Kifayat al-Usul () (''Sufficiency of Principles'') is a two-volume book that contains the most notable works of Akhund Khorasani in the field of

Principles of Islamic jurisprudence Principles of Islamic jurisprudence () are traditional methodological principles used in Islamic jurisprudence (''fiqh'') for deriving the rulings of Islamic law (''sharia''). Traditional theory of Islamic jurisprudence elaborates how the scri ...

(''Usul al-Fiqh''). ''Kifayat al-Usul'' is often used in the advanced classes at

Shi'ite 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 to ...

seminaries all-over the world as the main text on the methodology of law.

Author

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

, or Akhund-e Khorasani, was a Twelver Shi'a

Marja' Marja (; plural ''marājiʿ''; ) is a title given to the highest level of Twelver Shia religious cleric, with the authority given by a hawzah (a seminary where Shi'a Muslim scholars are educated) to make legal decisions within the confines of Sh ...

, politician, philosopher, and reformer. He was also one of the main clerical supporters of the Iranian Constitutional Revolution. He is regarded as one of the most important Shia ''

Mujtahid ''Ijtihad'' ( ; ' , ) is an Islamic legal term referring to independent reasoning by an expert in Islamic law, or the thorough exertion of a jurist's mental faculty in finding a solution to a legal question. It is contrasted with '' taqlid'' (i ...

s'' of all times, and the title Akhund (the scholar) is almost exclusively used for him. He started to deliver his lectures at Najaf seminary in 1874 CE, when his mentor Syed Mirza Muhammad Hasan Shirazi left for Samarra and appointed him as his successor. He became a source of emulation in 1895 and He taught for years in Najaf till his death in 1911 CE and trained a significant number of students from different regions of the Shi'ite world. All major Shia jurists in the twentieth century were in some way related to his circle. He was known for his credibility, independent thinking and intellectual rigor. He is known for using his position as a Marja as legitimizing force behind the first democratic revolution of Asia that happened in Iran (1905–1911), where he was the main clerical supporter of the revolution. He believed that the democratic form of government would be the best possible choice in the absence of

Imam Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Salah, Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, ...

and regarded the democratic constitutional revolution a ''

Jihad ''Jihad'' (; ) is an Arabic word that means "exerting", "striving", or "struggling", particularly with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it encompasses almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with God in Islam, God ...

'' (holy war) in which all Muslims had to participate. Along with Mirza Husayn Tehrani and Shaikh Abdallah Mazandarani, he led people against what they called a “state tyranny''”'' and issued fatwas and “sent telegrams to tribal chiefs, prominent national and political leaders, and heads of state in England, France, Germany, and Turkey''”''. When

Mohammad Ali Shah Mohammad Ali Shah Qajar (‎; 21 June 1872 – 5 April 1925) was the sixth shah of the Qajar dynasty and remained the Shah of Iran from 8 January 1907 until being deposed on 16 July 1909. He was furthermore the grandson of Iran’s early mod ...

became king of Iran, Mohammad Kazim Khorasani sent him a “ten-point''”'' instruction including points on protecting Islam, promoting domestic industries and modern science, stopping colonial intervention in Iran “while retaining diplomatic relations''”'', and establishing “justice and equality''”''.Hairi, A.; Murata, S. (1984).
AḴŪND ḴORĀSĀNĪ
. Encyclopædia Irannica.

Concept of the book

''Kifayat al-Usul'' is divided into two volumes. The first volume contains verbal proofs (''al-adella al-lafẓiya''), while the second contains rational proofs (''al-adella al-aqliya'').

Definition of Ijtihad

Akhund Khurasani says that Ijtihad is a process in which jurist “exerts his full capacity in order to arrive at an opinion based on a legitimate legal judgement.” According to Akhund, a jurist is obliged to take whatever time he needs to read and research into a matter before giving a reasonable judgement. He says that if his effort produces no result, the jurist must not give his opinion. In such a case, the jurist should obtain further knowledge. Followers are free to decide whom to emulate, and the most important traits of the Source of Emulation (Marja) are his openness towards contemporary issues and willingness to explore traditional and non-traditional knowledge to address needs of the community.

Ijtihad must be time-sensitive

As science and technology progress, social circumstances and lifestyle also change. Language evolves and new concepts emerge. Akhund Khurasani believed that jurisprudential judgement must be time-sensitive. Also, he should be willing to change his opinions based on the needs of the ever changing society. However, he should not interfere in all aspects of people's life, beyond religious affairs. As for the social issues, he favored those reformers who were ready to think outside the box and consider scholarly inputs from other parts of the world. However, his version of secularism was different from western modernists, it was based on the Shia doctrine of

occultation An occultation is an event that occurs when one object is hidden from the observer by another object that passes between them. The term is often used in astronomy, but can also refer to any situation in which an object in the foreground blocks f ...

of the

twelfth imam Muhammad al-Mahdi () is believed by the Twelver Shia to be the last of the Twelve Imams and the eschatological Mahdi, who will emerge in the end of time to establish peace and justice and redeem Islam. Hasan al-Askari, the eleventh Imam ...

Importance of the book

Developed from '' Makasib'' by

Morteza Ansari Grand Ayatollah Sheikh Murtadha al-Ansari al-Tostari (1781–1864; ) known as Shaykh al-Ta'ifah () was an Arab Islamic scholar who was “generally acknowledged as the most eminent jurist of the time". He is considered to have laid the foundation ...

, ''Kifayat al-Usul'' has replaced ''Mirza Qomi's'' book and ''Qawanin al-usul'' as the main text in the advanced classes at Iranian seminaries. This book published in 1903, established Akhund Khorasani as the supreme authority on Shia theology, where he presented the Shi'ite jurisprudential principles in a more rigorous fashion as a unified theory of jurisprudence. It was recently published for 453rd time. This book is considered the pinnacle of advanced theology and foundation of

Usul al-Fiqh Principles of Islamic jurisprudence () are traditional methodological principles used in Islamic jurisprudence (''fiqh'') for deriving the rulings of Islamic law (''sharia''). Traditional theory of Islamic jurisprudence elaborates how the scri ...

in Shia seminaries of Najaf and Qom. All major Shia jurists following Akhund Khurasani have written commentaries on it, the best known is written by Ayatullah al-Khoei. This book is one of the study resources for the

Assembly of Experts The Assembly of Experts (), also translated as the Assembly of Experts of the Leadership or as the Council of Experts, is the deliberative body empowered to appoint the Supreme Leader of Iran. All directly elected members must first be vetted ...

exam.

References

Bibliography

* *
AḴŪND ḴORĀSĀNĪ

Encyclopædia Iranica ''Encyclopædia Iranica'' is a project whose goal is to create a comprehensive and authoritative English-language encyclopedia about the history, culture, and civilization of Iranian peoples from prehistory to modern times. Scope The ''Encyc ...