The Revolution in the Iranian Shia Clergy: Demotion of Ayatollah Shariatmadari

Abstract

Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Kazem Shariatmadari (1906-1986) was one of the leading figures of the 1979 Iranian Revolution and one of the few senior Shia clerics with a political vision different from Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Shariatmadari was a traditionalist cleric and did not support Khomeini’s concept of Velayat-e Faqih (rule of the Islamic jurisprudent).

Shariatmadari had a considerable political influence, especially in his native Tabriz, and the Islamic People’s Republican Party, associated with him, was one of the prominent parties participating in the revolution. The party is also worth mentioning because there were a few non-Khomeinist Islamist parties during the revolution.

However, a figure like Shariatmadari was a challenge for the regime, and in 1982, he was implicated in an alleged coup attempt and banished from political life, dying four years later in house arrest.

More importantly, Shariatmadari was demoted from the rank of Grand Ayatollah, which was a sign of another revolution by Khomeini, this time in the Shia clerical hierarchy. Shariatmadari’s demotion was an indication of a new era in the Iranian clerical hierarchy, in which the clerical ranks were decided by the country’s political power.