The establishment of the four schools of law meant that Sunni Islam reached its stable form at a relatively early stage of Islamic history. In contrast, Shia Islam’s framework of law is in a continual process of development. Past Shia empires like the Fatamids and present nation-states like Iran have proven to be fertile ground for experimentation, especially in the social, political and religious spheres of Shia life. So far, the experiment has reached some equilibrium with the novel introduction of a hierarchy of religious scholars whose sole purpose is to administer to Shia law.
At the bottom of the hierarchy are mullahs, who operate as local religious guides to laymen and other unlearned Shia Muslims. Then, one or two more middle levels follow, and they are described as hujjat-al-islam (proof of Islam) or mujtahid. At the top reside a cadre of ayat-Allah, or ayatollah. There are about a hundred individuals who hold this rank today, and it is from this distinguished group that the marja-al-taqlid (grand ayatollah) is recognized.
The levels are not tied to any electoral process, and are merely descriptions of a religious scholar’s ability in a given discipline. Nevertheless, a mulla must receive a paper from his teacher (ijaza) qualifying his competence to teach and transmit the knowledge he has acquired before he can assume his responsibilities.
At the higher level of ayatollah, scholars need to present academic papers known as risala before they are recognized as ayatollahs. The theses are a measure of the scholar’s professional mastery of a religious science. Nowadays, the risala system is institutionalized in important centres of Shia Islamic learning such as Najaf, Qum and Mashad.
The hierarchy provides a linear framework of Shia Islamic law with extremely clear lines of authority. An unlearned Shia Muslim cannot follow his own whims, but accept the authority of a mulla. All lower-level scholars must similarly adhere to the teachings of a guide from a higher level. Such clarity sometimes gives the impression of uniformity within Shia Islam’s body politic, even though it conceals the fact that the Shia system of religious governance is still an evolving phenomenon.
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Interesting but brief analysis.