Syed Yousuf Al-Moosavi Al-Safavi (1904 – 29 August 1982) () was a

Kashmir Kashmir ( or ) is the Northwestern Indian subcontinent, northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term ''Kashmir'' denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir P ...

i religious scholar and leader of

Shia Muslims Shia Islam is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political Succession to Muhammad, successor (caliph) and as the spiritual le ...

. He founded the Anjuman-e-Sharie organization.

Early life

Yousuf was born in

Budgam Budgam (), known as Badgom (; ) in Kashmiri, is a town in Budgam district in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, India. In the 2001 census, it was recorded as having a notified area committee,This gives the population of Budgam adga ...

in 1322 Hijri. He completed his education in

Islamic law Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on scriptures of Islam, particularly the Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' refers to immutable, intan ...

from

Najaf Najaf is the capital city of the Najaf Governorate in central Iraq, about 160 km (99 mi) south of Baghdad. Its estimated population in 2024 is about 1.41 million people. It is widely considered amongst the holiest cities of Shia Islam an ...

in Iraq. He is a descendant of Mir Shamsuddin Araki, who came to Kashmir in the 13th century from the town of Arak in Markazi Province, Iran. After the death of his elder brother Aga Syed Ahmed Almosavi, he took over the responsibilities of the Aga family. He established an educational institution for Islamic learning called ''Madras-e Babul Ilem'' ("gateway of knowledge") in Budgam. Madars-e Babul Ilem is the ''Alma mater'' of many in the Kashmir literary field. It is the practice among Shias of Kashmir to go to their religious head ( Mawlawi or Agas) for legal disputes instead of to government courts. Such ''Sharie Adalats'' ("religious courts") determine justice according to Islamic doctrine. During the period of Aga Yousef, ''Sharie Adalats'' became very popular. On a number of occasions the district court sent cases to Yousef's court. During the reign of Maharaja Gulab Singh, Pratab Singh, and Hari Singh, an article was included in the constitution of Kashmir which bestowed this Aga family with a unique honour. According to the article, if any one from the Aga family was required to give testimony in any case then he would not go to the court instead the court would come to his residence and record the testimony. No one from the Aga family should be summoned in the court. The law existed up to the period of Aga Syed Yousuf.

Career

Anjumane Sharie Shian

Aga Syed Yousef established Anjumane Sharie Shian in

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory since 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered by India as a state from 1952 to 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (prin ...

with both religious and political goals. Just as the government receives taxes from the general public, Anjuman Sharie Shian collects ''

khums In Islam, khums ( ) is a tax on Muslims which obligates them to pay one-fifth (20%) of their acquired wealth from the spoils of war and, according to most Muslim jurists, other specified types of income, towards various designated beneficiarie ...

'' and ''

fitr Eid al-Fitr () is the first of the two main festivals in Islam, the other being Eid al-Adha. It falls on the first day of Shawwal, the tenth month of the Islamic calendar. Eid al-Fitr is celebrated by Muslims worldwide because it marks the en ...

'' as

alms Alms (, ) are money, food, or other material goods donated to people living in poverty. Providing alms is often considered an act of Charity (practice), charity. The act of providing alms is called almsgiving. Etymology The word ''alms'' come ...

from the

Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

population to spend on social, educational and economic improvement for the poorer segment of the community. When

Sheikh Abdullah Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah (5 December 1905 – 8 September 1982) was an Indian politician who played a central role in the politics of Jammu and Kashmir. Abdullah was the founding leader and President of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Confer ...

's government passed the Land Reform Act, Aga Syed Yousef said the bill was against the doctrine of Shiaism, which resulted in the government exempting Shias from the bill.

Other accomplishments

Yousuf undertook the construction of

Imambara A Husayniyya () is a building designed specifically for gatherings of Shia Muslim, Shia Muslims for spiritual practice, religious education and commemoration ceremonies, especially the Mourning of Muharram. The Husayniyya is a multipurpose hall ...

Budgam. He widened the Imambara Hassanabad, a smaller replica of the one in Budgam. Yousef also introduced the Shia ''nisab'' ("syllabus") at the

University of Kashmir University of Kashmir (UoK), informally known as Kashmir University (KU), is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public State university (India), state university located in the Hazratbal neighbourhood, on the western side of ...

. He was the representative of Imam Khomeini.

Personal life

Yousuf died on 29 August 1982. After his death, the district hospital of Budgam was named after him. Yousuf was buried in Budgam at the Aga Mehdi shrine. The shrine was constructed by Yousuf himself during his lifetime to honor Sarkar Aga Syed Mehdi, who was also Yousuf's grandfather. His son was

Aga Syed Mohammad Fazlullah Aga Syed Mohammad Fazlullah Al-Moosavi Al-Safavi (26 November 1947 – 29 January 2018) was a Kashmiri Shia Scholar and cleric. He was the son of Aga Syed Yusuf Al-Moosavi Al-Safavi, president of Anjuman Sharie Shiyan (B), a member of the Worl ...

who died on 29 January 2018 in Budgam.

Succession

Aga Syed Yousuf died on 29 August 1982. He was the only patron and president of Anjumane Sharie Shian. Three renowned scholars of "Aga Family" claimed as his successor. Aga Syed Mustafa Moosavi, Aga Syed Mohammad Fazlullah Moosavi are considered three successors of Aga Syed Yousuf. Followers of Aga Syed Yousuf were divided into two factions: "Mustafai" followers of Aga Syed Mustafa Moosavi, "Muhammadi" followers of Aga Syed Mohammad Fazlullah Moosavi. After the deaths of Aga Syed Mustafa Moosavi and Aga Syed Mohammad Fazlullah Moosavi their factions are led by Aga Syed Hassan Budgami and Aga Syed Mohammad Hadi Moosavi respectively.تاریخ کشمیر مطبوعہ از راہ اسلام آرگنائزیشن

References

Notes

External links

Budgam District official website
cites 1955 extension of Imambara Budgam

cites 1982 death of Aga Syed Yusuf Al-Moosavi Al-Safavi * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yusuf Al-Moosavi Al-Safavi, Aga Syed 1904 births 1982 deaths Indian Shia clerics People from Jammu and Kashmir Kashmiri people Indian ayatollahs People from Budgam district