Tarihsel tecrübelerle asırlar boyunca üretilmiş dinî gelenekler, süreç içerisinde kurumsallaşarak kendine mahsus bir yapı oluştururlar. Bu yapının günün ihtiyaç ve beklentilerine göre değişim ve dönüşüme uğraması bir zarurettir. İslam mezhepleri içerisinde önemli bir yeri bulunan Şiîlik’te bu ihtiyaç özellikle çağdaş dönemde ulemânın kendini mezhebin merkezine koymasıyla yeni bir boyut kazanmıştır. 19. asırda Batı karşısında uğranılan yenilginin ardından İslam dünyasında bu yenilginin sebeplerine dönük çeşitli çözüm arayışları ortaya çıkmıştır. Bunlar arasında en önemli yeri dinî geleneğe olan eleştirel tutum ve ıslahat girişimleri yer almaktadır. Bu girişimlerin Şiî gelenekteki boyutları ve temel dinamiklerine Türkçe çalışmalarda yeterince yer verilmemiştir. Çalışmamız, çağdaş dönemde Şiî gelenekte başlayan ıslah çalışmalarının ilk örneği sayılabilecek olan İranlı düşünür Şeyh Hâdî Necmâbâdî’nin kendi eseri üzerinden bu geleneğe dönük eleştirilerine yer vermektedir.

Religious traditions that have been produced through historical experiences for centuries create a unique structure by institutionalizing in the process. It is a necessity that this structure undergoes change and transformation according to the needs and expectations of the day. In Shiism, which has an important place among the Islamic sects, this need gained a new dimension especially in the contemporary period by the ulama, who placed themselves at the center of the sect. After the defeat suffered in the 19th century against the West, emerged various solutions for the causes of this defeat in the Islamic world. Among these, the most important place is the critical attitude towards religious tradition and attempts at reform. The dimensions and basic dynamics of these initiatives in the Shiite tradition are not adequately included in Turkish studies. Our study includes the criticisms of the Iranian thinker Shaykh Hadi Najmabadi, who can be considered as the first example of the breeding works that started in the Shiite tradition in the contemporary period, based on his own work.SummaryIn our tradition of Islamic thought, the emergence of personalities called “mujaddid” at important intellectual breaking points shows that the need for renewal and change is continuous. In this context, it is possible to define the 19th century Iranian history as a period of painful conflicts between modernization and tradition. A number of changes in the political field, which began with Fath Ali Shah of the Qajar dynasty and continued with Nasiruddin Shah, gradually spread to the social layers. As a result of this, it has been seen that a lot of ideas emerged for the emergence of a new perception of religion under the name of Islamic awakening. Among these remedies voiced by various groups, new perspectives on the reinterpretation of religious texts according to the needs of the society emerged, besides the demands of the Western imitation and the separation of religion from politics. In this context, the 19th century Iranian thinker Shaykh Hadi Najmâbâdî had a founding influence and led the innovators who came after him. One of the important points that distinguishes him is that he adopted and defended the ideas of innovation, which had been gained by the political and military bureaucratic circles, which began to be seen in the levels of the state. Particularly in the period of criticism against the clergy class, his internal criticism of the class he was a member of, enabled him to have a wider influence area.At the root of his criticism lies the superior position that the ulama class has achieved throughout history. The centralization and institutionalization of the ulama in Shi'ism was possible as a result of the accumulation of long centuries in this field. The Shi'ite ulama, which began with Shaykh Mufîd and continued with Sharif al-Murtazâ and Shaykh Tûsî, was of the opinion that the mind was only a means of verifying flats. This emphasis on Nass has resulted in the ulama being the sole authority in all interpretations to be made in adherence to it. In the 11th century, the ijtihad and reason debates led to the emergence of “neyâbat-ı amme” understanding. This understanding led to the fact that in the absence of the imams, the scholars were seen as naibs who could use their powers. In the absence of imams, the concept of taqlid emerges in determining the position of Shiite society against reason and case law. The concept of taqlid and its forms of understanding play a key role in the emergence of the institution of authority and in the efforts to improve Shiite thought in the following centuries. The development of an taqlid-based relationship between the mujtahids who reached the level of ijtihad and the large masses of people who could not reach this level brought about political and sociological breaks along with Shiite theology. Whether or not imitation is permissible, and who will taqlid it and how it will be taqlid has been a prominent discussion topic of Shiite thought for many centuries. Shaykh Mufîd, for example, states that some people approach the tradition without question, blindly believe in the proofs of the existing transplants, and acknowledge that there is a section that does not need reasoning and is only obliged to taqlid.By the 19th century, the Usuli ulama introduced the principle of “a‘lamiyyat” suggesting that the most knowledgeable person of the ulama should lead the people just like the imams and formed the institution of marja-ı taqlid. With the adoption of Shaykh Murtazâ Ansârî as the highest authority, a new era began in the Shiite thought and the definitive dominance of the ulama class was established on both Shiite society and politics. Moreover, in this period, the revival of various rituals, the construction of religious centers and so on. the institutionalization of the religious sphere was ensured through numerous activities and thus the basis for the formation of a homogeneous religious doctrine was prepared. As a natural consequence of this, any kind of formation that could be an alternative to central religious understanding was denied and the authority of the scholars was strengthened. On the one hand, the situation of the Islamic world in the face of the West, on the other hand, the sect gained a new shape with the hand of the scholars, Iran, as in other Islamic countries, emerged at the end of the 19th century and the 20th century, the strengthening of the Shiite orthodoxy in this way emerged provided a socio-cultural background.The ideas of Shaykh Hadi Najmâbâdî should be considered from two different perspectives. One of his most important characteristics is his open attitude towards the Shah's administration in Iran. His close friendship with the famous reformist Jamaladdin Afghani made his political direction more prominent and supported Afghani's panislamism. In order to serve this purpose, he established an association in Tehran and worked with Afghani in Istanbul at the time. These features highlighted his recognition of freedom, justice and human rights and his contribution to the preparation of the constitutional revolution. In our opinion, what differentiates him from the other scholars of his time is his rationalist-centered pro-innovation ideas that he tries to bring to religious thought. He argues that the cause of the problems and backwardness are not based on external factors, but from within Islam itself. He stresses that the source of these problems is to move away from the mind-centered thinking of Islamic society and embrace the tradition that people produce. In his thinking, mind comes before all other means. According to him, the most important reason for the lagging behind of the Islamic world, especially Iran, is the dominance of a religious understanding overwhelmed by bidat and superstitions. The most important role of such a conception of religion in the dominance of the clergy. Thus, he advocated and understanding that sees Muslims as the source of both the problem and the solution. He emphasizes that in order to re-enforce Islam, it is necessary to return to first-hand sources rather than the dark pages of Islamic history, which have been created for various reasons in the historical process. What he is trying to do, however, is not to accept first-hand resources as they are, but to undergo an assessment under the control of mind. In this context, he emphasized primarily the deep criticism of the Shiite tradition towards the sources of knowledge. In this endeavor, he did not make a distinction between the clergy and the ordinary people in solving the problems of Muslims and emphasized that all Muslims should be part of the solution. Stating that the most important factor that will provide this solution is the questioning of the current accumulation of tradition by mind, that all religious elders including imams cannot be left behind, he tried to touch an area that is considered innocent by Shiites and cannot be touched. In this context, he thinks that it is imperative to reconsider the perception of the Shia tradition as imams, khabars, condolences, intercession, the Qur'an and the prophet. With these ideas, Shaykh Hadi left an important heritage of criticism to the intellectuals who would succeed him.