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Ayatollah
Ayatollah (, ; ; ) is an Title of honor, honorific title for high-ranking Twelver Shia clergy. It came into widespread usage in the 20th century. Originally used as a title bestowed by popular/clerical acclaim for a small number of the most distinguished ''marja' at-taqlid'' ''mujtahid'', it suffered from "inflation" following the 1979 Iranian Revolution when it came to be used for "any established mujtahid".Momen, ''An Introduction to Shi'i Islam'', 1985, p.205-6 By 2015 it was further expanded to include any student who had passed their Mujtahid final exam, leading to "thousands" of Ayatollahs. The title is not used by the Sunni Islam, Sunni community of Iran. In the Western world – especially after the Iranian Revolution – it was associated with Ruhollah Khomeini, who was so well known as to often be referred to as "The Ayatollah". Etymology The title is originally derived from the Arabic word Grammatical modifier#Premodifiers and postmodifiers, post-modified with t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ali Khamenei
Ali Hosseini Khamenei (; born 19 April 1939) is an Iranian cleric and politician who has served as the second supreme leader of Iran since 1989. He previously served as the third President of Iran, president from 1981 to 1989. Khamenei's tenure as Supreme Leader, spanning over years, makes him the longest-serving head of state in the Middle East and the second-longest-serving Iranian leader of the 20th and 21st centuries, after Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. A Grand Ayatollah and , he is often associated with leading the Axis of Resistance, a term used to describe a coalition of Iran-aligned groups in the Middle East. According to his official website, Khamenei was arrested six times before being exiled for three years during the reign of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. In June 1981, after the Iranian revolution and the overthrow of the shah, he was the target of an Attempted assassination of Ali Khamenei, attempted assassination that paralysed his right arm. Khamenei was one of Iran's lea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ruhollah Khomeini
Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini (17 May 1900 or 24 September 19023 June 1989) was an Iranian revolutionary, politician, political theorist, and religious leader. He was the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the main leader of the Iranian Revolution, which overthrew Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, and served as the first supreme leader of Iran, the highest-ranking political and religious authority of the Islamic Republic until Death and state funeral of Ruhollah Khomeini, his death in 1989. Born in Khomeyn, in what is now Iran's Markazi province, his father was murdered when Khomeini was two years old. He began studying the Quran and Classical Arabic, Arabic from a young age assisted by his relatives. Khomeini became a high ranking cleric in Twelver Shi'ism, an ''ayatollah'', a ''marja''' ("source of emulation"), a ''Ijtihad#Qualifications of a mujtahid, mujtahid'' or ''faqīh'' (an expert in ''fiqh''), and author of more than 40 books. His opposition to the White Revolution result ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Imperial State of Iran by the Islamic Republic of Iran, as the monarchical government of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was superseded by the theocratic Ruhollah Khomeini, a religious cleric who had headed one of the rebel factions. The ousting of Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran, formally marked the end of List of monarchs of Persia, Iran's historical monarchy. In 1953, the CIA- and MI6-backed 1953 Iranian coup d'état overthrew Iran’s democratically elected Prime Minister, Mohammad Mossadegh, who had nationalized the country's oil industry to reclaim sovereignty from British control. The coup reinstalled Mohammad Reza Pahlavi as an absolute monarch and entrenched Iran as a client state of the U.S. and UK. Over the next 26 years, Pahlavi consolidated ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hawza
A hawza () or ḥawzah ʿilmīyah () is the collective term (plural hawzat) for a ''madrasa'' (i.e. seminary) where Marja', Shi'a Muslim scholars are educated. The word ''ḥawzah'' is Arabic, and has been adopted into Persian as a loan word. In Arabic, the word means "to hold something firmly". Accordingly, ''ḥawzah ʿilmīyah'' would mean a place where the firm knowledge (of the Muslim religion) is acquired. In the Persian language, ''ḥawzah'' refers to the middle part of a place or an area. ''Ḥawzah ʿilmīyah'' in Persian, therefore, means "the place of knowledge". Another meaning of the word is "circle of knowledge". Several senior Grand Ayatollahs constitute the hawza. The institutions in Najaf, Iraq and Qom, Iran, are the preeminent seminary centers for the education of Shi'a scholars. However, several smaller hawzas exist in other cities around the world, such as at Karbala, Iraq, Isfahan and Mashhad in Iran, Beirut, Lebanon, Lucknow, India, Lahore, Pakistan, Eur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shia Clergy
The Shia clergy are the religious leaders of Shia Islam. Shia Islam places great importance on the guidance of clergy, and each branch of Shi'ism maintains its own clerical structure. The most well-known Shia clergy belongs to the largest branch of Shia Islam, Twelver Shi'ism. As in other branches of Islam, Shia scholars are collectively known as the ''ulema''. Individual clerics are referred to as mullah or '' ākhūnd'', but because those terms have developed "a somewhat pejorative connotation" since at least the 1980s, the term ''rūḥānī'' has been "promoted" as an alternative, "especially by the clerical class itself". Twelver Usooli school Among the different schools of Twelver Shi'i Islam are Usooli and Akhbari. In the late 18th and early 19th century, the Usooli "triumphed" over the Akhbari Twelver.Momen, ''An Introduction to Shi'i Islam'', 1985, p.127, 204 Usooli Shia argued that "since only someone who has expended the time and effort to become a mujtahid could p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marja'
