Seminar held to commemorate first Shia taqlid authority in India

A seminar commemorating Seyyed Deldar Ali Naqvi, known as Hazrat Ghufran Ma’ab, was held yesterday, January 30, in Hussainiya Jannat Ma’ab situated in the Indian city of Lucknow.

The seminar, which was attended by Sheikh Mustafa Adib Hindi, the representative of Grand Ayatollah Shirazi, paid tribute to the efforts and services of the deceased Marja in reviving the religion in the Berr-e-Saghir region.

Hojjat al-Islam wal-Muslimeen Seyyed Saif Abbas Naqvi, one of the descendants of Hazrat Ghufran Ma’ab, attended this seminar and talked about some of the services of his ancestor.

Also, Ayatollah Seyyed Hamid al-Hassan honored the position of Hazrat Ghufran Ma’ab by attending this seminar and mentioning the sufferings of Imam Hussein (peace be upon him).

It is worth mentioning that Hazrat Ghufran Ma’ab was the first mujtahid in India who, after traveling to Najaf al-Ashraf, accepted the School of Usul and was recognized as the first Marjah Taqlid in India.

Some of his services include: establishment of the first Shia Friday prayer in India, the construction of the Asif Al-Dawlah Mosque, the establishment of the Lucknow Seminary, and the writing of many books, such as “Mir’at al-Uqul” in proving the Shia beliefs and “Shahab al-Thaqib” in rejecting Sufiism and defending Shiism.

It should be mentioned that it was the persistent emphasis of this religious authority that led to the recognition of Shiism as one of the official religions of India.