Mirza Muhammad al-Akhbari: Difference between revisions

'''Abū Aḥmad Jamāl al-Dīn b. 'Abd l-Nabī b. 'Abd al-Ṣāni' al-Nishābūrī al-Astarābādī''' (Arabic: ابواحمد جمال‌الدین بن عبدالنبی بن عبدالصانع النیشابوری الاسترابادی, 1178/1764-1232/1816), known as '''Mīrzā Muḥammad al-Akhbārī''' (Arabic: میرزا محمد الاَخباری), was a scholar of [[fiqh]] and [[hadith]] and a founder of the [[Akhbari]] approach in [[Shiite]] fiqh.  

He wrote several books to reject the Usuli approach. Because of his opposition to Usulis, including [[al-Wahid al-Bihbahani]], he had to leave Iraq for Tehran. In Tehran, he was welcomed and respected by [[Fath-Ali Shah Qajar]]. It is said that during his stay in Tehran, he displayed some [[kiramat]] (supernatural acts), and thus, he came to be known as “Sayyid Muhammad Sahib Kiramat”. One of his kiramat was his sit-in in the [[Shrine of 'Abd al-'Azim]] until the head of Pavel Tsitsianov (the Russian General) was taken to the Shah, prognosticating the day he was going to die, and the like.

The antagonism of [[Usuli]] scholars, and in particular, a book written by [[Kashif al-Ghita']] against Akhbarism, which was sent to the Shah, led the Shah to withdraw his support for Sayyid Muhammad. Thus, he left Tehran to [[Kadhimiya]]. However, the Usuli scholars did not rest content to this and publicly permitted his murder. Thus, people attacked his house and killed him.

There is a disagreement about Sayyid Muhammad’s lineage. One of his grandchildren, Ibrahim b. Mirza Ahmad, considers him as one of [[Radawi Sadat]] in his preface to his book, ''Iqad al-nabiyya''. According to him, his lineage goes back to Husayn b. Musa al-Mubarqa', a son of [[Imam al-Jawad (a)]]. There are quotes from Diya' al-Muttaqin Mirza Muhammad to the effect that his lineage goes back to Shams al-Din Muhammad al-Juwayni, a minister and the author of ''Diwan''.

His grandfather, 'Abd al-Sani', was from Astarabad, and his father, 'Abd al-Nabi, lived in [[Nishapur]] at first, and then immigrated to India. Mirza Muhammad had a daughter and three sons, Muhammad, Ahmad, and 'Ali. His daughter was [[Mulla Hadi Sabziwari]]’s wife. Despite his fundamental disagreements with the majority of [[mujtahids]], everyone acknowledged his mastery of rational and transmitted disciplines.

Mirza Muhammad accompalished his preliminary educations in India. When he was about 20 years old, he and his family departed to [[Hijaz]] in order to perform [[hajj]] rituals. On the way, he lost his father. After performing the rituals, he went to [[Iraq]] and stayed in [[Najf]] and [[Karbala]] for a while. He finally chose to live in Kadhimiya. In these cities, he studied with prominent scholars, such as [[Muhammad 'Ali Bihbahani]], [[Mirza Mahdi Shahristani]], and [[Shaykh Musa Bahrayni]]. He soon became an expert of rational and transmitted disciplines. In addition to standard religious disciplines, he also studied [[occult sciences]], such as spells (tilismat), “nayranjat” (magical tricks), [[jafr]], and [[a'dad]] (numbers), as well as rhetoric and dialectics.

When the [[fatwa]] of Mirza Muhammad’s murder was issued, a group of people attacked his house and killed him and his son, Ahmad, as well as one of his students. Mirza Muhammad’s corpse was moved around the city by tying a rope to his legs.

During Mirza Muhammad’s stay in Tehran, laypeople spoke about his [[kiramat]] (supernatural acts), and referred to him as “Sahib al-Kiramat” (owner of kiramat). A kirama attributed to him is his prediction of the murder of Pavel Tsitsianov, the Russian General in Caucasus. The story was that he suggested to Fath-Ali Shah that he can have a 40-day sit-in for the death of this Russian General until his head is taken to the Shah. The Qajar government was supposed, instead, to reveal the story and support [[Akhbarism]]. After this agreement, Mirza Muhammad went to the [[Shrine of 'Abd al-'Azim]] in [[Rey]] and sat in a chamber with closed doors for 40 days. After 40 days, the head of the Russian General was taken to Fath-Ali Shah by a cavalry.

There was an anecdote to the effect that a few years before his murder, Mirza Muhammad predicted the year of his death by saying: “صدوق غلب‌، صار تاریخنا” (“صدوق غلب‌” [an honest man was defeated] became my date). The [[Abjad]] number of the phrase “صدوق غلب‌” is 1232 which is the year of his murder. Even some people have claimed that the night before his murder, he told some of his companions that only a few hours remain from his life.

Since Mirza Muhammad had adopted the Akhbari approach, he had serious frictions with Usuli scholars of [[fiqh]], such as [[Shaykh Ja'far al-Najafi]], [[Sayyid 'Ali Tabataba'i]], [[Sayyid Muhammad Baqir Hujjat al-Islam Isfahani]], and [[Muhammad Ibrahim al-Kalbasi]]. The pressures on the part of Usuli scholars forced him to leave Iraq for Iran. He lived in [[Mashhad]] and other cities of Iran for a while, and then he was welcomed by the government of Fath-Ali Shah to live in Tehran for 4 years. His presence in Tehran coincided with the first round of Russo-Persian War (1805-1813). Throughout this time, he was particularly respected by the Qajar Shah. He engaged in writing and teaching, and since some [[kiramat]] from him were widely spread among laypeople, he was known as “Sahib al-Kiramat”.

After pressures by influential figures, the Qajar king withdrew his support for Mirza Muhammad, and thus, he had to return to Iraq. He resided in [[Kadhimiya]]. In his deportation from Iran, the role of some Usuli scholars, particularly Shaykh Ja'far Najafi by writing his book, ''[[Kashf al-ghita']]'', to reproach Mirza Muhammad, should not be neglected.

Although Mirza Muhammad wrote rejections for Sufi beliefs, the author of ''Bustan al-siyaha'' related him to the unknown Sufi sect of “Mahdiyya”. Others have attributed beliefs to him which are close to the mystical beliefs of [[Shaykh Ahmad Ihsa'i]], appealing to Mirza Muhammad’s remarks in his book, ''Wamdat al-nur'', in which he referred to Shaykh Ahmad Ihsa'i as “our master in the science of certainty [that is, mysticism] Ahmad b. Zayn al-Din”.

Mirza Muhammad wrote several books mostly concerned with [[fiqh]], [[kalam]], the defense of [[Akhbari]] teachings, and the rejection of [[Usuli]] doctrines. He wrote over 80 books and essays. According to Ibrahim b. Mirza Ahmad’s bibliography, Mirza Muhammad wrote 30 books, 56 essays, and 2 collections of poems. Most of his work is in Arabic and some are in Persian.

[[fa:میرزا محمد استرآبادی]]