Hawzah News Agency- In a message marking Book and Reading Week, Ayatollah Arafi underlined the fundamental role of libraries in the scientific life of individuals, academic centers, and seminaries, and the responsibility of scholarly institutions to foster the growth of books and libraries under new conditions.
"Undoubtedly, in the scholarly tradition of the seminary, a library is not merely a place for collecting and preserving works; it is the backbone of research, a platform for the interaction of ideas, and a link between the scientific heritage of the past and the intellectual endeavors of the present generation," he said.
Recalling a saying of Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq (AS) — "Write and spread your knowledge among your brothers, and bequeath your books to your children" — Ayatollah Arafi noted that this guidance underscores both the dissemination of knowledge and the responsibility to pass scientific treasures on to future generations, a task in which libraries hold a distinguished and undeniable place.
He stressed that seminary libraries must be elevated from storehouses of resources to active centers of research support and guidance, in keeping with the scientific standing and intellectual mission of the seminaries. This requires targeted planning, sustained support, and serious commitment from seminary authorities, including the development and modernization of collections, strengthening specialized libraries, upgrading information and research services, improving technical and information infrastructure, and providing specialized manpower.
The role of librarians and information science specialists, he added, goes beyond organizing and maintaining resources. Through their understanding of the scientific needs of users, their guidance of researchers, and their facilitation of access to knowledge assets, they make an effective contribution to the dynamism of research and the quality of scientific activity. "It is fitting that the professional and specialized status of these servants be honored and that the ground be prepared for greater benefit from their knowledge and capabilities," he said.
Ayatollah Arafi further noted that the flourishing of libraries will only bear fruit when a culture of reading takes a stable place in the scientific life of seminary students alongside educational and research programs. Cultivating thoughtful, inquisitive students equipped with analytical and reasoning skills depends on opening horizons of study beyond textbooks, strengthening free and problem-oriented studies, and providing suitable opportunities for engagement with scholarly and intellectual works, he said.
He also pointed to the profound transformation in the concept and scope of the book brought about by stunning advances in cognitive sciences and smart technologies, with all their benefits and harms. This, he said, makes it all the more necessary to reconsider the concepts of the book, research, and scientific production, to rebuild them, and to steer the developments facing Islamic research and sciences. He added that reviving written religious, Islamic, and Shia heritage, preserving its historical legacies, and networking libraries and systems are further tasks that must be addressed.
Ayatollah Arafi expressed hope that through the synergy of administrators, professors, librarians, and those responsible for the scientific and cultural affairs of seminary libraries, these institutions will attain their rightful standing and become vibrant centers for the production, exchange, and dissemination of knowledge and the cultivation of thought — centers that brighten the lamp of knowledge and smooth the path of training future scholars and researchers.
Concluding his message, he congratulated all on Book and Reading Week and expressed sincere gratitude for the valuable efforts and services of librarians, researchers, writers, and all those engaged in promoting a culture of reading and spreading knowledge, asking God Almighty to grant everyone ever-greater success in elevating the scientific foundation of the seminaries and spreading authentic Islamic teachings.
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