Martyr Mofateh\'s Acadmic Career

Navideshahed: Ayatollah Mohammad Mofateh (1928-1979) was an Iranian philosopher with both academic and seminarian careers which proved very helpful in his political efforts to forge a consensus among the university and Howzeh (seminary) in the Islamic Republic.

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جمعه - ۱۸ اسفند ۲۰۱۶ / 2016 18 December

Born in 1928 in Hamedan, he was among few philosophers who had PHD from university and Ijtihad from Howzeh.

He had attended Akhund Mullah Ali Hamedani’s school in Hamadan. After completing his primary education there, he left for the famous Seminary in Qom where he enjoyed participating in the classes of Hazrat-e Ayatollah Uzma Sayyed Mohammad Hojat Kuh Kamari, Ayatollah Uzma Haj Agha Hossein Tabatabee Boroujerdy and Imam Ayatollah Al-Uzma Sayyed Ruhollah Moosavi Khomeini, Hazrat Ayatollah Sayyed Mohamad Mohaqeq and Hazrat Allameh Tabatabie (the author of "Tafsir al-Mizan”? in Qoranic exegesis).

Furthermore he was teaching the high levels of divine law, principles and philosophy he was also studying the new science until he was successful enough to be granted the Ph.D. of philosophy.

After finishing his studies in the Seminary, since he was needed in Tehran, he left for it. Like his colleague Professor Ayatollah Morteza Motahari, he started to teach the university students in 1348 (1969). He was experienced enough in teaching because he was the teacher of a high school in Qom as well.

Dr. Mofateh had a resume full of political activities before the triumph of the Islamic Revolution and the advent of the Ilsamic Republic in Iran (1979). Due to these activities, holding sessions and performing prayers in "Qoba Mosque”? he was put into jail in 1354 (1975) by the then despot Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi. The Shah\\\'s regime closed the door of the mosque. It was not the first time he was harassed; when he was in Qom he was exiled to Zahedan Provincedue, to similar activities.

He performed the prayer of Feast of the Fast–breaking (Eid-ul-Fitr) in 1357 (1978) in Qeytariyeh in which about one million people took part and it was the greatest schemata of early period of revolution. After praying he gave a very revolutionary and crucial lecture and invited people for demonstrations of 17th and 18th of Shahrivar (7th and8 September) whose result was his arresting on 17th of Shahrivar and he was prisoned for 2 months.

Dr. Mofateh was among the first politicians to call for the reconceptualization of scientific researches and jurisprudence quests, calling for consensus among the two. He authored a policy pamphlet several years before the Islamic Revolution (1979) in which he called for heads of Howzeh and University to join forces and move ahead the wagon of revolution.

The idea however petrified the superpowers who found any consensus among the two sources of knowledge as highly perilous to their interests, both in the country and in the region. Mofateh was then put in a hit list of revolutionary Iranian figures.

On 27th of Azar 1358 (18 December 1979) at half past nine A.M, Dr. Mofateh was assassinated in front of the building of Theology University in Tehran. He was shot and four bullets went through his head, shoulder, hands and knees and he fell on the ground. He was taken to Ayatollah Taleqani Hospital to be cured but it did not work. He was martyred at 12 a.m., on 27th Azar, 1358 (18 December 1979).

In the morning of 28th Azar (19 December 1979) his body with those of his guards were escorted from mosque of university passing the American espionage den, a term to refer to the former US embassy in Iran. The term was given to the premises after evidence proved the US government had been using the place to plot against the Iranian interests.

His body was then carried to Qom and was buried there in the court yard of Hazrat Masoomeh (SA)\\\'s holy shrine.

Dr. Mofateh authored many books including the Translation of Tafsir Kabir Majmaolbayan, and the Way of Thinking on Logic.

Source: IRIB News Agency