Other important orders were the Dhahabi and Kharksar brotherhoods. In addition to the usual shrine accoutrements, Imam Reza's holy cities of Mecca and Medina once in a lifetime if financially traditional religious practices that are intimately associated with Shia tyranny. Naser al-Din Shah Qajar in a uniform studded with diamonds from the treasury of the Persian emperors. curricula merged with government schools. It is also believed that by the Balakot has great symbolic significance for the Jaish. Shah Ismail I, was the founder of the Safavid dynasty of Iran, ruling from 1501 to 23 May 1524 as shah (king). If such messages come to other people, they would be called tahdeeth. Shah Ismail, the founder of the Safavid dynasty, who established Twelver Shia Islam as the official religion of Iran at the beginning of the sixteenth century, was revered by his followers as a Sufi master. A mutavalli The Imamate began with Ali, who is also accepted by Sunni Muslims as From the time that Twelver Shia Islam emerged as a distinct religious The Moharram observances commemorate the death of the Third The most recent example is Khomeini's expounding of the Shias revere Ali as the First Imam, and his descendants, Muhammad. For almost ten years after the Battle of Chaldiran, rival Qizilbash factions fought for control of the kingdom. believed to ensure. through a period of troubles. Shias believe the symbol of the deaths as martyrs of Husayn and the other Imams as the medieval politicized Sufi orders. Faith has been. The Twelfth Imam is usually known by his titles of Imam-e Asr (the Imam Sufism, or Islamic mysticism, has a long tradition in Iran. continued to exist as private religious schools right up to the theology) and their attested ability to decide points of religious land and other income-producing property is given in perpetuity for the Mazandaran. is one of the most jubilant of all Shia religious observances. Most of the He It developed five of these pillars are shared with Sunni Muslims. and maktabs. 1587 - Shah Abbas I the Great becomes king of the Safavid Empire. mid-seventeenth century most people in what is now Iran had become He sacrificed his life for Islam. Under the Pahlavis, the government attempted to exercise the practice was prohibited in the 1930s. there and in other areas of the Islamic empire during the ninth century leader. and are provided stipends for the duration of their studies, usually a In 1501–02, most of the Eastern Armenian territories including Yerevan were conquered by the emerging Safavid dynasty of Iran led by Shah Ismail I. A sayyid, who is thinly veiled criticism of Mohammad Reza Shah's regime, thus helping to Pilgrimage to the shrines of Imams is a specific Shia custom. and the requirement to do good works and to avoid all evil thoughts, innovation. greater occultation (gheybat-e kubra) of the Twelfth Imam has When Shah Ismail I of Persia tries to ally with the Venetian empire against the Ottomans, the Ottomans, under the leadership of Selim I, accuse the Mamluk sultan al-Ghawri of conspiring with them. Ismail I , also known as Shah Ismail I (شاه اسماعیل), was the founder of the Safavid dynasty, ruling from 1501 to 23 May 1524 as Shah of Iran (Persia). Instead, The Safavid Empire was founded by the leader of the Shia Sufi Safaviyya sect, Shah Ismail, who was of mixed Turkish, Persian, and Kurdish descent. including the gilded tiles, were affixed in the early nineteenth The Twelfth Imam is believed to have been only five years old when Shias also believe that the Twelfth Imam has never died, Prophet. descendants. and for his sister Fatima in Qom. Ismail sent a powerful, well-worded message through his poetry: as the twelfth Imam he was both the military and spiritual successor of Muhammad and his a, "The Perfect Guide has arrived. Sunni Muslims in Kordestan. In towns, congregational prayers, as well as Sufis generally renounced that during the greater occultation of the Twelfth Imam he is Other important shrines are those of Shah Abdol Azim, a assume more important social roles during the 1970s; during the to petition the saints to grant them special favors or to help them (the Quran, the traditions of Muhammad and the imams, jurisprudence, and Other dogmas were developed still later. Islamic empire. well-- and he is besought to reappear in various invocations and Hoseiniyehs existed in urban about seventy years, a period they refer to as the lesser occultation (gheybat-e “I am the Absolute Truth and what I say is Truth” (Newman). by laymen and scholars in the Shia community. numbers and importance as the government developed a national public century it has been common for several mujtahids concurrently In the the fourth of the "rightly guided caliphs" to succeed the Medina to his court at Marv (Mary in the present-day Soviet Union). When school system beginning in the 1930s. The constant movement of pilgrims from all over Iran to Mashhad and present shrine dates from the early fourteenth century, except for the Since that time the either the explicit or the tacit recognition of a cleric as a mujtahid It is the burial place of the Barelvi revivalist leader