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Maqam Mahmud

Page Discussion

Maqām Maḥmūd, (Arabic: مقام مَحمود) or the Praiseworthy Station, is a position given by God to the Prophet (s) because of his vigilance. In their interpretations of verse 79 of Qur'an 17, Quranic exegetes have construed the position as that of the Prophet's (s) ability to intercede for people.

The calligraphy of "Maqam Mahmud", verse 79 of Sura Isra

Some Quranic exegetes believe that the "Praiseworthy Station" is the Prophet's (s) ability to monitor all the creatures and his utmost proximity to God, which includes the position of intercession as well. According to part of Ziyara Ashura, Imam al-Husayn (a) also has the Praiseworthy Station.

The Verse

A Praiseworthy Station for the Prophet (s)

Muslim scholars and exegetes believe that the Praiseworthy Station is an exalted position given by God to the Prophet (s)[1] because of his vigilance and his performance of Night Prayers.[2]

There are different accounts of the Praiseworthy Station means, but they all agree that it involves a position of intercession:

  • The position of intercession: many Shi'a[3] and Sunni[4] exegetes of the Quran draw on hadiths to show that the Praiseworthy Station is the position of intercession.[5] For example, there is a hadith to the effect that "maqam Mahmud" in verse 79 of Qur'an 17 is that in which he intercedes for his people, or a hadith from Imam al-Baqir (a) or Imam al-Sadiq (a) in the interpretation of the same verse, according to which the Praiseworthy Station is the position of intercession.[6] A number of Quranic exegetes have referred to the position as the "major intercession."[7] Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Tihrani (d. 1416/1995) suggests that the position of intercession given by God to the Prophet (s) is because of his Praiseworthy Station.[8] In his view, all divine beauty and perfection are in the Praiseworthy Station, which is given to the Prophet (s) in an absolute, unqualified manner; that is, any praise from any person to any person belongs to the Prophet (s).[9]
  • Monitoring the creatures: A number of Quranic exegetes believe that the Praiseworthy Station is one in which the prophet (s) monitors all the creatures, and in which God gives him whatever he wants, including intercession for his people.[10]
  • Utmost proximity to God: In Tafsir-i nimuna, the possibility is proposed that the Praiseworthy Station is the utmost proximity to God, which implies major intercession as well.[11]

The Praiseworthy Station for the Imams (a)

In some Ziyara-texts, Imam Ali (a),[12] Imam al-Husayn (a),[13] and Imam al-Rida (a)[14] are also described as having the Praiseworthy Station. One part of Ziyara Ashura reads: "I beseech Allah … to include me with you in this world and the Hereafter … I also beseech Him to make me attain the praiseworthy status that you enjoy with Allah."[15]

According to Nasir Makarim Shirazi, a Shi'a exegete of the Quran, although Qur'an 17:79 is about the Prophet (s), it can probably include others as well, in the sense that a believer who keeps vigilant at nights and performs Night Prayers can enjoy part of the Praiseworthy Station and intercede for others, to the extent to his or her closeness to God.[16]

Notes

  1. ↑ Ṭūsī, al-Tibyān, vol. 6, p. 510-511; Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, vol. 6, p. 671; Fayḍ al-Kāshānī, Tafsīr al-Ṣāfī, vo. 3, p. 210; Baḥrānī, al-Burhān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, vol. 3, p. 569; ʿAyyāshī, Tafsīr al-ʿAyyāshī, vol. 2, p. 314; Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, vol. 1, p. 178; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 12, p. 232; Jawādī Āmulī, Tafsīr-i tasnīm, vol. 4, p. 285; Shubbar, Tafsīr al-Qur'ān al-karīm, p. 286; Fakhr al-Rāzī, Mafātīḥ al-ghayb, vol. 21, p. 386-387; Qurṭubī, Yawm al-fazaʿ al-akbar, p. 185.
  2. ↑ Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, vol. 6, p. 670; Ṭabrisī, Tafsīr-i jawāmiʾ al-jāmiʾ, vol. 2, p. 341.
  3. ↑ Ṭūsī, al-Tibyān, vol. 6, p. 512; Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, vol. 6, p. 671; Fayḍ al-Kāshānī, Tafsīr al-Ṣāfī, vo. 3, p. 211-212; Baḥrānī, al-Burhān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, vol. 3, p. 570-574; ʿAyyāshī, Tafsīr al-ʿAyyāshī, vol. 2, p. 314; Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, vol. 1, p. 178; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 12, p. 232; Jawādī Āmulī, Tafsīr-i tasnīm, vol. 4, p. 285; Shubbar, Tafsīr al-Qur'ān al-karīm, p. 286.
  4. ↑ Fakhr al-Rāzī, Mafātīḥ al-ghayb, vol. 21, p. 387; Qurṭubī, Yawm al-fazaʿ al-akbar, p. 185.
  5. ↑ Ibn Ḥanbal, al-Musnad, vol. 2, p. 441.
  6. ↑ ʿAyyāshī, Tafsīr al-ʿAyyāshī, vol. 2, p. 314.
  7. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, vol. 1, p. 178; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 12, p. 232; Jawādī Āmulī, Tafsīr-i tasnīm, vol. 4, p. 285.
  8. ↑ Ḥusaynī Tehrānī Imāmshināsī, vol. 9, p. 164.
  9. ↑ Ḥusaynī Tehrānī Imāmshināsī, vol. 9, p. 164.
  10. ↑ Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, vol. 6, p. 671; Muḥyi al-Dīn al-ʿArabī, al-Futūḥāt al-makkiyya, vol. 4, p. 57; Ḥuwayzī, Tafsīr nūr al-thaqalayn, vol. 3, p. 206.
  11. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 12, p. 231-232.
  12. ↑ Ṭūsī, Tahdhīb al-aḥkām, vol. 6, p. 30.
  13. ↑ Majlisī, Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 101, p. 292.
  14. ↑ Ṣadūq, Man lā yaḥḍuruh al-faqīh, vol. 2, p. 605; Ṭūsī, Tahdhīb al-aḥkām, vol. 6, p. 88.
  15. ↑ Majlisī, Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 101, p. 292.
  16. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 12, p. 231-232.

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