Marja (; plural ''marājiʿ''; ) is a title given to the highest level of Twelver Shia religious cleric, with the authority given by a hawzah (a seminary where Shi'a Muslim scholars are educated) to make legal decisions within the confines of Sharia, Islamic law for followers and clerics below him in rank. The highest ranking ''marjiʿ'' is known as the ''marja al-mutlaq'' or ''marja al-taqlid al-mutlaq''. A marji' is usually also a grand ayatollah. Sources differ as to when the institution of the marja˓ emerged, with Murtadha al-Ansari (died 1864) and Muhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Kulayni (died 940 or 941) both being called the first marja'. As of 2023, there are approximately List of current maraji, over 50 living maraji, almost all residing in Iran or Iraq. Title Currently, maraji' are accorded the title ''grand ayatollah'' ( ''ʾĀyatullāh al-ʿUẓmā''). Previously, the titles of Allamah (such as Allameh Tabatabaei, Allameh Majlesi, Allameh Hilli) and Imam (such as Imam Khomei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mujtahid
''Ijtihad'' ( ; ' , ) is an Islamic legal term referring to independent reasoning by an expert in Islamic law, or the thorough exertion of a jurist's mental faculty in finding a solution to a legal question. It is contrasted with '' taqlid'' (imitation, conformity to legal precedent). According to classical Sunni theory, ''ijtihad'' requires expertise in the Arabic language, theology, revealed texts, and principles of jurisprudence (''usul al-fiqh''), and is not employed where authentic and authoritative texts (Qur'an and hadith) are considered unambiguous with regard to the question, or where there is an existing scholarly consensus (''ijma''). ''Ijtihad'' is considered to be a religious duty for those qualified to perform it. An Islamic scholar who is qualified to perform ''ijtihad'' is called a "'' mujtahid''". For first five centuries of Islam, the practice of ''ijtihad'' continued in theory and practice among Sunni Muslims. It then first became subject to dispute in the 12 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marja'
Marja (; plural ''marājiʿ''; ) is a title given to the highest level of Twelver Shia religious cleric, with the authority given by a hawzah (a seminary where Shi'a Muslim scholars are educated) to make legal decisions within the confines of Sharia, Islamic law for followers and clerics below him in rank. The highest ranking ''marjiʿ'' is known as the ''marja al-mutlaq'' or ''marja al-taqlid al-mutlaq''. A marji' is usually also a grand ayatollah. Sources differ as to when the institution of the marja˓ emerged, with Murtadha al-Ansari (died 1864) and Muhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Kulayni (died 940 or 941) both being called the first marja'. As of 2023, there are approximately List of current maraji, over 50 living maraji, almost all residing in Iran or Iraq. Title Currently, maraji' are accorded the title ''grand ayatollah'' ( ''ʾĀyatullāh al-ʿUẓmā''). Previously, the titles of Allamah (such as Allameh Tabatabaei, Allameh Majlesi, Allameh Hilli) and Imam (such as Imam Khomei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mujtahid
''Ijtihad'' ( ; ' , ) is an Islamic legal term referring to independent reasoning by an expert in Islamic law, or the thorough exertion of a jurist's mental faculty in finding a solution to a legal question. It is contrasted with '' taqlid'' (imitation, conformity to legal precedent). According to classical Sunni theory, ''ijtihad'' requires expertise in the Arabic language, theology, revealed texts, and principles of jurisprudence (''usul al-fiqh''), and is not employed where authentic and authoritative texts (Qur'an and hadith) are considered unambiguous with regard to the question, or where there is an existing scholarly consensus (''ijma''). ''Ijtihad'' is considered to be a religious duty for those qualified to perform it. An Islamic scholar who is qualified to perform ''ijtihad'' is called a "'' mujtahid''". For first five centuries of Islam, the practice of ''ijtihad'' continued in theory and practice among Sunni Muslims. It then first became subject to dispute in the 12 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Twelver
Twelver Shi'ism (), also known as Imamism () or Ithna Ashari, is the Islamic schools and branches, largest branch of Shia Islam, Shi'a Islam, comprising about 90% of all Shi'a Muslims. The term ''Twelver'' refers to its adherents' belief in twelve divinely ordained leaders, known as the Twelve Imams, and their belief that the last Imam, Hujjat-Allah al-Mahdi, Imam al-Mahdi, lives in Occultation (Islam), occultation (''ghayba'') and will reappear as "the awaited Mahdi" (''al-Mahdi al-muntazar''). Twelver Shi'as believe that the Twelve Imams are divinely appointed as both spiritual and political successors to the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and that they possess special knowledge and authority to guide the Muslim community. According to theology of Twelvers, Twelver theology, the Twelve Imams are exemplary human individuals who rule over the Ummah, Muslim community (''Ummah'') with justice, and are able to preserve and interpret the Sharia, Islamic law (Sharia) and the Esoteric inter ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hujjat Al-Islam
Hujjat al-Islam (, ) is an Islamic honorific title which translates in English to "authority on Islam" or "proof of Islam". The title "Hujjat al-Islam" is given to scholars with a high level of Islamic expertise and Islamic theology. Essentially, one who acquires this title is considered to be a respectful authority to Islam. The person with this title is also able to provide guidance and clarify topics on issues in the Islamic community. The term "Hujjat al-Islam" has different connotation to Sunni Islam, Sunnis and Shia Islam, Shias. Hujjat al-Islam history 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. This term, first established in the beginning of Islamic history, used to refer to figures who served as authorities, but now it is used to refer to the scholars who have Islamic knowledge. Individuals with this ti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
