Shi'a Islam

Halm explains the exalted position of the religious scholars, the mullahs and ayatollahs, who established themselves as clergy in the Safavid empire and defined themselves as "administrators" for the Hidden Imam. Their authority is based on idtschtihad, the rational interpretation of the Koran and the traditions of the Imans. The relationship between the rulers of Iran and the mullahs has always been tense. The Khomeini revolution was the powerful culmination of a lengthy history of conflict.