National conference “Philosophy of Spirituality, Focusing on Allameh Amoli’s Opinions” held in Qom
The president of the Research Institute for Islamic Culture and Thought stated, “The greatness and comprehensiveness of the late Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli are exemplary. He is considered one of the few in Shiite history.”
ABWA Official Website – On Wednesday, November 22, 2023, on World Philosophy Day, the national conference “Philosophy of Spirituality, Focusing on Opinions of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli”, was held by the Research Institute for Islamic Culture and Thought in the conference hall of the Institute in Qom, with the participation of other scientific and cultural institutions of Iran.
Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli is a spiritual role model
At the beginning of the conference, referring to the personality of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, Hojat al-Islam Mohammad Javad Rudgar, the scientific secretary of the conference, stated, “The hidden dimensions of this polymath character are still unknown to seminarians and academics. We hope that we can understand the dimensions of his personality as much as we can.”
“On the occasion of World Philosophy Day, in order to commemorate the philosophical position of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, and also to examine the new issue of “Philosophy of Spirituality”, which is needed by the society and the Islamic Republic, the National Conference of the Philosophy of Spirituality, Focusing on the Opinions of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, is being held,” he added.
“We intend to introduce Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli as a spiritual role model at this conference. At this conference, we could have conversations with some of the students of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli. These interviews were held with ten professors in fourteen sessions,” continued the scientific secretary of the conference.
“Twelve articles were selected in the conference “Philosophy of Spirituality, Focusing on Opinions of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli”, five of which were research articles and will be published. Some of these articles were also presented in scientific research chairs,” he mentioned.
Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli is considered one of the few in Shiite history
Further in the conference, referring to the personality of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, Ayatollah Ali Akbar Rashad, the president of the Research Institute for Islamic Culture and Thought stated, “Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli was the only and the last person who was considered to be the master of narrative and intellectual sciences, as well as the inheritor of authentic Shiite sciences. Contemporary times did not recognize Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli. Maybe future generations will be able to recognize his greatness. Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli excelled in every field related to Islam.”
“The greatness and comprehensiveness of Ayatollah Hassanzadeh Amoli are exemplary. He is considered one of the few in Shiite history,” he continued.
“I was familiar with the poems of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, and I read some of his poems in his Book of Poems. The Book of Heart, with 140 pages, contains about 1400 verses of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli’s poems. These poems are a complete course of mysticism, and it is also considered the longest poem of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli,” Ayatollah Rashad continued.
“In the poetry book of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, some subjects are frequent. A large part of the themes of his poems are related to Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli’s fascination with the night. Many poems can be seen describing the night in his poetry book. The theme and words of love, lover, and beloved make up about one-third to one-fourth of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli’s sonnets. Another theme of his poems is related to the “heart”. There are few poems of Allameh in which the word heart and its attributes are not mentioned,” he mentioned.
Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli reached the original goal
In another part of the conference, while referring to the meaning of spirituality, Ayatollah Hassan Ramazani, the head of Avaye Towhid (the voice of monotheism) Scientific Educational Institute, stated, “Spirituality means tending to the main purpose and going through superficial matters. Someone is spiritual who has gone through all the superficial matters and reaches the main purpose. The entire cosmos with its greatness has only one main purpose.”
“If the goal is worship, then Ma’arifah (spiritual and divine knowledge) is the goal. Spirituality means reaching Ma’arifah. The false spiritualities that are pumped from the East and the West are not real spirituality but are fake. Their advocates claim that what they follow is spirituality! While they are material and mundane,” he continued.
“Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli had gone through words and appearances and had reached the main goal. Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli used to say: “I see nothing but God.” Someone can say such words that had achieved the main goal. According to Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, what opens this way for us is nothing but knowledge and righteous deed,” added the head of Avaye Towhid Scientific Educational Institute.
Referring to the attractiveness of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, Ayatollah Hassan Ramazani said, “At the beginning of my stay in Qom, I used to wait for the days of the week until it was time to attend Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli’s class. So in our opinion, other classes were less important compared to his class. Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli relied on science and believed that we should train decent clerics. He himself was immersed in teaching and learning.”
