Mohammad Hossein Esheni or Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani (1868 – May 5, 1956) was an

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

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 ...

cleric and experienced Faqih.

‌Birth

''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' was born around 1868 (1285 AH) in Qudejan village of Cheshmeh Sar Rural District in the Central District of Khansar County, Isfahan Province,

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 ...

. He grew up in a sagacious and religious family and spent his childhood and adolescence under the tutelage of a sage pious father and a religious mother. His father ''Haaj Mulla Mohammad'' and his grandfather ''Haaj Mulla Ali'' were both Islamic scholars and ascetics of their time. ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' lived in the village of Eshen for many years to propagate the rules and religion of Islam, and for this reason, he became known as "Esheni".

Educations

''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'', who had heard the fame of the Isfahan seminary and its ancient background many times, went to

Isfahan Isfahan or Esfahan ( ) is a city in the Central District (Isfahan County), Central District of Isfahan County, Isfahan province, Iran. It is the capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is located south of Tehran. The city ...

and benefited greatly from the presence of famous men and scientists of this city. Among his professors in Isfahan are ''Mirza Abolma'ali Kalbasi'', ''Mir Seyyed Mohammad Taghi Modarres'', ''Mohammad Taghi Agha Najafi'' and ''Seyyed Mohammad Bagher Dorchehie''. ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'', who was a close friend and like-minded of

Hossein Borujerdi Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Hossein Ali Tabatabaei Borujerdi ( Luri/; 23 March 1875 – 30 March 1961) was a leading Iranian Shia Marja' in Iran from approximately 1947 to his death in 1961. He was a major proponent for the elimination of Baha'is in I ...

and Rahim Arbab, also used the presence of Akhund Mullah Mohammad Kashani and possibly the presence of ''Jahangir Khan Ghashghaei''. ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'', after using the presence of the famous

jurists 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 legal practition ...

and sages of Isfahan, went to

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

and became acquainted with the opinions and views of the Islamic jurists and scholars of that land. At that time, there were famous scholars and teachers in

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 ...

such as Muhammad Kadhim Khorasani,

Mohammed Kazem Yazdi Mohammed Kazem Tabataba'i Yazdi (; 1831–1919) was a Twelver Shia Marja' based in Najaf, most famous for compiling a collection of religious rulings, al-Urwa al-wuthqa. Constitutional Revolution He was apolitical, and therefore during the Iran ...

, Fethullah Qa'ravi Isfahani and the like, and ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' probably studied under them, especially Muhammad Kadhim Khorasani and

Friends and contemporaries

Among his contemporaries, friends and close associates, it can be mentioned Hossein Ali Tababataei Borujerdi and Haj Agha Rahim Arbab. They got acquainted with each other in the courses of professors such as ''Mirza Abolma'ali Kalbasi'', ''Seyyed Mohammad Bagher Dorchehie'', ''Mir Seyyed Mohammad Taghi Modarres'', and other professors of Isfahan at that time. They are in touch with each other for the rest of their lives.

Return to Iran

After returning from

, at the request of his close friend and companionship Hossein Ali Tababataei Borujerdi, ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' went to the village of Eshen in the northwest of

Najafabad County Najafabad County () is in Isfahan province, Isfahan province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Najafabad. History After the 2006 National Census, the village of Jowzdan was elevated to the status of a city. Demographics Population At the t ...

to preach and promote the rules of

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

. He has been living in Eshen village for many years and that is why he is also known as "Esheni". During this period ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' 's son ''

Nur al-Din Nur al-Din () is a male Arabic given name, translating to "light of Faith", ''nūr'' meaning "light" and ''dīn'' meaning "religion". More recently, the name has also been used as a surname. There are many Romanized spelling variants of the name. T ...

