The 16th-century fervently anti-Sunni Iranian Safavid palace and court ‘scholar’, the ‘Shaykh al-Islam’ of Shiism, Majlisi II, not only attacked the Quran by denying its integrity and absolved the Jews of any involvement in the murder of the Prophet (), not only advocated kufr upon kufr in his magnum opus ‘Bihar al-Anwar’ (Bihar al-Dhulamat wal-Khurafat) and other works but also passionately sanctified the Majoosi eid of Nowruz, aligning himself with the ‘Ayatollahs’ in Iran and even Iraq in our time.
Mohammad Baqir Majlisi (d. 1699 CE / 1110 AH), known as Majlisi II, is renowned as one of Shiism's greatest 'Shaykh al-Islam' figures. He has been described as one of the most powerful and influential Shia scholars of all time. His policies and actions reoriented Twelver Shiism in the direction it was to develop from his day onward. Like his father, Majlisi was granted immense authority by the anti-Sunni Iranian Safavids and served as a useful palace and court cleric for them. He spent most of his time executing his powers by oppressing the Sunnis of Iran more than any other religious group and, of course, peddling all sorts of fabricated heresies and paganism to Islam in the name of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon him).
Majlisi’s insistence on the sanctity of Nowruz
Majlisi not only endorsed Majoosi Nowrooz; in fact, he went as far as to claim that the Ahl al-Bayt sanctified and venerated Nowruz and that even Shia narrations stating otherwise should be dismissed! He mentions the following narration only to dismiss it and to Majoosify the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them)
حكي أن المنصور تقدم إلى موسى بن جعفر عليهما السلام بالجلوس للتهنئة في يوم النيروز وقبض ما يحمل إليه، فقال: إني قد فتشت الاخبار عن جدي رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله فلم أجد لهذا العيد خبرا، وإنه سنة الفرس ومحاها الاسلام ومعاذ الله أن نحيي ما محاها الاسلام. فقال المنصور: إنما نفعل هذا سياسة للجند فسألتك بالله العظيم إلا جلست، فجلس –
بحار الأنوار – المجلسي – ج ٥٦ – الصفحة ١٠٠
It is narrated that Al-Mansur (al-Abbasi) approached Musa ibn Ja’far (peace be upon them) to congratulate him on the occasion of Nowruz and to receive what was brought to him. Musa said, “I have searched for reports regarding my grandfather, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family), and I have found no mention of this celebration. Indeed, it is a Persian custom (Sunnah), and Islam has eradicated it. May Allah forbid that we revive what Islam has eradicated.” Al-Mansur replied, “We only do this as a political strategy for the army. I swear by Almighty Allah, I ask nothing of you except to sit down.” So he sat down. (Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 56, p. 100-101)
بيان هذا الخبر مخالف لأخبار المعلى و يدل على عدم اعتبار النيروز شرعا و أخبار المعلى اقوى سندا و أشهر بين الأصحاب و يمكن حمل هذا على التقية لاشتمال خبر المعلى على ما يتقى فيه و لذا يتقى في إظهار التبرك به في تلك الأزمنة في بلاد المخالفين أو على أن اليوم الذي كانوا يعظمونه غير النيروز المراد في خبر المعلى كما سيأتي ذكر الاختلاف فيه
بحار الأنوار – العلامة المجلسي – ج ٥٦ – الصفحة ١٠١
“This report contradicts the reports of al-Mu’alla*, indicating the lack of consideration of Nowruz as religiously significant. The reports of al-Mua’lla are stronger and more famous among the companions (i.e., Shia scholars), and this can be interpreted as taqiyyah due to the inclusion of what is concealed in the report of al-Mu’alla. Therefore, it is prudent to show reverence for it (i.e., Nowruz) during those times in the lands of opponents (i.e., Sunnis), or that the day they revered was not the Nowruz intended in the report of al-Mu’alla, as the difference will be mentioned later.” (Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 56, p. 101)
*A Shia narrator who narrated pro-Majoosi and anti-Sahabah statements and attributed them to the Ahl al-Bayt.
Figures like Majlisi, regarded as pillars of Shiite scholarship on which the entire Shia clergy of today is founded, vigorously advocated for Majoosi/Zoroastrian-rooted holidays such as Nowruz and insisted on its attribution to Islam and the Ahl al-Bayt. However, Islam, the Quran, and the Sunnah have never affirmed such eid, let alone endorsing it as sacred
Majlisi reports: Persians have safeguarded Nowruz while you Arabs have neglected it!
وَهُوَ اَلْيَوْمُ اَلَّذِي فِيهِ يَظْهَرُ قَائِمُنَا أَهْلَ اَلْبَيْتِ ووُلاَةَ اَلْأَمْرِ ويُظْفِرُهُ اَللَّهُ بِالدَّجَّالِ ، فَيَصْلِبُهُ عَلَى كُنَاسَةِ اَلْكُوفَةِ ، وَمَا مِنْ إِلاَّ وَنَحْنُ نَتَوَقَّعُ فِيهِ اَلْفَرَجَ لِأَنَّهُ مِنْ أَيَّامِنَا حَفِظَهُ اَلْفُرْسُ وَضَيَّعْتُمُوهُ
وسائل الشيعه – بحار الأنوار
“And it is the day on which our Qa’im (i.e., Mahdi), from the progeny of Ahl al-Bayt and the rulers of authority, will emerge, and Allah will grant him victory over the Dajjal. He will then crucify him on the palm trunk in Kufa. There is no day of Nowruz but that we anticipate in it the relief (i.e., the emergence of the Mahdi) because it is one of our days, safeguarded by the Persians, while you (i.e., Arabs) have neglected it.” (Wasa’il al-Shia and Bihar al-Anwar)
To hammer the point home, here’s more evidence—irrefutable references that show Majlisi wasn’t simply recounting stories but actively endorsing them.
