The wordmullah is derived from thePersian wordmullā (Persian:ملا), itself borrowed from theArabic wordmawlā (Arabic:مولى), meaning "master" and "guardian", with mutation of the initial short vowels.[1]
In Afghanistan and Pakistan, the title is given to graduates of amadrasa or Islamic school, who are then able to become a mosque leader, a teacher at a religious school, a local judge in a village or town, or to perform religious rituals. A person who is still a student at a madrasa and yet to graduate is atalib. The AfghanTaliban was formed in 1994 by men who had graduated from, or at least attended, madrasas. They called themselvestaliban, the plural oftalib, or "students". Many of the leaders of the Taliban were titledMullah, although not all had completed their madrasa education.[5] Someone who goes on to complete postgraduate religious education receives the higher title ofMawlawi.[6]
InIran,[7] until the early 20th century, the termmullah was used in Iranianseminaries to refer to low-level clergy who specialized in telling stories ofAshura, rather than teaching or issuingfatwas. However, in recent years, among Shia clerics, the termruhani (spiritual) has been promoted as an alternative to mullah andakhoond, free of pejorative connotations.[8]
Some mullahs will specialise in certain fields after completing the above foundational studies. Common specialties are:
Iftah – after which they qualify as amufti and can issue afatwa (legal ruling)
Takhasus fil Hadith – specialisation in hadith studies
Takhasus fil Aqidah – specialisation in aqidah studies
Such figures often have memorized the Quran and historically would memorise all the books they studied. However in the modern era they instead memorise the founding books of each field (sometimes in the form of poetry to aid memorisation).
Uneducated villagers may frequently classify a literate Muslim with a less than complete Islamic training as their "mullah" or religious cleric. Mullahs with varying levels of training lead prayers in mosques, deliver religious sermons, and perform religious ceremonies such as birth rites and funeral services. They also often teach in a type of Islamic school known as amadrasah. Three kinds of knowledge are applied most frequently in interpreting Islamic texts (i.e. the Quran, hadiths, etc.) for matters ofSharia, i.e., Islamic law.
Mullahs have frequently been involved in politics, but only recently have they served in positions of power, sinceShia Islamistsseized power in Iran in 1979.
The dress of a Mullah usually consists of a turban (Persian:عمامهammāme), a long coat with sleeves and buttons, similar to acassock (قباqabā), and a long gown or cloak, open at the front (عباabā). Theaba is usually made either of brown wool or of black muslin. It is sleeveless but has holes through which the arms may be inserted. In Shiism, the turban is usually white, but those who claim descent fromMuhammad traditionally wear a black turban.[9]
This article incorporates text fromChinese and Japanese repository of facts and events in science, history and art, relating to Eastern Asia, Volume 1, a publication from 1863, now in thepublic domain in the United States.
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