Sheikh Asadullah Mamaghani (; sometimes transliterated Mamqani) was an anti-

royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

jurist A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyzes and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal education in law (a law degree) and often a Lawyer, legal prac ...

and

clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

, who helped theorize the relationship between the Pahlavi state and religious leaders.Memoirs of

Hibatuddin Shahrestani Sayyid Muhammad Ali Hosseini Shahrestani known as Hibatuddin Shahrestani, was an Iraqi Shiite cleric and an Islamic scholar and Mujtahid, Quran exegete. Birth and lineage ''Hibatuddin Shahrestani'' was born in Samarra on the morning of 20 ...

excerpted
by (banned) Iranian

reformist Reformism is a political tendency advocating the reform of an existing system or institution – often a political or religious establishment – as opposed to its abolition and replacement via revolution. Within the socialist movement, ref ...

magazine Mehrnameh an
archived
by the

Wayback Machine The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by Internet Archive, an American nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California. Launched for public access in 2001, the service allows users to go "back in ...

(in

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

Life

Asadullah Mamaghani was born in 1881 in Mamqan, and first learned

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

and

literature in

Tabriz Tabriz (; ) is a city in the Central District (Tabriz County), Central District of Tabriz County, in the East Azerbaijan province, East Azerbaijan province of northwestern Iran. It serves as capital of the province, the county, and the distric ...

. Following the

1908 bombardment of the Majlis The 1908 bombardment of the Majlis of Iran (Persian: به توپ بستن مجلس) took place on 23 June 1908 in Tehran, during the Iranian Constitutional Revolution, when the Persian Cossack forces, commanded by Vladimir Liakhov and other ...

, Mamaghani left for

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 ...

, where he became one of the foremost disciples of

Mohammad-Kazem Khorasani Marja', Ayatullah Sheikh Muhammad Kazim Khurasani (; 1839 – 12 December 1911), commonly known as Akhund Khurasani () was a Shia Islam, Shia jurist and political activist. He is known for using his position as a Marja', Marja as legitimizing ...

, eventually representing the Najafi exiles in Anjuman Sa'adat. At the close of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Mamaghani returned to

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

and was immediately offered a position in the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

, but declined to complete his legal education in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

. He later served as

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

in the Sa'ed cabinet, after which he was appointed to the

Philosophy

Mamaghani is known for his clever and innovative theories of

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 ...

jurisprudence Jurisprudence, also known as theory of law or philosophy of law, is the examination in a general perspective of what law is and what it ought to be. It investigates issues such as the definition of law; legal validity; legal norms and values ...

. He may be the second generation of Muslim intellectuals to pioneer in the field of religion and state in

. Mamaghani challenged conventional wisdom on theories of establishment, arguing that disagreement between the secular power and the (Shia) clerics necessarily leads to popular disaffection and rebellion."شیخ اسدالله ممقانی تئوریسین تعامل روحانیت و دولت" heikh Asadullah Momqani, a theorist of clergy-government relations ''Modern Citizen'' �هروند امروز

References

{{authority control Iranian grand ayatollahs People of the Persian Constitutional Revolution Pupils of Muhammad Kadhim Khorasani