Ayatollah Muhammad Koohestani

Muhammad Koohestani, Iranian scholar, was born in 1888 into an educated and religious family. His father "Ayatollah Mahdi Koohestani" was a prominenet scholar and jurisconsult. After learning the Quran and Persian literature, he went to "Behshahr Hawzeh" (a religious school in Behshahr –Iran) and studied inflection & syntax, logic, jurisprudence and methodology in the presence of prominent masters: "sheikh Ahmad Rahmani", "Sadeq Shariati", "Ayatollah Khezr Ashrafi" and "Seyyed Mohsen Nabavi". After finishing basic sciences and learning Arabic #### literature, he travelled to Mashhad to continue his deducation. He studied "Ma'alem al –Osul" (on methodology) in the presence of "Ayatollah Astar Abaadi" and the book "Explanation of Lom'eh" under "sheikh Sh'ban Hojati". In 1921, Ayatollah Koohestani went to Najaf –Iraq to complete his education. At that time there were great jurisconsults in "Najaf Hawzeh" and it caudsed him to study profoundly. Ayatollah Koohestani had scientific discussions with "Ayatollah Taqi Amoli" (jurisconsult).

His masters in Behshahr:
1)Ayatollah Khezr Ashrafi (d. 1917)
2) Ayatollah Seyyed Mohsen Nabavi: he has been trained in the presence of prominent masters "Ayatollah Seyyed Kazem Yazdi" and "Ayatollah mullah Kazem Khorasani" and other great scholars and then became one of the most significant masters of "Najaf Hawzeh".

The masters in Mashhad
1) Ayatollah sheikh Najaf Ali Fazel Astar Abaadi: born in 1887 into a religious family. He was trained under "sheikh Ali Allameh Haeri" for four years.
In 1922, travelled to Najaf and studied in the presence of: "Muhaqeq Naieni", "Zia Iraqi" and "Seyyed Abul Hasan Isfahani".
2) Aytollah Hossein Tabatabaee Qomi: Ayatollah Koohestani had a especial respect for him.

The masters in Najaf:
1) He studied jurisprudence in the presence of "Ayatollah Mirza Hossein Naieni" and "Ayatollah Seyyed Abul Hasan Isfahani" and methodology (Osul) in the presence of "Ayatollah Zia Iraqi".
2) Ayatollah Mirza Hossein Naieni (d. 1936), great religious leader and an expert scholar in jurisprudence and methodology.
3) Ayatollah Seyyed Abul Hasan Isfahani
4) Ayatollah Zia Iraqi.

In 1929, Ayatollah Kohestani finished his education in Njaf and returned to Iran. He built a religious school (Hawzeh) in his own birth-place and trained hundreds students. His wife always supported him; his success was indebted to him. Aytollah died in 1972.