[citation needed] The title Hujjat al-Islam has a significant weight within the Islamic community.
It offers historical significance, educational purposes and responsibilities, traditional continuation, and ethical guidance.
[4] Its first recorded use was in a Sunni context, as a title for the 11th-century theologian al-Ghazali, due to his refutations of Hellenistic-influenced philosophers and Isma'ilis.
[6] In the contemporary era, Egyptian Muhaddith Qadi Ahmad Shakir would confer the title "Hujjat al-Islam" to his teacher Muhammad Rashid Rida, upon his death.
[7] Deobandis granted this title to their leader Hanafi Maturidi theologian Muhammad Qasim Nanautavi for his debates with scholars of other religions and establishing Darul Uloom Deoband.
[3] In Shia Islam, Hujjaj al-Islam are supposed to be an authority in order to guide them until the return of Imam al-Mahdi while preserving and continuing his teachings.