Muhammad Mahdi Shams al-Din: Difference between revisions

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[[File:محمد مهدی شمس الدین.jpg|250px|thumbnail|right|Muhammad Mahdi Shams al-Din]]

'''Muḥammad Maḥdī Shams al-Dīn''' (Arabic:محمد مهدی شمس الدین) (b.[[Najaf]] 1936 – d. Beirut 2001) was a religious scholar, political theoretician and the chairman of the [[Supreme Islamic Shi'a Council in Lebanon]]. He began his scientific and political activities in Najaf under [[Al-Sayyid Muhsin al-Hakim]] and [[Ayatullah Khu'i]]. The cooperation with [[Sayyid Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr]] and [[Muhammad Husayn Fadl Allah]] in founding [[Hizb al-Da'wa]] and the [[al-Adwa' al-Islamiyya|al-Adwa' magazine]] was among his most important political activities. In 1975, Shams al-Din accepted the deputyship of the Supreme Islamic Shi'a Council whose director was [[Imam Musa al-Sadr]]. After Imam Musa al-Sadr disappeared in 1978, Muhammad Mahdi Shams al-Din accepted the chairman position of this Council and in 1993, he was officially elected as the director of the Supreme Islamic Shi'a Council in Lebanon.

Establishment of [[Hizbullah of Lebanon]] and especially bloody fights between [[Amal movement]] and Hizbullah had a deep influence on his political thought and manner. Following those fights, he issued the theory of [[Wilaya]] of Umma upon themselves against the theory of [[Wilaya of Faqih]]. He had many works including [[Nizam al-hukm wa al-idara fi al-Islam]] and Ansar al-Husayn.

Shams al-Din’s father, ‘Abd al-Karim was among the scholars of Lebanon who educated and taught in Najaf for years. Muhammad Mahdi lived 33 years of his life in Iraq when he had cultural, social and political activities before Sayyid Muhsin Hakim and Sayyid Abu al-Qasim Khu’i in addition to learning religious sciences.

In Najaf, Shams al-Din helped Muhammad Rida Muzaffar, Sayyid Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr and Muhammad Husayn Fadl Allah establish al-Adwa magazine.

In 1957, he assisted Sayyid Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr in establishment of Hizb al-Da’wa. Many Lebanese students who studied in the seminary of Najaf joined this party under the influence of Shams al-Din and his compatriot Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Fadl Allah and after their return to Lebanon, most of them became the founder of political activities especially Hizbullah.

In 1969, Shams al-Din returned to Lebanon and became the director of the cultural charity society which was established in 1966. He was busy with cultural, intellectual and propagation activities until 1975.

=== The Supreme Islamic Shia Council ===

In 1975, he accepted the membership in the Supreme Islamic Shia Council of Lebanon directed by Imam Musa Sadr and became his deputy. Since 1978, when Imam Musa Sadr disappeared in his travel to Libya, Shams al-Din became the director of this council in practice. In 1993, 15 years after disappearing Imam Musa Sadr, once again Imam Musa Sadr was elected as the honorary director and Shams al-Din was officially elected as the director of the Supreme Islamic Shia Council of Lebanon.

In 1954, Shams al-Din wrote the book Nizam al-hukm wa al-idara fi al-Islam to answer the secular movement and specifically to the book of ‘Abd al-Razzaq (al-Islam wa usul al-hukm) which was published twenty years before. He has mentioned his goal from writing the book as proving the existence of a model and system of government in Islam and rejection of separation between Islam and government.

After the victory of the Islamic revolution in Iran, regardless of supporting the revolution and its leadership, Shams al-Din insisted on the identity independence of the Shia of Lebanon and regarding the tribal and religious variety in Lebanon, prohibited political Shia forces from imitating and repeating the experience of the Islamic republic in Lebanon.

Establishment of Hizbullah in 1982 which led to division of some Iran-oriented Islamist members of Amal movement and especially bloody fights between the two groups in 1988 and 1989 had great influences on the thought and political manner of Shams al-Din.

Shams al-Din was deeply devoted to Amal movement which was somehow a non-ideological, moderate and nationalist organization; so, he was not happy with Iran’s support from Hizbullah which sought a political-revolutionary transnational project and also the separation of Amal movement. Following the fights between Hizbullah and Amal, Shams al-Din proposed the theory of Wilaya of Umma upon themselves against the theory of Wilaya of Fqih. After proposing his theory, he changed his mind regarding his negative position he had proposed about the democracy he mentioned in his book Nizam al-hukm wa al-idara fi al-Islam and in the preface of the new edition of the book in 1990, he declared that in the first edition, he believed in the opposition of democracy with Islam but he now believes that during the Occultation of the Infallible Imam (a), democracy is the criterion of validity of the political system and exertion of people’s will is based on the existence of democratic mechanisms.

In his different travels to Arab countries in late 1990s, Shams al-Din called Arab Shia to mix with their Arab societies and moreover, made efforts to bring peace between Arab political governments and their opposition Islamist movements.

He supported the fatwa of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution in prohibition of Qame-zani.

In addition to articles, speeches and Friday prayer speeches, there are some works left from him including the following:

* Nizam al-hukm wa al-idara fi al-Islam

* Al-Ihtikar fi al-shari’at al-islamiyya

* Al-Masa’il al-haraja fi fiqh al-mar’a

* Al-Hiwar sabil al-ta’ayush (nuduwat al-fikr al-mu’asir)

* Matarat fi al-fikr al-madi wa al-fikr al-dini

* Thawrat al-Husayn fi al-wujdan al-sha’bi

* Thawrat al-Husayn, zurufuha al-ijtima’iyya wa atharuha al-insaniyya

* Ansar al-Husayn

* Al-Husayn qissat hayatah wa thawrah

* Al-‘Ilmaniyya

* Darasat fi Nahj al-balagha

* Muhadirat fi al-tarikh al-Islami

* Darasa ‘an mawsu’a al-fiqh al-Islami

* Bayn al-Jahiliyya wa al-Islam

* Al-Islam wa tanzim al-usra (ma’a akhirin)

* Al-Ghadir – darasa tahliliyya ijtima’iyya siyasiyya li mas’alat al-hukm al-Islami ba’d wafat al-Rasul

* Sharh ‘ahd al-ushtur

* Waqi’a Karbala fi wijdan al-sha’b

* ‘Aqa’id al-Shi’at al-Imamiyya

* Al-Wasaya

* Al-Tatbi’ bayn darurat al-anzima wa khiyarat al-ummah

* Al-Jihad

* Harakat al-tarikh ‘ind al-Imam Ali (a)

* Al-Tajrid fi al-fikr al-Islami

* Risalat al-huquq lil Imam Zayn al-‘Abidin (a)

* Tafsir ayat al-sawm

* Ma’a al-Imam al-Rida (a)

* Libnan al-kiyan wa l-dawr

* Al-Umma wa al-dawla wa al-harakat al-Islamiyyah

* Al-Muqawama fi al-khitab al-fiqhi al-siyasi

* Al-Ijtihad wa al-taqlid

* Fiqh al-‘unf al-musallah fi al-Islam

He passed away on January 10, 2001 at the age of 67 and was buried in the mosque of Imam al-Sadiq (a) he himself had established in Beirut. His grave is at the end of the entrance hall of the mosque.