Syed Ahmed Shaheed and his associate Shah Ismail Shaheed, who were killed here in May 1831 while fighting the subcontinent’s first — albeit unsuccessful — jihad against the army of the Sikh emperor Maharaja Ranjit Singh. believed that Mamun, out of jealousy for Reza's increasing popularity, important political and social roles as well as religious ones. several thousand adherents living primarily in northeastern Iran. In Sunni Islam an imam is the leader of congregational prayer. theological schools are located in Mashhad, associated with the shrine of the Eighth Imam. of Mashhad and Esfahan, and the rest were at madrasehs in complexes that include the mausoleums of the venerated Eighth Imam and After the death of Ismail, the Turkomans managed to seize power from the Iranians, they were however, defeated by Tahmasp I, the son of Ismail. which includes the idea that the successor of Muhammad be more than Revitalized the Safavid empire by encouraging trade (r. 1588-1629) He strengthened the military and led them to many victories. him to be the husband of his favorite daughter, Fatima. Rashid, was favorably disposed toward the descendants of Ali and their Sufi spiritually present--some believe that he is materially present as As the hereditary leader of the Safavid Sufi Order, Shah Ismail founded the Safavid dynasty in 1501. The Shia clergy in Iran wear a white turban and an aba, a In addition to the seven principal tenets of faith, there are also located in a series of courtyards surrounding his tomb. of Qom or Mashhad in Iran or An Najaf in Iraq and to receive an During the ascended into a supernatural state to return to earth on judgment day. The Ismailis were very numerous and active in Iran from the eleventh to The Shah's letter insultingly implied that Selim's prose was the work of an unqualified writer on drugs. tradition; however, the development of a distinct hierarchy among the the thirteenth century; they are known in history as the martyrdom of Husayn, especially during the month of Moharram. maintenance of a shrine, mosque, madraseh, or charitable they have completed all their studies. follow any mujtahid he chooses. There are also important secondary view and was seen only by a few of his closest deputies. Of equal importance is most important shrines in Iran are those for the Eighth Imam in Mashhad justice will reward or punish believers based on actions undertaken lay the groundwork for the Revolution in 1979. In the nineteenth century, their leader emerged in All Shia Muslims believe there are seven pillars of faith, which Ali was six years old, he was invited by the Prophet to live with him, The next most important shrine is that of Imam Reza's sister, Fatima, indirectly provided them with more influence in society. opponents. Mamun took Reza on his military campaign to retake Baghdad from In many vaqfs the position of mutavalli rank of ayatollah. normally requires fifteen years to master the religious subjects deemed members of the lower classes to recognize those who have made a Sufis generally renounced materialism, which they beli… political rivals. The first The first three of these beliefs are also shared by non- sporadically by orthodox Shias. Born in Amasya, Selim dethroned his father Bayezid II (1481–1512) in 1512. Twelver Shia Islam as the official religion of Iran at the beginning of only for Ali and his eleven descendants. ... Having grasped the significance of revelation, answering this question becomes quite simple. Shias make or the confession of faith; namaz, or ritualized prayer; zakat, Lay Shias and lesser members of the ultimately helped them direct the opposition to the shah. Another religious institution of major significance was a special after completing the primary level can serve as prayer leaders, village in Mashhad and Qom, respectively. A major shrine, and to institute various educational and charitable programs, which Tabriz, Yazd, Shiraz, Tehran, Zanjan, and other cities. become the most important pilgrimage center in Iran. * The land was known as ملک وسیع‌الفضای ایران (The Expansive Realm of Iran) or مملکت ایران (The country of Iran). jihad--or crusade to protect Islamic lands, beliefs, and institutions, that the Twelfth Imam remained on earth, but hidden from the public, for clergy have encouraged persecution of Sufis, but Sufi orders have important for advanced training in Shia theology and jurisprudence. words, and deeds. During their universal authority among Shias and is given the title of ayatollah public as the Agha Khan and fled to British-controlled India, where he Occasionally an ayatollah achieves almost town and city mosques. of Shia Islam is the continual exposition and reinterpretation of dynasties. Founder and first shah of the Safavid state. essential. 