Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr
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Ayatollah Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr |
Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr (Arabic: آية الله العظمى السيد محمد باقر الصدر ) (
March 1,
1935 -
April 8,
1980) was an
Iraqi
Shia cleric born in
al-Kadhimya,
Iraq. He is father-in-law of
Muqtada al-Sadr and cousin of both
Mohammad Sadeq al-Sadr and imam
Musa as-Sadr. His father
Haydar al-Sadr was a well respected high ranking shi'a cleric. His lineage goes back to
Mohammad, the prophet of
Islam. (See
Sadr family for more details.)
His father died in 1937, leaving the family penniless. In 1945 the family moved to the holy city of
Najaf, where al-Sadr would spend the rest of his life. Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr completed his religious teachings at religious seminaries under
al-Khoei and
Muhsin al-Hakim at the age of 25 and began teaching.
While teaching he became a prominent member of the Iraqi Shia community, and was noted for his many writings. His first works were detailed critiques of
Marxism that presented early ideas of an alternative Islamic form of government. Perhaps his most important work was
Iqtisaduna, one of the most important works on
Islamic economics. This work was a critique of both socialism and capitalism. He was subsequently commissioned by the government of
Kuwait to assess how that country's oil wealth could be managed in keeping with Islamic principles. This led to a major work on
Islamic banking that still forms the basis for modern Islamic banks.
He also worked with
Sayed Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim in forming an
Islamist movement in Iraq. This attracted the attention of the
Baath Party and resulted in numerous imprisonments for Ayatollah al-Sadr. He was often subjugated to torture during his imprisonments, but continued his work after being released. One of the founders of modern Islamist thought he is credited with first developing the notion, later put in operation in Iran, of having western style democratic elections, but with a body of Muslim scholars to ensure all laws corresponded with Islamic teachings. He was a close ally and supporter of
Ayatollah Khomeni, but maintained a more moderate view than him.
In
1977, he was sentenced to life in prison following uprisings in Najaf, but was released two years later due to his immense popularity. Upon his release however, he was put under house arrest. In
1980, after writing in the defense of Khomeni and the
Islamic Revolution, Sadr was once again imprisoned, tortured, and executed by the regime of
Saddam Hussein. His sister,
Amina Sadr bint al-Huda, was also imprisoned, tortured, and executed. It has been alledged that Sadr was killed by having iron nail hammered into his head and then being set on fire.
*
Khomeini*
Mohammad Hussein Fadlullah*
Mohammad Baqir al-Hakim*
Mohammad Mohammad Sadiq as-Sadr*
Kathem al-Haeri*
Ibrahim al-Jaafari*
Abbas al-Musawi*
Hasan Nasrallah*
Islamic Dawa Party*
SCIRI*
Hizbollah*
Amal Movement*
Iqtisaduna*
Falsafatuna*
Muhammad al-Tijani — a student
* Two of his books:
Falsafatuna (Our Philosophy),
Iqtisaduna (Our Economics - synopsis only)
* Mallat, Chibli. "Muhammad Baqir as-Sadr."
Pioneers of Islamic Revival. ed. Ali Rahnema. London: Zed Books, 1994
*
Website on Muhammad Baqir Al-Sadr*
Arabic Biography