“Some, relying on the hadith of Unwan al-Basri (Instruction of Imam Sadiq (a.s.) for the wayfarers towards Allah), ignore learning, lessons, research, and writing. This is not a correct interpretation of this hadith. Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli was annihilated in knowledge, so he considered his love to be the book,” he mentioned.
Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli was annihilated in knowledge and books
In the final part of the conference, referring to the dimensions of Ayatollah Hassanzadeh Amoli’s personality, Hojat al-Islam Reza Mokhtari, head of the Shiite Bibliography Institute, stated, “One of the works of the late Allameh is the completion of the Description of the Nahj al-Balagha by the late Ayatollah Khoei. One of the volumes of this description was published when Allameh was 36 years old. Allameh Sha’rani, in his comment on this description of Nahj al-Balagha, used expressions such as “a master in literature, and absolute in intellectual sciences” for Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli.”
“One of the personality dimensions of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli was his mastery of manuscripts. He had a valuable library. Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli had access to manuscripts and emended many books,” he continued.
“Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli used to study astronomy and mathematics on Thursdays and Fridays. Few people spend their holidays on these sciences. Ayatollah Sayed Abulqasem Riazi Khansari was Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli’s teacher in mathematics, a person who also had many theological works,” added the head of the Shiite Bibliography Institute.
Considering the scientific and practical humbleness as the outstanding characteristic of the late Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, Mokhtari stated, “He didn’t even have an iota of arrogance. Thirty years ago, with the scientific position he had, he accepted my invitation to come to my home. Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli was annihilated in knowledge and books. Of course, he did not consider his knowledge to be comparable to the divine knowledge of the Infallibles (a.s.). Allameh used to mention the name of Imam Ali (a.s.) along with the title of “successor”, a title given to the Imam (a.s.) at the beginning of Islam. It is good that we also follow this method of Allameh. Anyone who helped Allameh in matters related to a book would mention his name in that book. Gratitude was another characteristic of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli.”
“There are many documents and letters of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli in his library, which need to be published by his children so that people of knowledge can benefit from them,” he mentioned.
The president of the Research Institute for Islamic Culture and Thought stated, “The greatness and comprehensiveness of the late Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli are exemplary. He is considered one of the few in Shiite history.”
ABWA Official Website – On Wednesday, November 22, 2023, on World Philosophy Day, the national conference “Philosophy of Spirituality, Focusing on Opinions of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli”, was held by the Research Institute for Islamic Culture and Thought in the conference hall of the Institute in Qom, with the participation of other scientific and cultural institutions of Iran.
Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli is a spiritual role model
At the beginning of the conference, referring to the personality of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, Hojat al-Islam Mohammad Javad Rudgar, the scientific secretary of the conference, stated, “The hidden dimensions of this polymath character are still unknown to seminarians and academics. We hope that we can understand the dimensions of his personality as much as we can.”
“On the occasion of World Philosophy Day, in order to commemorate the philosophical position of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, and also to examine the new issue of “Philosophy of Spirituality”, which is needed by the society and the Islamic Republic, the National Conference of the Philosophy of Spirituality, Focusing on the Opinions of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, is being held,” he added.
“We intend to introduce Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli as a spiritual role model at this conference. At this conference, we could have conversations with some of the students of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli. These interviews were held with ten professors in fourteen sessions,” continued the scientific secretary of the conference.
“Twelve articles were selected in the conference “Philosophy of Spirituality, Focusing on Opinions of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli”, five of which were research articles and will be published. Some of these articles were also presented in scientific research chairs,” he mentioned.
Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli is considered one of the few in Shiite history
Further in the conference, referring to the personality of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, Ayatollah Ali Akbar Rashad, the president of the Research Institute for Islamic Culture and Thought stated, “Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli was the only and the last person who was considered to be the master of narrative and intellectual sciences, as well as the inheritor of authentic Shiite sciences. Contemporary times did not recognize Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli. Maybe future generations will be able to recognize his greatness. Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli excelled in every field related to Islam.”
“The greatness and comprehensiveness of Ayatollah Hassanzadeh Amoli are exemplary. He is considered one of the few in Shiite history,” he continued.
