Marja'

In Shia Islam, marjaʿ (Arabic: مرجع‎; plural: marājiʿ), also known as a marjaʿ taqlīd or marjaʿ dīnī (Arabic: مرجع تقليد / مرجع ديني‎), literally meaning "source to imitate/follow" or "religious reference", is a title given to the highest level Shia authority, a Grand Ayatollah with the authority to make legal decisions within the confines of Islamic law for followers and less-credentialed clerics. After the Qur'an and the prophets and imams, marājiʿ are the highest authority on religious laws in Usuli Shia Islam.

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Woman . Marja'

Is it true that a woman cannot become a Marja? If so, what is the reason?

Amina Inloes, Amina Inloes is originally from the US and has a PhD in Islamic Studies from the University of Exeter on Shi'a hadith. She is the program leader for the MA Islamic Studies program at the... Answered 3 weeks ago

There is some discussion of this topic here: https://www.al-islam.org/ask/is-it-the-case-that-only-men-are-allowed-to...

The main reason why it is unlikely that a woman will become a marja' today is not theoretical, since there may be many approaches to Islamic law, but rather is practical. That is, there are social forces that would push a woman off of the path of becoming a marja', and women do not have the same networking, educational, or social support that men have and which people need to succeed in any field. (Although some Iranian women become mujtahids and there are structures in place in Iran to facilitate that, less so in other countries although it occurs in other countries also.) Furthermore, women who are religiously conservative are generally encouraged to avoid positions of public leadership or to avoid being publicly visible.

Maybe in the future it will be different.

However, it is worth considering that there are many forms of religious and spiritual leadership. While we focus mostly on the role of the marja' as the chief jurist, or chief legal expert, people require guidance and leadership in many areas of life, including family matters, spiritual guidance, ethics, politics, charitable work, and so forth. Some marja's do offer guidance in these areas also but not all do, as it is not possible for one person to specialize in every single thing or to do every single thing at one time. Furthermore, even within the Islamic sciences, there are other areas of expertise that are also important such as tafsir. So it is also valuable to become a leader or expert in other areas of religion, not only jurisprudence/law.

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Taqlid . Marja'

When did the institution of Taqleed get started? Who was the first ever Marja-e-Taqleed? Is Taqleed obligatory or optional and why? Is there any evidence from the Imams for it?

Sayyed Mohammad Al-Musawi, Sayyed Mohammad al-Musawi is originally from Iraq and heads up the World Ahlul Bayt Islamic League in London. Other than being involved in various humanitarian projects, he frequently responds to... Answered 7 months ago

Taqleed is based on the logical necessity for the non expert to refer to the expert.

This is followed in every field of knowledge in life. All human beings practically follow this fact in every matter. Religious day to day rules are not an exception. Non experts in religious studies need to follow the experts. We believe that every religious act must be based on real evidence. Evidence is known to the experts who spend long time in studying and researching the Islamic sources ( Quran, Hadeeth, Aql and Ejmaa'). People must refer in religious matters to the most learned Islamic scholar who is called al-'Alam.

From the time of the Prophet (SAWA) and the Ifallible Imams, Muslims who lived in places far away from them, were ordered to refer in religious matters to the scholar in their area.
Taqleed is obligatory on non experts in religious studies (non Mujahid or non Muhtaat). With out Taqleed, non expert will practice religious acts with out authentic evidence and this is not accepted in Islam.

Wassalam.

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Marriage . Illegitimacy . Marja'

Why can't a person who is born out of an illegitimate marriage become a Marja?

Allah is The Absolute Wise and He has the Full Knowledge about everything and everyone. All rules in Islam are based on the absolute Wisdom and Knowledge and Mercy of Allah which aims for the interest of man and human kind.

illegitimately born child has no fault to be punished for, and he should be saved from social criticism. This might be one of the reasons that such person should not be exposed in public as leader of prayers or leader of society ( Marja' of Taqleed).

Keeping him away from regions leadership might be also for avoiding legitimising the sinful act from which he was born and not encouraging people to commit it.

Finally, we say that Allah is The Most Just, Most Wise, Most Merciful and He Knows the full reasons, but we firmly believe that it is always for the interest of man and mankind.

Wassalam.

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Marja'

Does every Muslim need a Muqaleed? And what if the Muqaleed is wrong, who carries the burden of that error?

Every Muslim needs to have authentic evidence that he is acting upon the orders of Islam in every religious act and deed. Such evidence can not be available to non professional person unless he relies on the verdict of professional scholar (Mujtahid). That is why Taqleed is compulsory on every non professional Muslim otherwise his religious deeds will be with out supporting evidence, which means that it can be not correct.

When you follow the most learned scholar, you will not be responsible if he makes an error as your responsibility is just to act upon the verdict and evidence derived by the most learned scholar.

Wassalam.

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Father . Marja' . Scholars

Is it sufficient to ask one trustworthy person about which Marja to follow? Does he need to be a scholar or can I ask a normal person like my father?

No, it is not sufficient to ask one trustworthy person about which Marja to follow. He must be a high caliber 'Aalim (scholar), yet his witness alone is not sufficient because witness should come from two high caliber 'Aalims.

Wassalam.

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Marja' . Dunya

Who is currently the most followed Marja in the world?