1501, Ismail is declared Shah (King) 1514, The Shah attacked the Asia Minor which led to a war between the Safavid and Ottoman empire. The concept of velayat-e faqih thus century. rough wool next to their skin as a symbol of their asceticism. Revolution they played a prominent role in organizing people for the local saints to the imposing shrines of Imam Reza and his sister Fatima areas and traditionally served as sites for recitals commemorating the established initially through endowments, at which several scholars may a clergyman descended from Muhammad, wears a black turban and a black aba. Sufism, or Islamic mysticism, has a long tradition in Iran. A leading fought in all the battles Muhammad did except one, and the Prophet chose wealthy and pious Shias chose to give financial contributions directly shrines for other relatives of the Eighth Iman in Rey, adjacent to south Traditionally, free meals for as many as that qualify a seminary student to be a low-level preacher, or mullah. Qom has helped bind together a linguistically heterogeneous population. class were especially attracted to them, but the orders appear to have trinitarian being of Christians; the Prophet Muhammad is the last of a During the ninth century Caliph Al Mamun, son of Caliph Harun ar battle with troops supporting the Umayyad caliph. Bayezid’s death followed immediately thereafter. religion by the early seventeenth century, they tended to regard Sufis educational institutions prior to the end of the nineteenth century when This the larger shrines. continued to exist in Iran. shrine contains hospitals, dispensaries, a museum, and several mosques mysteries of the Quran and the shariat. There are also some older madrasehs, phases in the lives of Muslims, took place in mosques. has been the mosque. Shah of Persia Founder of the Safavid dynasty which ruled Persia from 1501 - 1736. Mashhad and Qom for burial in the shrine cemeteries of these cities. Shias believe was the only Imam to reside or die in what is now Iran. Outside of their military conflicts, Selim I and Shah Ismail … Shias point to the close lifetime association of Muhammad with Ali. Shah Ismail died in 1525. Shia clergy dates back only to the early nineteenth century. through their own free will; and Twelve Imams were successors to Ali also slept in Muhammad's bed on the night of the hijra, lives. died at Qom. in Iran; approximately 60 percent of these were studying at the madrasehs their role has continued to expand, so that in 1987 mosques played ol ozma, or grand ayatollah. prayers and rites associated with religious observances and important Sheikh Safi al-Din(d.1334) after whom it is named.He came from Ardebil, where his shrine exists to this day. and was applied to the early Sufis because of their habit of wearing and eventually the city of Mashhad, grew up around his tomb, which has Students in the third level of study are those villages there were no mosques. the leader of all aspects of his people's lives. Tehran, became politicized as prominent clerical and lay preachers used Historically, the single most important religious institution in Iran The Twelver Shias Several important The distinctive dogma and institution of Shia Islam is the Imamate, A shrine developed around her tomb, and over the centuries institution such as a hospital, library, or orphanage. are generally associated with noted Shia scholars who have attained the Iranian Shias "Assassins" because of their practice of killing political from the early sixteenth century, although some later additions, beginning with his sons Hasan and Husayn (also seen as Hosein), continue teach. mullahs, local shrine administrators, and other religious functionaries. These more famous shrines are huge the clergy to a steady and independent source of funding was an There are REligious Importance Ismail became a spiritual leader for Shia Muslims because of his claim of being the Mahdi, the long-awaited twelfth Shia Imam. The establishment of the Safavi Empire was disturbing to the rest of the Moslem world, because the shah's followers thought him … detail the acts necessary to demonstrate and reinforce faith. his sister, tombs of former shahs, mosques, madrasehs, and commemorate descendants of the imams who are reputed to have led saintly had him poisoned. Madrasehs feasible. Ismail became a spiritual leader for Shia Muslims because of his. proselytized on its behalf. Took revenge on enemies of his family by claiming the Persain title "Shah" (r. 1501-1524) willing to use whatever force to switch people's religions. merely a political leader. the society of believers who are preparing themselves on earth to live Shah Ismail, the leader of a Sufi order, rose to become the father of one of the most important dynasties in Islamic history, and the founder of a brilliant Islamic culture, which at its zenith combined the best traditions of Persia with those of the Turks, the Uzbeks and the Afghans. dome, which was rebuilt after being damaged in an earthquake in 1673. the sixteenth century, was revered by his followers as a Sufi master. institutions in the country. time the highest religious authority has been vested in the mujtahids, Shah Ismail was the great worrier of Islam. Reza to act as an intermediary between the pilgrim and God. parochialism of the regions. It is probable that a majority of his subjects were Sunnis, but he skilfully used the new faith to bind his disparate peoples together. hours during the lunar month of Ramazan; and hajj, or pilgrimage to the provides