Ayatollah Alozma Jannaati was born in Shahrud in the year 1311 A.H. (1932 A.D.). He was 6 years of age when his noble father sent him to school to learn the Qoran and Farsi literature. At 11 he entered the religious seminary of Shahrud where he finished preliminary levels as well as part of the graduate level (known as Sat-h) within four years. He was in his 18 when he finished the higher levels of Jurisprudence and Osul (principles) along with Sabzevaari's 'Sharhe Manzume' (Commentary on a Philosophical Poem) whereupon he migrated to Mashhad and benefited profusely from teachers of the city's religious Seminary.
After sometimes, He traveled to Qom where he attended Khaarej lectures on Jurisprudence and Osul (Principles) given, respectively by Ayatollah Brujerdi and Ayatollah Khomeyni. He later traveled to the holy city of Najaf and settled there in the theological center for 25 years during which he benefited from many prominent scholars such as Ayatollah Shahrudi, Ayatollah Hakim, Ayatollah Shiraazi, Ayatollah Helli, Ayatollah Zanjaani, and Ayatollah Khoei.
Parallel to learning he also started teaching (Rasaael) and 'Sharhe Loma' and writing on various subjects. He taught the advanced graduate level (Rasaael, Makaaseb and Kefaaye) three times within eleven years at Jameat Al-Najaf. In recent years of his stay in Najaf, Ayatollah Alozma Jannaati was also teaching Osul (principles) at the Khaarej level in late Akhund Khorasani's madrese (religious school). When in Najaf, he wrote several books including a summary of Ayatollah Shahrudi lectures on Jurisprudence. He wrote this book in five volumes and presented it to the seekers of Jurisprudential knowledge.
On his return to Qom in 1979, he continued, as ever Backe, teaching, compiling books, and writing scientific articles. He has been teaching Jurisprudence and Osul (Principles) at the post graduate level (Khaarej) in the current traditional manner and also Jurisprudence, Osul (Principles), Qoran and Hadith sciences in a comparative method.
He is the first scientific figure who has taught Jurisprudence, Osul (principles), Hadith and Qoran sciences in a comparative manner from the view points of 22 religions of 138 religions which exist in the history of Islamic Jurisprudence (Emamiye, Hanafiye, Malekiye, Shafeiye, Hanbaliye, Zeidiye, Ebaziye, Zaheriye, Ozaiye, Thoriye, Leythiye, Rahoviye, Nakhaiye, Tamimiye, Tabariye, Jaberiye, Kalbiye, Shobramiye, Ebne Abi Leyla, Zohariye, Oyayniye and Jorayhiye).
His lectures have been gathered into collections and printed under various titles such as comparative Jurisprudence, sources of Ejtehad, periods of Ejtehad, periods of Jurisprudence and Haj rituals in view of Islamic religions and some of his lectures on Hadith and Qoran sciences are being made ready for printing. His works and scientific opinions have been published in various languages and into dozens of books and hundreds of articles, lectures and interviews in and out of the country.
Ayatollah Alozma Jannaati has thus far given lectures in many scientific forums and congresses held in and out of Iran. He has had many interviews with indoor and foreign newspapers and magazines in which he has elaborated his views, opinions and fatwas (edicts or rulings) in detail. To mention a few, regardless of cities and universities of Iran, he has presented articles and speeches in Birmingham university (Congress on the position of intellect and the holy scriptures), Istanbul university (Symposium on Shia in the past and in the present), Damascus university (congress on comparative Jurisprudence and Jurisprudential methods), Mecca and Medina (Congress on Islamic religions and Haj) and Qomatiya (congress on Islamic theological issues).
Many newspapers, magazines and periodicals in Iran, Pakistan, India, France, England and U.S. have published His Eminence's fatwas (edicts or rulings) and opinions. Some of them are named as under:
Keyhan, Magazines and daily newspapers, Ettelaat, Iran, Jomhuriye Eslami, Abraar, Qods, Resaalat, Besat, Salaam, Jahan Eslam, Keyhan Havaaei, Hamshahri, Tehran Times, Keyhan Andishe, Keyhan Farhangi, Zan, Mirase Javidan, Zaer, Mighat Haj, Mashhad Seminary Thought, Farzaane, Nure Elm, Tebyan, Adabestaan, Kowthar, Peyke Yaran, Mahan, Iran Javan, Sorush, Al-Adl, Sawt Al-Eslam, Thaqafa Al-Eslamiya, Fekr Al-Eslami, Al-Towhid, Moballegh Al-Resali, etc.
He has made constant researches on several new issues and has elaborated them with regards to prevailing circumstance, norms and need of the society and on the basis of Jurisprudential principles and basic inference elements. The research works have been delivered and presented in different scientific gatherings, cultural and press centers. This very outstanding feature of His Eminence, has given him a high place among prominent scholars in Najaf and Qom. With his profound thoughts he has been and is of a great help to researchers in the field of Jurisprudence.
Ayatollah Alozma Jannaati has many new ideas some of which are: The role of time and place in Jurisprudence, women and permissibility of holding judicial positions, women and permissibility of holding the position of a religious authority and all other political and social duties, the intrinsic cleanness of man, Permissibility of Eating Meat of Animals Slaughtered by People of the Book, permissibility of mighat (fixed place for Ehram) from Adna Al-Hel, permissibility of statuary as an art, indeterminacy in the age of girls' puberty (the only sign being the monthly period), and also his opinions on music, art and Hejab (women's dress).
In his Resaale (book containing practical laws) which consists of more than 3000 issues, he has given frank and clear-cut fatwas on the precautionary issues existing in Resaales of other Jurisprudents. More than a hundred such rulings based on precaution (Ehtiyaat), according to other Jurists, have been made frank by him. He has given his clear and decisive opinion on each issue. Also his book, Haj Rituals, with more than 1400 issues is the biggest and most complete book on the rituals of Haj.
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