Mahdaviat
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mahdaviat is a religious term in Iranian Shi'a Islam meaning "belief in and efforts to prepare for the Mahdi". Believing followers of any Mahdi claimant can be referred to as Mahdawis (or Mahdavis); their belief, faith or school of thought is thus Mahdaviat (or Mahdawia(t) and similar transliterations, depending on Arabic, Persian or Urdu pronunciation).
In Islamic eschatology, the Second Coming of Isa (Jesus) is preceded by the appearance of a figure known as the Mahdi or "rightly-guided one". Shi'ah Muslims believe this person is the same as the 12th Imam (also Imam Zaman), who was hidden by God following the death of his father in 874, and will reappear as "the restorer of religion and justice who will rule before the end of the world".
According to Masoud Poursayed-Aghaie, head of the Bright Future Institute in Qom :
- Mahdaviat is a code for the revolution, and is the spirit of the revolution
The belief is reportedly held by approximately 20% of Iranian Shi'a, and has been associated with the banned Hojjatieh Mahdavieh Society .
The followers of Indian Mahdi (or Mahdi-e-Mow'ood) claimant Syed Mohammad Jaunpuri are referred to as Mahdavis (Urdu/Persian: گروه مهدويه ), and their belief system is also known as Mahdaviat (Urdu/Persian: مهدويت).
[edit] See also
- Mahdi
- People claiming to be the Mahdi
- Hadith about the Mahdi
- Islamic eschatology
- List of Islamic terms in Arabic
[edit] References
- ^ True believers dial messiah hotline in Iran, by Scott Peterson
- ^ Is the Hojjatieh Society Making a Comeback (in Google's cache)
