In the Name of the Most High
Biography of Ayatollah Alavi Borujerdi
Life and Education
Ayatollah Sayyid Muhammad Javad Alavi Borujerdi was born on April 15th, 1954. His father was Ayatollah Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Alavi, among prominent students, trustworthy advisors and the son-in-law of Grand Ayatollah Borujerdi. His mother, Agha Sakina was the daughter of Grand Ayatollah Borujerdi who was very dear and respected to him. She was too a righteous woman.
He went to school at the age of five and studied until fourth year of primary school in Qom. After obtaining his Diploma [at the end of high school], Ayatollah Alavi entered the seminary of Qom and for 25 years, benefitted from great teachers in his studies and achieved the level of Ijtihād. He spent his advanced levels of Seminary studies, under mentors such as the late Grand Ayatollah Golpayegani, the late Ayatollah Haj Shaykh Morteza Ha’iri, the late Grand Ayatollah Mirza Javad Aqa Tabrizi, Grand Ayatollah Vahid Khorasani, Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Muhammad Rohani and Grand Ayatollah Javadi Amuli. He began teaching post-usul issues [kharij al-usul] from 1991 and post-fiqh issues [kharij al-fiqh] from 1996.
Political Activities
Political thoughts of Ayatollah Alavi had roots in his youth age and family education. During the Islamic movement (around and after 1963), the meeting of scholars was usually held in his father’s house. His father’s clarifying speeches, attack of SAVAK to their house and arresting his father, activities during his education in Alavi high school in Tehran, establishment of Islamic forum of youths, management of a magazine called “Javanan dar panah-e Islam” and participating in social activities were influential in formation of Ayatollah Alavi’s personality. His continuation of such political activities made SAVAK to be sensitive to his activities such as preaching, visits, meetings, correspondences, etc. for which they summoned him several times and even banned him from giving speeches for several years. However, with all the harassments, his preaching activities were never cancelled and he always travelled to different places in the country in different occasions and tried to fulfill his religious commitments.
Social and Cultural Activities
- Establishment of the institute of Ayatollah Borujerdi.
- Revival and changing the function of the seminary school of Khān from residential to educational.
- Revival of the house of the Grand Ayatollah Borujerdi.
- Repair and decoration of the dome and minarets of A’zam mosque and expanding it.
- Establishing the manager’s office and answering religious inquiries in A’zam mosque.
- Publication and preaching Shi’a teachings in central Asia, Caucasus and Turkey.
- Establishing the institute of Alvi Husayniyya (in Borujerd).