Grand Ayatollah Muhammad Hussain Najafi

Grand Ayatollah Muhammad Hussain Najafi (born 1946 in Sargodha, Pakistan) is a Grand Marja and one of the most senior Twelver Shia religious authorities in Pakistan. He leads the Jamia-tul-Muntazar Hawza Ilmiyya in Sargodha, which is one of the most significant centers of Shia Islamic scholarship in South Asia, training hundreds of scholars who serve Shia communities across Pakistan and internationally.

Born in Sargodha, Punjab, he pursued his religious education through the traditional Hawza system, studying in Pakistan before traveling to Iraq and Iran for advanced studies under senior Ayatollahs. He returned to Pakistan where he dedicated himself to establishing and expanding the Hawza Ilmiyya in Sargodha, building it into one of the premier institutions for Shia Islamic education in the country. He has authored numerous works in Arabic and Urdu covering Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh), theology (kalam), Quranic exegesis (tafsir), and the sciences of the Ahlul-Bayt.

He is recognized as a Grand Marja — meaning he has the scholarly qualifications to issue independent religious rulings (ijtihad) — and Shia Muslims may follow his rulings in matters of Islamic law. He is deeply respected for his scholarship, piety, and decades of service to Islamic education. His fatawa (religious rulings) and writings address the needs of Pakistani and South Asian Shia Muslims navigating contemporary life while adhering to Islamic principles. He maintains a large following particularly among Pakistani Shia Muslims and the South Asian diaspora, especially those from Punjab.