Grand Ayatollah Shirazi: Honoring the Ahl al-Bayt Is an Expression of Reverence for God

Grand Ayatollah Shirazi: Honoring the Ahl al-Bayt Is an Expression of Reverence for God
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In his daily scholarly session held on Tuesday, the 5th of Jumada al-Awwal 1447 AH, Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Sadiq al-Husseini al-Shirazi emphasized that any act that exalts and honors the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) is considered among the “Sha‘a’ir Allah” — the symbols of God — since it ultimately represents reverence for the Almighty.

Addressing participants’ questions on various jurisprudential issues, Grand Ayatollah Shirazi discussed the concept of sha‘a’ir (divine symbols), explaining that the term in Islamic law refers broadly to anything that signifies devotion or respect toward God. He noted that the Qur’an encourages believers to magnify God’s symbols, citing verse 32 of Surah al-Hajj: “Whoever honors the symbols of God — it is truly from the piety of the heart.”

His Eminence stated that Islamic scripture does not provide a fixed definition of what constitutes sha‘a’ir, and therefore their identification should be guided by social and cultural understanding. He added that whenever the Divine Lawgiver has not specified a subject in religious texts, determining its meaning should be based on customary usage.

Concluding his remarks, Grand Ayatollah Shirazi affirmed that showing reverence toward the Prophet’s family is intrinsically an act of glorifying God and thus falls within the scope of Divine symbols in Islam.