“I was familiar with the poems of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, and I read some of his poems in his Book of Poems. The Book of Heart, with 140 pages, contains about 1400 verses of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli’s poems. These poems are a complete course of mysticism, and it is also considered the longest poem of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli,” Ayatollah Rashad continued.
“In the poetry book of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, some subjects are frequent. A large part of the themes of his poems are related to Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli’s fascination with the night. Many poems can be seen describing the night in his poetry book. The theme and words of love, lover, and beloved make up about one-third to one-fourth of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli’s sonnets. Another theme of his poems is related to the “heart”. There are few poems of Allameh in which the word heart and its attributes are not mentioned,” he mentioned.
Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli reached the original goal
In another part of the conference, while referring to the meaning of spirituality, Ayatollah Hassan Ramazani, the head of Avaye Towhid (the voice of monotheism) Scientific Educational Institute, stated, “Spirituality means tending to the main purpose and going through superficial matters. Someone is spiritual who has gone through all the superficial matters and reaches the main purpose. The entire cosmos with its greatness has only one main purpose.”
“If the goal is worship, then Ma’arifah (spiritual and divine knowledge) is the goal. Spirituality means reaching Ma’arifah. The false spiritualities that are pumped from the East and the West are not real spirituality but are fake. Their advocates claim that what they follow is spirituality! While they are material and mundane,” he continued.
“Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli had gone through words and appearances and had reached the main goal. Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli used to say: “I see nothing but God.” Someone can say such words that had achieved the main goal. According to Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, what opens this way for us is nothing but knowledge and righteous deed,” added the head of Avaye Towhid Scientific Educational Institute.
Referring to the attractiveness of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, Ayatollah Hassan Ramazani said, “At the beginning of my stay in Qom, I used to wait for the days of the week until it was time to attend Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli’s class. So in our opinion, other classes were less important compared to his class. Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli relied on science and believed that we should train decent clerics. He himself was immersed in teaching and learning.”
“Some, relying on the hadith of Unwan al-Basri (Instruction of Imam Sadiq (a.s.) for the wayfarers towards Allah), ignore learning, lessons, research, and writing. This is not a correct interpretation of this hadith. Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli was annihilated in knowledge, so he considered his love to be the book,” he mentioned.
Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli was annihilated in knowledge and books
In the final part of the conference, referring to the dimensions of Ayatollah Hassanzadeh Amoli’s personality, Hojat al-Islam Reza Mokhtari, head of the Shiite Bibliography Institute, stated, “One of the works of the late Allameh is the completion of the Description of the Nahj al-Balagha by the late Ayatollah Khoei. One of the volumes of this description was published when Allameh was 36 years old. Allameh Sha’rani, in his comment on this description of Nahj al-Balagha, used expressions such as “a master in literature, and absolute in intellectual sciences” for Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli.”
“One of the personality dimensions of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli was his mastery of manuscripts. He had a valuable library. Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli had access to manuscripts and emended many books,” he continued.
“Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli used to study astronomy and mathematics on Thursdays and Fridays. Few people spend their holidays on these sciences. Ayatollah Sayed Abulqasem Riazi Khansari was Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli’s teacher in mathematics, a person who also had many theological works,” added the head of the Shiite Bibliography Institute.
Considering the scientific and practical humbleness as the outstanding characteristic of the late Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli, Mokhtari stated, “He didn’t even have an iota of arrogance. Thirty years ago, with the scientific position he had, he accepted my invitation to come to my home. Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli was annihilated in knowledge and books. Of course, he did not consider his knowledge to be comparable to the divine knowledge of the Infallibles (a.s.). Allameh used to mention the name of Imam Ali (a.s.) along with the title of “successor”, a title given to the Imam (a.s.) at the beginning of Islam. It is good that we also follow this method of Allameh. Anyone who helped Allameh in matters related to a book would mention his name in that book. Gratitude was another characteristic of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli.”
“There are many documents and letters of Allameh Hassanzadeh Amoli in his library, which need to be published by his children so that people of knowledge can benefit from them,” he mentioned.