Ordibehesht 12 in the Iranian calendar (corresponding with May 2), is the martyrdom anniversary of the great scholar, Morteza Motahhari, who led a life of inexhaustible effort to guide the people, especially the youth, through debates, speeches, books and behavior. He was a real teacher.
Appreciation of teacher is appreciation of the gardener who takes care of blossoms till they bud into flowers and then fructify. According to the Prophet of Islam: "Scholars on the earth are like the stars in the sky. In the dark of the land and the sea, the right way will be found through them; and when they set, so many a guided person will go astray."
We commemorate Teacher Day and present you an article on the status of teacher and the thoughts of martyr Ayatollah Motahhari.
Knowledge increases the human value and rationality, and a teacher is a means for learning, so he has a great right over students while being seriously responsible before these trusts of God. He preserves divine trusts from corruption and deviation, and tries to set the ground for their growth and perfection. The holy Prophet said: "Verily, God and the angels and the inhabitants of the earth, even the ant in its hole and the fish in sea, greet the ones who teach goodness to people." He advised the disciples to respect their teachers and observe their rights.
The Prophet said three times, "O God, have mercy upon my successors." He was asked, "Who are your successors?" He answered, "Those who convey my hadith and practice to all and then teach it to my Ummah."
The most fundamental feature of a teacher is his effort to make real humans. The noble Quran describes the Prophet of Islam as the great teacher of human history, saying that the Prophet "is distressed by the losses you sustain, who is ardently desirous of your welfare and is tender and merciful to those that believe." The intense love and desire for guiding humans is very good for a teacher, and no teacher can be successful without this love. In fact, it is the driving engine for training the students that are apt and ready to learn.
Teaching is an art and a teacher is an artist. Knowledge, contemplation and creativity are the characteristics of a teacher that go along with the science of the day. A successful teacher is the one who keeps updating his awareness of the daily advancement in science and tries to apply them in class. He/she should be like a spring or a river that is not stagnant.
Because of the spiritual impact of teachers, students are highly affected by them so that they may even change the fate of their nation. Most people owe their success to their teachers. On the other hand, many failures may originate in the teachings and behavior of teachers. Ayatollah Morteza Motahhari, recalling the memories of one of his great teachers, called Haj Mirza Ali Aqa Shirazi would say, "He was a great man. For the first time, he made me familiar with Nahj al-Balaghah. I always consider him as one of the most valuable reserves in my life. I don't like to exchange him for anything, and not a single night or day passes except that his memory flashes in my mind and I remember him and utter his name."
The Islamic Revolution is indebted to the intellectual and cultural endeavors of prominent Muslim thinkers and scholars. Martyr Motahhari was one of the most prominent intellectual and cultural figures of modern time. With a very high command of Islamic teachings, he met myriads of the needs of the present generation. Having novel ideas, creative thoughts, and proper understanding of Islam, Ayatollah Motahhari played an important role in the enlightenment of enthusiasts, especially teachers and academics. He left behind valuable works that fulfilled the needs of millions of eager souls both in Iran and abroad as many of his work have been translated into a number of languages. This great Muslim scholar was very thoughtful of the needs of the time and looked for the topics of interest and need of the young generation to provide due answers to the intellectual and ideological ambiguities of them.
Ayatollah Morteza Motahhari was born in a religious family in 1919 in Fariman, 75 km away from the holy city of Mashhad. In his childhood, he went to school and began learning elementary lessons. At the age of twelve, he attended the theological school of Mashhad and began studying the foundations of Islamic sciences. In 1937, during the hostility of Reza Khan against religion and religious people, despite the opposition of his friends and relatives, he went to the Qom Seminary to complete his education. During his 15-year stay in Qom, Martyr Motahhari highly benefited from classes of Grand Ayatollah Boroujerdi, Imam Khomeini and Allameh Seyyed Mohammad Hussein Tabatabai. In 1952 he migrated to Tehran and very soon catapulted to fame as the top scholar and master of various Islamic sciences. He taught at Marvi Seminary in Tehran and was engaged in writing books and delivering speeches. In 1955, the first session of interpretation of the Qur'an was held by him at the Islamic Students' Association.
Martyr Ayatollah Motahhari was one of the main axes of coordination among ulema and university professors during the exile of Imam Khomeini (God's mercy upon him). He strongly believed in the ability of Islam to administer the society. Hence, he outlined the views of the Islamic Revolution and clarified its various dimensions for every stratum even the laymen. In a climate where a variety of advocates were promoting their ideologies to deviate people, especially the young generation and academics, Ayatollah Motahhari traced the footsteps of Imam Khomeini to defend the genuine teachings of Islam which had been manifested in the form of the Islamic Revolution.
Ayatollah Motahhari has always been regarded as a very knowledgeable expert of Islam and a powerful philosopher who was aware of the conditions of time. He confronted the ideological deviations, insofar as he sacrificed his life for his ideal. Imam Khomeini, lamenting the martyrdom of this bright scholar, stated in his message, "I have lost a very dear child and I am mourning for him as was one of the characters that was the fruit of my life. Dear Islam has sustained a fracture, due to the martyrdom of this erudite child and eternal scholar, that nothing can fill its place."
Considering the deep impact of Martyr Motahhari's ideas on the Islamic society, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Khamenei, said that for flourishing and advancement of society, intellectual work should be done on his thoughts and works. Enthusiasts should extract Martyr Motahhari's thoughts and opinions in different fields.
The Leader says, "Of course, the works of this great scholar are alive, like his memory. Martyr Motahhari's books are not terminable. No one should think that we are repeating the books of Martyr Motahhari after the revolution as we have kept republishing them. There is no repetition in true words and in the words of wisdom. The society and the younger generation and our cultural and scientific community still need to know the things that the great scholar has written and put at the disposal of Islamic Ummah."
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