The 34th graduation ceremony of students of Darululoom Zahedan (Iran) took place after several years of interruption on Thursday, January 31, 2025, with a magnificent gathering of guests from all over the country, hosted by the people of Zahedan.
According to the organizers of the ceremony, the reason for not holding the graduation ceremonies in previous years was due to the spread of the coronavirus and the special security conditions in the province of Sistan and Baluchestan in recent years.
During this ceremony, which was held in several compressed sessions, there was an honor bestowed upon the memorizers of the Quran and graduates (both male and female) from the past few years of Darululoom Zahedan. Most of the guests belonged to Khorasan with guests from inside the province and other parts of Iran. Some scholars and public figures from Sunni-populated provinces intended to join the ceremony, but they were prevented from participating in the occasion.
Unofficial session
The 34th Graduation Ceremony of Students of Darululoom Zahedan informally started on Wednesday afternoon, January 30, 2025, with the program “Gathering for Quran Recitation” at the Makki Mosque in Zahedan, next to Darululoom Zahedan. During this Quran gathering, reciters of the Holy Quran performed their recitations. In the same session, Mawlana Abdol Majid Moradzehi, a Sunni writer and researcher, and Mawlana Dr. Obaidullah Badpa, a Hadith scholar and dean of the specialized department for Islamic thought and Da’wah at Darululoom Zahedan, talked to the audiences. At the end, Shaikh-ul-Islam Mawlana Abdol Hamid welcomed the guests of the 34th graduation ceremony.
Part One/ Honoring the Graduates of 2019 and 2020
The ceremony officially started on Thursday morning, January 31, 2025. In this segment, Molavi Mahmoud-ul-Hasan Ozbakzehi, representing the graduates of the current academic year, spoke first. This was followed by speeches from Zubair Akhund from Golestan province, Mawlana Khodabakhsh Islamdoust from Chabahar, representing Shaikh-ul-Hadith Mawlana Abd-ur-Rahman Chabahari, Mawlana Mohammad Tayyeb Mollazehi from Iranshahr, and Mawlana Mohammad Mofleh from Afghanistan. The first part of the official ceremony concluded with honoring the graduates of 2019 and 2020 from Darululoom Zahedan.
In this spiritual gathering, the old and young, and the rich and poor all sat together on mats. In the spiritual atmosphere of the graduation ceremony, no one was feeling to be superior, and everyone respected one another, making efforts to share in goodness and blessings together.
During the announcement of the names of the graduates from this section, it became clear that several graduates had passed away over the years. One of these graduates was the martyr Mawlavi “Omid Shahnavazi,” one of the martyrs of the bloody Friday in Zahedan. His father, holding a picture of his martyr son, was present at the ceremony. Upon hearing this news and witnessing the scene of the father of martyr Mawlavi Omid Shahnavazi, a heavy and sorrowful silence enveloped the atmosphere of the ceremony for a few moments.
Part Two/ Honoring Male Graduates of 2021 and Female Graduates of 2019, 2020, and 2021
In this section, the program continued with a speech by Mawlana Abdol Ghani Badri, the educational deputy and a prominent teacher of Tafsir and Hadith at Darululoom Zahedan. Mawlana Badri highlighted the prevention of prominent scholars and intellectual figures from attending the ceremony, noting that while most guests had no issues attending, scholars from Kurdistan, Golestan, Khorasan, Hormozgan, Fars, and intellectuals from Tehran have been banned from participation.
He continued by referring to “the role of youth in revolutions”, and said: In every historical revolution, young people have played a significant role. The young companions in the early days of Islam created wonders and spread Islam to the farthest corners of the world. Almighty Allah has granted youth strength, ability, competence, and special talents, and they are expected to choose the prophets of Allah, especially Prophet Yousuf (peace be upon him), as the best role models for their lives.
Final Part and Honoring Graduates of 2024 and Quran Memorizers from 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2024
The final part of the ceremony began after the delayed noon prayer and continued until sunset. Speakers included Mawlana Mufti Mohammad Qasem Qasemi, Shaikh Ibrahim Ismaili from Hormozgan, and Shaikh-ul-Islam Mawlana Abdol Hamid, president of Darululoom Zahedan. They honored the male and female graduates of 2024 and Quran memorizers from the years 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2024.
The sun was slowly approaching its moments of sunset, and the air was gradually getting colder, but none of the guests was willing to leave this spiritual atmosphere. They had endured the hardships of the journey to gather in this spiritual gathering, and to take with them a provision of faith, spirituality, and eagerness to act upon their faith.
The moment everyone was waiting for…
Mawlana Abdol Hamid, as the final lecturer and speaker, emphasized the importance of learning both Islamic and modern sciences, and described Islam as a religion of interaction and tolerance, and discussed the defensive nature of Jihad in Islam.
He emphasized that knowledge and education are not just for men, saying: Both women and men must work hard in this path; because our nation needs righteous scholars and cultured specialists to progress in both religious and worldly matters.
The famous Iranian scholar introduced Islam as “the religion of interaction and tolerance”, and emphasized: Jihad in Islam, from the perspective of many scholars, is ‘defensive jihad,’ aimed at deterring oppression and aggression. Islam has not spread by the sword, but rather has influenced the world through ethics and the beautiful teachings of the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet of Islam.
Mawlana Abdol Hamid, in his continued remarks, referred to the economic problems faced by the people of Iran, and said: Iran is one of the richest countries in the world in terms of talent and natural resources; why do the people of Iran face economic problems? One of the demands of the Iranian people is that all assets and resources of the country must be spent within Iran and for the people of Iran.
The Imam of Zahedan considered one reason for the current problems in the country to be “the employment of weak directors”, and stated: The country needs strong management and collective thinking.
He expressed his satisfaction with “the solidarity among the Iranian people and Sunni scholars” and added: Thank God, today, Sunni scholars from the province and the country stand together, supporting each other.
Mawlana Abdol Hamid also emphasized the importance of maintaining security, saying: Maintaining regional security is very vital and important. Issues and demands should be raised and pursued through dialogue, negotiation, and constructive criticism.
He also mentioned issues related to Gaza, stating: Thank God, there is now a ceasefire in Gaza. The people of Gaza need sympathy and humanitarian assistance. We, like many regions around the world, should collect humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza and encourage people on this matter.
In conclusion, Mawlana Abdol Hamid thanked all the people as well as the provincial officials for their cooperation in organizing this conference. He also expressed his grievances regarding the prevention of some prominent scholars from attending the conference.
The ceremony concluded with prayers led by Shaikh-ul-Islam Mawlana Abdul Hamid on Thursday evening, January 31, 2025.
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