Chapter: “Nowruz day and its designation, the joy of the days of the Persians, Romans, and their misfortunes, and rare anecdotes.” I (i.e., Majlisi) say: “I have seen in some reputable books…” (Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 56, p. 91)
Majlisi then proceeded to quote the following brazen fabrication attributed to the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt, absurdities that reek only of paganism stemming from the whims and desires of some Majoosi zindiq.
I (Al-Mu’alla, the narrator) visited Ja’far ibn Muhammad al-Sadiq (peace be upon him) on the day of Nowruz, and he said to me: “Do you know this day?” I replied: “May I be your sacrifice, this is a day revered by non-Arabs (i.e., Persians), and they celebrate and exchange gifts on it.” Abu Abdillah al-Sadiq (peace be upon him) responded: “And the ancient House in Makkah, what is it but an ancient affair that I shall explain to you until you understand it.” I exclaimed: “O my master! Knowledge of this from you is dearer to me than the life of my ancestors and the death of my enemies!”He continued: “O Mu’alla! The day of Nowruz is the day in which Allah took the covenant of worship from His servants, that they should worship none but Him and associate nothing with Him, and that they should believe in His messengers and proofs, and that they should believe in the Imams, peace be upon them. It is the first day when the sun rose, when the winds blew, and when the flowers of the earth bloomed.It is the day when the ark of Noah, peace be upon him, rested on Mount Judi, and when Allah revived those who left their homes, numbering thousands, wary of death, and Allah said to them, ‘Die,’ and then He brought them back to life. It is the day when Gabriel descended to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him and his family, and when the Prophet carried the Commander of the Faithful (i.e., Ali ibn Abi Talib), peace be upon him, on his shoulders and threw the idols of Quraysh from the top of the Ka’bah, shattering them.It is also the day of Abraham, peace be upon him. It is the day when the Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, commanded his companions to pledge allegiance to Ali, peace be upon him, as the leader of the believers.It is the day when the Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, directed Ali, peace be upon him, to the Valley of Jinn to take their allegiance.It is the day of the second allegiance to the Commander of the Faithful, peace be upon him. It is the day when he triumphed over the people of Nahrawan and killed Dhul-Thudayyah. It is the day when our Qa’im (i.e., Shia Mahdi) and the rulers of authority appear.It is the day when our Qa’im triumphs over the Dajjal and crucifies him on the date palm of Kufa. And there is no Nowruz day except that we (i.e., the Ahl al-Bayt) anticipate relief (i.e., the emergence of the Mahdi) in it, because it is among our days and the days of our Shia; the Persians safeguarded it while you (i.e., Arabs) neglected it.” And he said: ‘A prophet from among the prophets asked his Lord, “How can I revive these people who have left?”So Allah inspired him to pour water on them while they were in their beds on this day, which is the first day of the Persian year, so they lived, and they were thirty thousand, so pouring water on Nowruz became a Sunnah (tradition). So I said: ‘O my master! Don’t you recognise me? May I be your sacrifice. Do you know the names of the days in Persian?’So he (peace be upon him) said: ‘O Mu’alla! They are ancient days from the old months, each month consisting of thirty days with no increase or decrease. So the first day of each month is called ‘Hormuzd Roz,’ a name of Allah the Almighty. Allah created Adam on that day. The Persians say: ‘It is a good day suitable for drinking and joy.’And Al-Sadiq (peace be upon him) said: ‘It is a happy blessed day, a day of joy. Princes and dignitaries speak on it and seek their needs, for they will succeed by the permission of Allah. Whoever is born on this day will be blessed. Visit the ruler on this day, buy and sell, sow, plant, build, and travel, for it is a chosen day suitable for all matters and for marriage. Whoever falls ill on this day will recover quickly, and whoever loses something will find it, God willing.’ (Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 56, p. 91-93 and Wasa’il al-Shia, vol. 8, p. 173)
Note: The complete narration is ridiculously longer (page after page!) and even more shocking than what I’ve translated. It continues endlessly, with Ja’far al-SadiqZoroastrian Persian solar calendar month, unsurprisingly praising it and affirming the superstitions that Persians believe regarding luck, misfortune, and other superstitions in each specific month.
In the same book and volume, Majlisi attributes a narration to Ja’far al-Sadiq in which it is claimed that the event at Ghadir Khumm occurred on Nowruz:
Little to no surprise, the same Majoosi khurafat (superstitions) are peddled by the Shia clergy in the 21st century:
Shia cleric (and ‘professor’ at the Hawzah of Qom) Ali Akbar Mahdipour
Mahdipoour claims that:
- Ghadir Khumm was on “the great day of Nowruz”!
- Reliable Shia hadiths state that Ali’s divine authority (‘Wilayah’) was declared on Nowruz!
- The Shia Mahdi will emerge on the “holy day” (!) of Nowruz and hang the Dajjal in the city of Kufa
- The Ahl al-Bayt said they look forward (!) to every Nowruz for the emergence of the Mahdi!
- The Ahlul-Bayt said that the Arabs have neglected the Eid (!) of Nowruz while the Persians have safeguarded it!
- Nowruz is not just a cultural and national holiday but rather an actual religious eid to the Shia!
The etiquette and recommended religious acts on Nowruz!
Majlisi was indeed an extraordinary Nowruz enthusiast, to the point where he dedicated an entire chapter of his ‘Zad Al-Ma’ad’ (‘Provisions of the Hereafter’), a book he admitted serves as a guide for Shia Muslims in matters concerning the protocols of prayers, fasting, and embracing Islamic months, including Nowruz.