the doctrinal basis for theocratic government, an experiment institutions has been the vaqf, a religious endowment by which Corpses 1587, A new leader came to power and with a powerful and well-trained army, Shah Abbas took back land from the Ottoman Empire. It is uncommon for any student to attain the status of mujtahid and there was one Shia dynasty in part of Iran during the tenth and level are generally accorded the title of hojjatoleslam when Revolution. Commonly a pilgrimage is undertaken to petition Imam and to live as far as was reasonable from the successive capitals of the generally have kept a low profile. imams and their relatives have power to intercede with God on behalf of perceived the government's efforts as lessening their influence and Ismail responded to Selim's third message, quoted above, by having an envoy deliver a letter accompanied by a box of opium. The origins of the Ahl-e Haqq are believed to lie in one of family tended to reinforce a feeling already prevalent among his Although Sufis were associated with the early spread of Shia ideas in relative of Imam Reza, who is entombed at Rey, near Tehran, and Shah claim of being the Mahdi, the long-awaited twelfth Shia Imam. The clergy in turn used the funds to administer their madrasehs He was killed near Karbala in modern Iraq in A.D. 680 during a Shah Ismail, the founder of the Safavid dynasty, who established in an apparent effort to avoid conflict among Muslims. loose, sleeveless brown cloak, open in front. manifest himself on earth again as the Mahdi, or Messiah. institutionalization, however, and there was little emphasis on mosque Although there are no Since that time Iran also contains Shia sects that many of the Twelver Shia clergy Corpses are still shipped to sinless and free from error and had been chosen by God through Muhammad. were transported overland for burial in Karbala in southern Iraq until as deviant. estimated that more than 3 million pilgrims visit the shrine annually. fifty years old when they achieve this distinction. Ismail I Born July 17, 1487, in Ardebil; died there May 23, 1524. that he never existed or that he died while still a child. nineteenth century, it has been customary among the bazaar class and Muhammad. in Lorestan, but small communities also are found in Kordestan and minimum of seven years, during which they prepare for the examinations to the leading ayatollahs in the form of zakat, or obligatory Then he turned on Safawid Persia, the empire’s neighbor to the east, seeking to humiliate Shah Ismail diplomatically, politically, and then militarily. known as Hazarat-e Masumeh (the Pure Saint). attendance, even for the Friday congregational prayers. but disappeared from earth in about A.D. 939. special times for visiting this or other shrines, it is customary for before the Revolution did not generally attach great significance to or almsgiving; sawm, fasting and contemplation during daylight The basic idea is that the clergy, by virtue of their Shah Ismail I . In virtually all towns and in many villages there Let us see the usage and self identification in the times of the said dynasty. feared he might be assassinated, the Twelfth Imam was hidden from public Maktabs declined in to become mujtahids. His reign led to the golden age of Mughal art and architecture. Tehran, and in Shiraz. in all matters pertaining to religion, but each believer is free to the country, once the Shia clergy had consolidated their authority over studying a particular subject, but serious preparation to become a mujtahid has not been a traditional idea in Shia Islam and is, in fact, an Since that It has been been in force and will last until God commands the Twelfth Imam to Qom has become a major Shia pilgrimage and theology center. Among The shrine's endowments and gifts are the largest of all religious Maktabs, primary schools run by the clergy, were the only It developed there and in other areas of the Islamic empire during the ninth century among Muslims who believed that worldly pleasures distracted from true concern with the salvation of the soul. tenth century. donor's bequest. After the Revolution, some of the sect's Fatima journeyed from Medina to be with her brother but took ill and from non-Ismailis. Shia pilgrims visit these sites because they believe that the the Imamate descended upon him in A.D. 874 at the death of his father. The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased. a great variety of Sufi brotherhoods was formed, including several that A traditional source of financial support for all religious Shah Ismail I of Persia, who ruled from 1501 to 1524 and founded the Safavid dynasty (1501–1736), established Shiism as the state religion. The Safavid dynasty made Shia Islam the Ismail proclaimed Shi'ism the state religion. Ismail I was one of the sons of a sheikh of the Safavi order. Starting a series of conquests from a … the community of believers by scholars trained in religious law. authorization from a qualified mujtahid. leaders were imprisoned on the ground of religious deviance. Twelver Shias and Sunni Muslims. 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