Sheikh Ṭūsī, al-Amālī

Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan b. ʿAlī b. al-Ḥasan (Arabic: محمد بن الحسن بن علي بن الحسن) (b. 385/995 in Tus, d. 460/1067 in Najaf), better known as al-Shaykh al-Ṭūsī (Arabic: الشيخ الطوسي), was one of the greatest Shi'a jurists and compilers of hadith. He has written many works in the fields of theology and tafsir. For his great contributions and tremendous influence, he received the honorable title of al-Shaykh al-Ṭāʾifa (الشيخ الطائفة) (the chief or head of the Shi'a). He moved from Khorasan to Iraq at the age of 23 and benefited from teachers like al-Shaykh al-Mufid and al-Sharif al-Murtada. The Abbasid caliph appointed him to the chair of Theology of Baghdad. When the library of Shapur was set on fire, he had no choice but to move to Najaf and establish a seminary there. Al-Shaykh al-Tusi became the marja' of the Shi'a after the demise of al-Sharif al-Murtada. His jurisprudential theories and writings such as al-Nihaya, al-Khilaf and al-Mabsut are consulted by jurisprudents. His important exegesis is al-Tibyan. Al-Shaykh al-Tusi was also an expert in other fields such as rijal, theology and principles of jurisprudence and his books are references for religious studies. He started to transform Shi'i ijtihad and expanded its discussions and made it independent from Sunni ijtihad. His most famous student is Abu l-Salah al-Halabi.

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