A great jurisprudent passes away

With the passing away of Ayatollah Hashemi Sharoudi, the Islamic Republic of Iran lost a revolutionary, scientific and political figure. Ayatollah Seyyed Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi was a multidimensional personality and assumed various responsibilities in his lifetime. The last responsibility which, despite physical weakness, he ably assumed was the head of the Expediency Council.

Ayatollah Shahroudi was born in Karbala in 1948 in a religious family of the Prophet's descendants taking its lineage from Imam Hussein (PBUH). Ayatollah Shahroudi’s grandfather was a shoemaker. He left Iran for Iraq to live adjacent to the holy shrines of the infallible Imams in Iraq. His son, Seyyed Ali - father of Mahmoud – was engaged in this profession as well. After a while, Seyyed Ali, besides working as a shoemaker, attended the religious courses of seminaries and became the first interpreter of the noble Qur'an in that period in the seminary of Najaf. He penned down jurisprudence and principles of jurisprudence taught by Ayatollah Khoyi in book form under the heading, “Derasat fil Osoul” and “Mohazarat fil Fiqh al-Jafari.

Ayatollah Shahroudi's father was not absent from the class even a single day and he wrote all of Ayatollah Khoyi's views. But his life was short and died at the age of 40 when Seyyed Mahmoud was just 8 years old. Seyyed Mahmoud followed his father's path in studying Islamic sciences and, owing to his bright talent and intelligence, at the age of twenty he studied under great sources of emulation such as Imam Khomeini (God's mercy upon him) and Ayatollah Khoyi in Najaf.  Ayatollah Hashemi Shahroudi was one of the main students of the great Shia scholar and revolutionary cleric, martyr Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Baqer Sadr. Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Baqer Sadr had said about his young student, Seyyed Mahmoud Shahroudi: "He is one of the scholars in whom Islam and Muslims have pinned hope. I ask God to protect him as a treasure for Islam."

The young disciple of martyr Ayatollah Sadr gradually became one of his most famous students, and their relationship was that of father and son. Ayatollah Hashemi Shahroudi says: "The students of Ayatollah Sadr really felt that he was closer to them and more effective in their lives and more compassionate to them than their father." Saddam's Ba'athist regime considered Seyyed Mohammad Baqer Sadr as one of the serious enemies to his rule. So, they prosecuted him and his disciples. In this regard, the officials of the regime's intelligence arrested some students of Seyyed Mohammad Baqer Sadr including Seyyed Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi by assaulting the seminary of Najaf. During 40 days that Seyyed Mahmoud Shahroudi was in jail he was exposed to countless tortures the traces of which had remained on his hands.

Being released from prison, Seyyed Mahmoud returned to the class of his teacher to continue benefitting from that bright scholar. In those days, he represented Ayatollah Sadr in the "Islamic Bank Conference" in Jeddah, where his economic comments were taken into consideration by representatives of Islamic countries. In those years, the struggles of the Iranian people were intensified under the leadership of Imam Khomeini against the oppressive regime of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and the Imam had to leave Najaf for Paris. At that time Martyr Sadr wrote a letter to Imam Khomeini in Paris and voiced his support for the struggle of Iranian people led by him against the dictatorial regime of Mohammad Reza.

After the victory of the Islamic Revolution, Seyyed Mahmoud along with Ayatollah Sadr’s disciples held a rally out of Ayatollah Khoyi's Khazra Mosque in support of Imam Khomeini’s movement when the Ba'athist forces found the factor behind the march and in a threatening call to Ayatollah Sadr’s house announced that they would arrest Seyyed Mahmoud. Hence, he left for Kuwait and in March, 1979 he arrived in Iran. Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi was fully aware of the enmity of Saddam's regime to Ayatollah Mohammad Baqer Sadr and knew that they would never leave them at peace; but his efforts to take his teacher out of Iraq did not come to a conclusion.

 Although Ayatollah Hashemi Shahroudi could not bring his master Seyyed Mohammad Baqer Sadr to Iran, he continued to be in touch with him in any possible means. A regular telephone line was always functioning between the master and his student, and Shahroudi family conveyed the letters of these two figures several times before the outbreak of the 8-year war. Ayatollah Shahroudi was not only the general representative of Ayatollah Sadr in Iran, but also a channel of connection between Imam Khomeini and the Ayatollahs in Najaf especially Ayatollah Mohammad Baqer Sadr. This connection was such that Ayatollah Shahroudi said: "I was the only one to whom Ayatollah Sadr gave his hand-written permission of Ijtihad but I did not disclose it anywhere."

Upon arrival in Iran, Ayatollah Hashemi Shahroudi was 30 years old and soon officially attained the status of Ijtihad by attending the classes of great teachers such as Imam Khomeini (God's mercy upon him). Imam Khomeini told him: "Prefer the teaching at Qom Seminary to anything else, and study jurisprudential issues, especially pertaining to the revival of jurisprudence of governance based on reasoning and accurate conclusion according to the Jawaheri jurisprudence." Before being appointed as the head of the judiciary, he had a number of students in Qom who continued the circle later on.

 Ayatollah Shahroudi continued teaching and struggle against Saddam's regime. After his arrival in Iran, he set up the "Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq" along with some Iraqi and Iranian combatants who had been expelled from Iraq. Ayatollah Shahroudi was the head of the council for three months and then he became the spokesman of the establishment for 30 months. His presence in the Supreme Council prompted the Ba'athist regime to react and deal with his family in Iraq. As a result, three of his brothers, Hadi, Mostafa and Mohsen, were arrested and subsequently martyred by Saddam's brutal regime.

 During 1980s, Ayatollah Shahroudi intensified his struggles against the despotic regime of Saddam in the aftermath of the martyrdom of his teacher, Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Baqer Sadr. Ayatollah Shahroudi gradually focused on jurisprudential sciences and in 1980, he assumed the chairmanship of an institution called "Encyclopedia of Islamic Jurisprudence on the School of the Ahl al-Bayt" by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Khamenei. Ayatollah Khamenei addressing Ayatollah Shahroudi, wrote: "Considering that you are a great personality in science and practice and, thank God, have a high position in jurisprudence and related sciences; I am well aware that you are the best choice for taking this measure and entrust to you the establishment and management of an institute for the encyclopedia.”

Ayatollah Shahrudi was appointed in January 1995 by Ayatollah Khamenei as a member of the Guardian Council. In another decree by Ayatollah Khamenei, Ayatollah Shahroudi was appointed as head of the judiciary on July 23, 1999. He assumed the responsibility until 2009. Ayatollah Hashemi Shahroudi also was a member of the Assembly of Experts and the chairman of the Expediency Council. Most of Iran's political groups and dignitaries recognized Ayatollah Hashemi Shahroudi for his correct and timely political stances and an outstanding personality with good command in Islamic sciences. Once again we express condolence on the passing away of this great scholar.

FK/RM/SS