Clergy Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ===Shia=== [[File:Nahavandi.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Iranian peoples|Iranian]] [[Shia Islam|Shi'a]] scholar and author Sheikh Ali Akbar Nahavandi.]] In modern [[Shia Islam]], scholars play a more prominent role in the daily lives of Muslims than in Sunni Islam; and there is a hierarchy of higher titles of scholastic authority, such as ''[[Ayatollah]]''. Since around the mid-19th century, a more complex title has been used in [[Twelver]] Shi`ism, namely ''marja士 at-taqlid''. ''[[Marja士]]'' (pl. ''maraji士'') means "source", and ''taqlid'' refers to religious emulation or imitation. Lay Shi`ah must identify a specific ''marja士'' whom they emulate, according to his legal opinions ''(fatawah)'' or other writings. On several occasions, the ''Marja士iyyat'' (community of all ''maraji士'') has been limited to a single individual, in which case his rulings have been applicable to all those living in the Twelver Shi'ah world. Of broader importance has been the role of the ''mujtahid'', a cleric of superior knowledge who has the authority to perform ''[[ijtihad]]'' (independent judgment). Mujtahids are few in number, but it is from their ranks that the ''maraji士 at-taqlid'' are drawn. Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page