mullah
Muslim religious teacher
A mullah is a Muslim cleric or religious teacher, particularly in Shia Islam and in regions like Iran, Afghanistan, and South Asia.
The title indicates someone learned in Islamic theology and law who may lead prayers, teach scripture, or interpret religious texts.
In Western usage, mullah sometimes carries connotations of rigid orthodoxy: The ruling mullahs banned music from the airwaves.
Shia jurisprudence master
- clericOrdained religious leader
- mosqueIslamic house of worship
- madrasaMuslim religious school
- minaretMosque tower with balcony
Quran · Sharia · fatwa · halal · salat · zakat · hajj · Sunnah
Expert in religious doctrine
- scholarLearned, studious person
- teacherOne who instructs others
- seminaryClergy training college
- exegesisCritical textual interpretation
hermeneutics · doctrine · pedagogy · hadith · Arabic · commentary · interpretation · learning
Sincere religious devotion
- prayerAddress to deity
- devoutDeeply religious, sincere
- worshipReligious reverence and praise
- faithfulConsistently loyal and true
reverent · ascetic · observant · righteous · meditation · recitation · fasting · pilgrimage
ayatollah
Shia jurisprudence master
minaret · Quran · Sharia · fatwa · halal · salat · zakat · hajj · Sunnah · tawhid
theologian
Expert in religious doctrine
exegesis · hermeneutics · doctrine · pedagogy · hadith · Arabic · commentary · interpretation · learning · wisdom
piety
Sincere religious devotion
faithful · reverent · ascetic · observant · righteous · meditation · recitation · fasting · pilgrimage · spiritual
leader
One who guides others
influential · guidance · counsel · arbitration · village · rural · local · patriarch · mediator · adjudicator
- PakistanIslamabad, Karachi, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan
- religious figuresJesus, Buddha, Muhammad, Moses, Abraham
- IslamAllah, Quran, Muhammad, Mecca, Ramadan
- clergypriest, bishop, pope, nun, monk
- Iranian GovernmentSupreme Leader, Ayatollah, judiciary, legislature, executive branch
- Islamic FiguresProphet Muhammad, Umar, Ali, Khadijah, Fatimah
mullahsecularist
Advocate for nonreligious governance
atheist · freethinker · rationalist · scientist · civil servant
mullahreformist
Advocate for gradual change
modernizer · Atatürk · apostate · ex-Muslim