Al-Khasa'is al-Husayniyya (book)
Al-Khaṣā'iṣ al-Ḥusaynīyya (Arabic: اَلْخَصائصُ الْحُسَینیه, literally: Husayni characteristics) is a book in Arabic by Shaykh Ja'far al-Shushtari (d. 1303/1885). In this book, the author provides a biography of Imam al-Husayn (a) and investigates the Imam's characteristics and the Uprising of Ashura. In the end, he recounts Husayni assemblies and their importance, possible problems in such assemblies, and the divine reward for visiting the mausoleum of Imam al-Husayn (a). The original title of the book is Khasa'is al-Husayn wa mazaya al-mazlum (Characteristics of al-Husayn and advantages of the oppressed). The book has been translated into different languages and was reprinted many times.
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| Author | Shaykh Ja'far al-Shushtari |
|---|---|
| Original title | اَلْخَصائصُ الْحُسَینیه |
| Language | Arabic |
| Series | 1 vol. |
| Subject | The biography of Imam al-Husayn (a), Characteristics of Imam and the Uprising of Ashura |
| Published | Different times |
The Author
Shaykh Ja'far Shushtari was a mujtahid and preacher on minbars in Iran in thirteenth/nineteenth and fourteenth/twentieth centuries. Shaykh Ja'far devoted his life to Imam al-Husayn (a) and the tragedy of Ashura. Until his death, he preached and recited rawdas. His most important work is al-Khasa'is al-Husayniyya.[1]
Contents
The title of the book is Khasa'is al-Husayn wa mazaya al-mazlum, which has come to be known as al-Khasa'is al-Husayniyya. In this book, al-Shushtari seeks to enumerate the characteristics of Imam al-Husayn (a); he mentions more than 300 characteristics of the Imam within thirty sections. The first volume of the book has twelve sections, and the remaining eighteen sections in the second volume are not available to us.[2] Al-Shuhstari has, inter alia, pointed out the following characteristics of Imam al-Husayn (a): positions of witnesses from the beginning to the end of the creation, the birth and martyrdom, the day of resurrection, and an account of some miracles and supernatural acts by the Imam (a).
Researches about the Book
There are numerous commentaries on, translations, manuscripts, and publications of the book. This shows the wide impact of the book in all periods.
Commentaries
- Sharh al-khasa'is al-Husayniyya was written by a student of al-Shushtari during his lifetime. He wrote down what he personally heard from the author.
- Sharh al-khasa'is al-Husayniyya written by Shaykh Ja'far b. Muhammad Baqir b. Shushtari, known as Sharaf al-Din (d. 1335 AH).
- Mir'at al-nurayn fi sharh khasa'is al-Husayn (a) written by Muhammad Baqir Faqih Imani (d. 1370 AH).
- Nafa'is dar sharh-i Khasa'is by Mirza Asadullah b. Mahdi Kashani whose surname was Sha'ri.[3]
Manuscripts
There are numerous manuscripts of the book available to us. All of these were written during the author's lifetime:
- A manuscript in Astan Quds Razavi written in 1298/1880-1.
- A Manuscript in Vaziri Library in Yazd with the handwriting of Muhammad Baqir b. Muhammad Jawad in 1299/1881-2.
- A Manuscript in Ayatullah Mar'shi Najafi library in Qom.
- A Manuscript in Malik library in Tehran.[4]
Publications
The first publication: al-Khasa'is was lithographically printed and published in Tehran in 1303/1885-6 six months after the author's death with the efforts of Haj Fadl Allah Mustawfi Nuri based on a manuscript written by Sayyid Muhammad 'Ali Radawi. The 10th edition was in Najaf and dated 1410 AH in Qom by Razi Publishing House.[5]
Notes
References
- Shūshtarī, Jaʿfar. Ashk-i rawān bar amīr-i karawān. Translated to Farsi by Muḥammad Ḥusayn Marʿashī Shahristānī. [n.p]: Dār al-Kitāb, 1380 SH.
- Shūshtarī, Jaʿfar. Wīzhigīhā-yi Imām Ḥusayn (a). Translated to Farsi by ʿAlī Riḍā Karamī Iṣfahānī. Edited by Muḥammad Ḥusaynī Qazwīnī. Qom: Ḥādhiq, 1374 SH.