasan lived in Najaf. In fact, after that period with the appearance of Usuli school in shia thought, scholars such as Muhammad Baqir Behbahani, Moḥammad Mahdī Baḥr al-ʿUlūm, Shaykh Jafar Kashef Al Qata developed the Usulism and its foundations. When Kashef Al Qata died, Muhammad Hasan was appointed as the chief of najaf seminary. Many of the scholars and Ulama supported him for this position.He became very famous after Agha sayyed Ibrahim, his Excellency, died. Muhammad Hasan then endorsed the injunctions of the late Ibrahim. However, he became acquainted with students of the late Ibrahim. Shaykh Ansari also was the pupil of Muhammad Hasan and he followed what had been laid down by his master in managing the seminary.
It is said that the intuition of Marjaiite in shia was not centralized until the time of Muhammad Hasan. According to one of his students, in that time he could develop the leadership of Imamis. Sayyed Muhammad Nasirabadi believes that Muhammad Hasan had an esoteric relation with Shia twelfth Imam.
Opinions
Muhammad Hasan tried to continue the style of fiqh thought begun by Allameh Helli. According to that style, they tried to bring substantial changes in tradition but without breaking the tradition.