Hujjatiyya Seminary (Qom)

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Hujjatiyya Seminary (Qom)
General Information
FounderSayyid Muhammad Hujjat Kuhkamara'i
Established1945
TypeEducational
LocationQom
Specifications
StatusActive
Area15,000 square meters
FacilitiesMosque • Library


Ḥujjatīyya Seminary (Persian: مَدرسه عِلمیه حُجَّتیه, founded in 1945) is a great school of religious sciences in Qom, which was founded by near the Shrine of Fatima al-Ma'suma (a). The school has over hundred chambers for students as well as a mosque and a library. The library of the school contains about ninety thousand printed books as well as over thousand manuscripts.

Prominent scholars such as Sayyid Muhammad Kazim Shari'atmadari and Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Tabataba'i taught in Hujjatiyya School. Moreover, scholars such as Sayyid Ali Khamenei, 'Abd Allah Jawadi Amuli, and Muhammad Taqi Misbah Yazdi were residents of the school.

In 1979, the school was allotted to non-Iranian seminary students, and is now an educational center affiliated with al-Mustafa International University.

Foundation

Hujjatiyya Seminary School was a personal property of Kamran Mirza, the son of Nasir al-Din Shah Qajar until 1945 when it was purchased by Sayyid Muhammad Hujjat Kuhkamara'i. In a ceremony on the occasion of the birthday anniversary of Fatima al-Zahra (a) on Jumada II 20/June 2, the school was handed in to student of the seminary of Qom.

Inauguration of Hujjatiyya School

Ayatollah Hujjat purchased and annexed some surrounding lands to the school, and then in 1946, the construction of six two-floor buildings, with 126 chambers overall, began. After the demise of Sayyid Muhammad Hujjat, other buildings were constructed inside the school. Today, the area of the school amounts to fifty thousand square meters.

The school is known as “Hujjatiyya” after its founder (Sayyid Muhammad Hujjat). Ayatollah Hujjat is buried in the school. Since its foundation, Hujjatiyya School has been the biggest seminary in Qom. Although other big seminaries have since been built in Qom, it is still known as the great seminary school in Qom. It is located in the center of Qom, near the shrine of Fatima al-Ma'suma. In 2007, it has been registered as a national monument of Iran.

According to Muhammad Husayn Nasir al-Shari'a, the author of the book, Tarikh-i Qom (history of Qom), as a result of the collapse of Reza Shah's monarchy in 1941 and the growth of the seminary of Qom, as well as the migration of Ayatollah Burujirdi to Qom, seminary schools of the city had no rooms for more students. Thus, Sayyid Muhammad Hujjat, a prominent figure of the seminary of Qom, purchased the building and developed it to accommodate seminary students. Another reason for the growth of seminary students in Qom was the limitation of Iran-Iraq relations.

Library

The library of Hujjatiyya School was founded in 1952. The first books of the library consisted of books dedicated to it by its founder (Hujjat) and then books dedicated to it by Ayatollah Burujirdi.

According to a bibliography by Reza Ostadi, the library contained 720 manuscripts in 1975. Based on statistics of 2017, the library contains ninety thousand printed books, 3500 lithographic books, and 1040 manuscripts. A book has been published in two volumes containing a list of manuscripts of the Library of Hujjatiyya School.

Events

There were quarrels between agents of the Pahlavi regime and students of the seminary school of Qom in Hujjatiyya School after demonstrations on Muharram 29, 1398, January 9, 1978 in protest to an insulting article in Ettela'at Newspaper about Imam Khomeini. According to reports, most of the quarrels between military and disciplinary forces and students occurred around Hujjatiyya School and Khan School, which led to the murder and injuries of a number of students.

The mosque of Hujjatiyya School was a place where Sayyid Muhammad Kazim Shari'atmadari taught. It was also the place where Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Tabataba'i taught the exegesis of the Qur'an.

Some seminary figures were resident in Hujjatiyya School, including Sayyid Ali Khamenei, 'Abd Allah Jawadi Amuli, Muhammad Mahdawi Kani, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Sayyid Hadi Khusrowshahi, Muhammad Taqi Misbah Yazdi, and Sayyid Muhammad Husayni Bihishti.

Allotment to Non-Iranian Students

Hujjatiyya School was allotted to non-Iranian students in 1979. It is now a center affiliated with al-Mustafa International University. Since 2009, it has been known as "Mujtama'-i Amuzish-i 'Ali-yi Fiqh" (The Complex of Higher Education of Islamic Jurisprudence).

References