Based on a political sociology of two families of religious scholars, al-Hakim and al-Khu'i, Elvire Corboz explains the internal workings of transnational leade

This volume - grown out of an international conference at Freiburg University in 1999 - deals with various aspects of Shiite Islam since the 18th century. It is

A compelling history of the ancient schism that continues to divide the Islamic world When Muhammad died in 632 without a male heir, Sunnis contended that the c

Patriotic Ayatollahs explores the contributions of senior clerics in state and nation-building after the 2003 Iraq war. Caroleen Sayej suggests that the four so

The author highlights the three main aspects of Shi'a Islam: its historical development, especially the history of the Imams; the rituals, including flagellatio