'' was born, and he later became known as "Esheni" too. ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' also went to

Golpayegan Golpayegan () is a city in the Central District of Golpayegan County, Isfahan, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. The city is northwest of Isfahan and southeast of Arak, at an altitude of 1,830 m. Its temperat ...

for some time during the reign of

Reza Shah Reza Shah Pahlavi born Reza Khan (15 March 1878 – 26 July 1944) was shah of Iran from 1925 to 1941 and founder of the roughly 53 years old Pahlavi dynasty. Originally a military officer, he became a politician, serving as minister of war an ...

and settled in his hometown of Qudejan and received the privilege of a notary public there.

Teaching and disciples

The late ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'', after living in the village of Eshen for many years, finally after 1946 (1365 AH) in the last ten years of his life, at the insistence of some scholars as well as some benefactors of Isfahan, such as the late ''Rahimzadeh'', he returned to Isfahan and taught at the ''Darb-e-Kushk seminary''. ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' teaching the highest level Islamic seminary courses there and some scholars benefited from his presence. Among the elders who attended his class were ''Mir Seyyed Hassan Modarres Hashemi Esfahani'' (''the great contemporary scholar of Isfahan'') and his own son '' Nur al-Din Esheni'' (''famous Faqih, jurist, preacher and orator''). The late ''Mir Seyyed Hassan Modarres Hashemi Esfahani'' said that ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' 's lesson was deep and research-oriented and the best scholars of the time participated in that lesson. ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'', among his disciples, paid special attention to ''Mir Seyyed Hassan Modarres Hashemi Esfahani'' and always praised him and his talent and strength of memory. ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' had a great skill in

Islamic jurisprudence ''Fiqh'' (; ) is the term for Islamic jurisprudence.Fiqh
Encyclopædia Britannica ''Fiqh'' is of ...

and its principles and some scholars considered him to be the most learned

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 ...

of Isfahan and a first-rate

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 ...

of the city. The late ''Agha Sadr Kuhpaei'' (''Islamic sage and philosopher'') acknowledged ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' 's jurisprudence. The late ''Seyyed Mosleh al-Din Mahdavi'' (''famous researcher and historian'') praised ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' as: "the learned jurist, the perfect scholar and the perfect

who had the mastery of religion and science".

Children

''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' left a total of five children with his two wives. From the first wife, two sons and a daughter: Mr. ''

'', Mr. ''Jalal'' and Ms. ''Fatemeh'', and from the second wife, a son and a daughter: Mr. ''Mahdi'' and Ms. ''Taaj''. The late ''Nur al-Din Esheni'' was the eldest son of ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' and his successor in science and practice, and the inheritor of his asceticism and piety.

Death

''Mohammad Hossein Esheni'' died on May 5, 1956 (

Ramadan Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. It is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting (''Fasting in Islam, sawm''), communal prayer (salah), reflection, and community. It is also the month in which the Quran is believed ...

24, 1375 AH) and was buried next day in "Kalbasi

Tekyeh In Iran, the word takyeh () is mostly used as a synonym of husayniyya (or ''hoseyniyeh'' in Iranian Persian; building where Shia Muslims gather to mourn the death of Husayn ibn Ali in the month of Muharram), although some takyehs also include ...

" (''Tomb of his master Mirza Abolma'ali Kalbasi'') in

Takht-e Foulad The Takht-e Foulad (), also known as Lissanul Arz, is an historical, predominately Islamic, cemetery located in Esfahan, in the province of Isfahan, Iran. It is a large funerary complex that includes several historic mausoleums, mosques, tekyeh ...

cemetery in

. Ashaniha-kalbasi.jpg, Tombstones of ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' and his son '' Nur al-Din Esheni'' Ghabre-mohammadhossein-ashani.jpg, Engraving of the tombstone of ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' Tekiye kalbasi.jpg, Tomb of ''Mohammad Hossein Esheni Qudejani'' in the ''Kalbasi

'' Tekiye-kalbasi.jpg, The entrance of the ''Kalbasi

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Esheni Qudejani, Mohammad Hossein 1868 births 1956 deaths People from Khansar People from Golpayegan Iranian Shia clerics Iranian Shia scholars of Islam Pupils of Muhammad Kadhim Khorasani Burials at Takht-e Foulad