Majority of the Shia Muslims today follow in Taqleed, Ayatullah al-Udhma Sayyed Ali al-Husaini al- Sistani. This is because of the fact that majority of Shia scholars in the Hawza of Najaf Ashraf, Qum, Mashhad and other places, believe that Ayatullah Sistani is the most knowledgeable among Shia high caliber scholars (Mujtahids). No doubt, there are other Maraaji' in Iran and Iraq who have lot of followers in Taqleed, but Ayatullah Sistani is the most followed Marja' in this time. May Allah protect him and prolong his life, and all the Maraaji'.

Wassalam.

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Conversion to Islam . Marja'

I converted to Islam in a Sunni mosque but now follow the Ahlulbayt. If I choose a Marja, is it enough just to get and follow the Risalah Amaliyah from the internet or do I need to notify the Marja that I want to follow him?

Best of wishes on this next stage of your spiritual journey, and, yes, it is enough to have the intention to follow a marja' and to do your best to do so; you do not need to notify the marja'.

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Cryptocurrency . Marja'

Is it permissible, according to any Marja, to be a professional broker buying and selling cryptocurrency?

The answer of this question depends on the question on crypto currency itself whether it is real or not. Many of Muslim scholars are still not sure hence carrying on research on this matter. When the picture is clear for majority of the scholars, they will give their verdict on crypto currency.

You need to wait till this main question is answered, then the question of brokerage comes after that.

Wassalam.

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Marja'

What are the steps I need to take to identify and follow a Marja?

You need to seek advice of high caliber Islamic scholars in the Hawza who should witness who is the most learned scholar among all the authentic Mujtahids. Two (at least) pious high caliber scholars in the Hawza should such witness.

Wassalam.

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Eid al-Fitr . Marja' . Moon Sighting

I am confused about the differences on Eid. Is it a case of one Marja sighting the moon and another one not being able to sight it?

Rebecca Masterton, Dr Rebecca Masterton graduated with a BA in Japanese Language and Literature; an MA in Comparative East Asian and African Literature and a PhD in Islamic literature of West Africa. She has been... Answered 11 months ago

It comes down to different methods of sighting. Sayyid Sistani says that the moon has to be sighted with the naked eye; Sayyid Khamenei rules that using a telescope is permissible. Astronomists also say that technically the new moon starts before it can be seen by either of these, but generally the ruling is that it has to be sighted.

Another issue is the 'sharing of the same night'. This method used to be used. I.e. if a region shares a night, then the declaring of the moon from one part of that region would apply to all. This is now no longer being used as a criterion. Instead, Sayyid Sistani and Sayyid Khamenei say that you must follow your local horizon, so usually the moon can be seen in Southern Europe before it can in Northern Europe; hence, Spain will have Eid one day earlier than England.

Eid al-Fitr . Marja' . Moon Sighting

I am confused about the differences on Eid. Is it a case of one Marja sighting the moon and another one not being able to sight it?

Abbas Di Palma, Shaykh Abbas Di Palma holds a BA and an MA degree in Islamic Studies, and certifications from the Language Institute of Damascus University. He has also studied traditional Islamic sciences in... Answer updated 11 months ago

as salam alaikum

the are different opinions on how a person should see the new moon. The major ones can be summarized as follows:

SIGHTING THE NEW MOON LOCALLY (VALID FOR ALL PLACES THAT SHARE THE SAME HORIZON) WITH NAKED EYE

This is the fatwa of Ayatollah Khomeyni, Ayatollah Sistani, Ayatollah Mararem Shirazi, Ayatollah Shobeyri Zanjani, Ayatollah Subhani, Ayatollah Qorban Ali Kabuli and Ayatollah Muhammad Sadiq Sadr.

SIGHTING THE NEW MOON IN A CITY WITH NAKED EYE AND VALIDATING THE SIGHTING FOR ALL THE OTHER PLACES THAT SHARE WITH IT THE SAME NIGHT

This is the fatwa of Ayatollah Khu'i, Ayatollah Muhammad Baqir Sadr, Ayatollah Muhammad Araki, Ayatollah Ruhani, Ayatollah Ishaq Fayyad, Ayatollah Wahid Khorasani and Ayatollah Bashir Najafi.

SIGHTING THE NEW MOON LOCALLY (VALID FOR ALL PLACES THAT SHARE THE SAME HORIZON) WITH THE HELP OF A TELESCOPE

This is the fatwa of Ayatollah Khamene'i, Ayatollah Muhammad Taqi Bahjat, Ayatollah Fazel Lankarani and Ayatollah Muhammad Taqi Mudarrisi.

SIGHTING THE NEW MOON WITH NAKED EYE AND VALIDATING THE SIGHTING FOR ALL THE OTHER PLACES THAT SHARE WITH IT THE SAME NIGHT BUT MAKING A DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE OLD CONTINENT (EUROPE, AFRICA, ASIA AND AUSTRALIA) AND THE NEW CONTINENT (NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICA).

This is the fatwa of Ayatollah Muhammad Sa'id Hakim.

With prayers for your success.

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Mujtahid . Marja'

Can we use the phrase "Alayhis Salam" with any Mujtahid or Marja's name?

The linguistic meaning of it is (Peace be upon him) which is in fact used for every Muslim when you say to him : Salamun Alaykum.(Peace be upon you).

But as a term and common understanding , we have to be careful in using it to avoid mixing between the Infallible and others.

Wassalam.