An Examination Around the Position and Role of Muhammad Ibn Homam Eskafi in the So-called Foundation for Delegation

Some scholars at the Minor Occultation era, in addition to transmitting the teachings of the People of the Household in the form of narrations and works of the past people, also played the role of advocate in the so-called foundation for delegation; among them, we can mention Muhammad Ibn Homam Eskafi.
This paper, with a descriptive-analytic method, intends to investigate the position and role of Muhammad ibn Homam in the so-called foundation for delegation.
This study, by investigating and searching the historical and hadith sources, proves that Muhammad ibn Homam was one of the members of the so-called foundation for delegation during the second and third lawyer period and was in charge of the so-called foundation for delegation for short time. Moreover, by investigating his role in the so-called foundation for delegation, we mention that he had played a significant role in consolidating the delegation of Muhammad ibn Othman and Hussain ibn Noah, and in confronting the false claimants and devious attorneys, especially Shalmaghani, and has used the strategy of prevarication to conceal the name and the location of the Twelfth Imam.