Marja

This article forms part of the series Islam
Vocabulary of Islam
Five Pillars
Profession of faith Prayer · Alms · Fasting Pilgrimage to Mecca Jihad (See Sixth pillar of Islam)
Major Figures
Muhammad Prophets of Islam Caliph · Shia Imam · The Mahdi Companions of Muhammad
Holy Cities	Events
Mecca · Medina Jerusalem Najaf · Karbala Kufa · Kazimain Mashhad · Samarra	Hijra Islamic calendar Eid ul-Fitr Eid ul-Adha Aashurah Arba'een
Buildings	Religious Roles
Mosque · Minaret Mihrab · Kaaba Islamic architecture	Muezzin · Mufti Mullah · Imam Ayatollah · Marja
Texts & Law
Qur'an · Hadith · Sunnah Fiqh · Fatwa · Sharia
Sharia Schools	Kalam Schools
Hanafi Hanbali Jafari Maliki Shafi'i	Asharite Jabriyya Maturidi Murjite Mu'tazili Qadariyya
Shi'a sects	Kharijite sects
Ithna Asharia Ismailiyah Zaiddiyah Alawi* · Alevi*	Sufri Azraqi Ibadi
Messianic Sects	Movements
Ahmadiyyah Zikri	Sufism Wahhabism Salafism Liberals
Other Sects	Related Faiths
Nation of Islam Five Percenters Druze*	Babism Bahá'í Faith Yazidi Sikhism
* = self-identification unclear

A marja, or marja-e-taqleed (Arabic مرجع تقليد), literally "source of imitation" or "source of tradition", is the second highest authority on religion and law in Shi'a Islam after the (Shi'a) Imam. Where a difference in opinion exists between the marjas, Aalims (Religious Scholars) try to provide different opinions.

Four senior Grand Ayatollahs constitute the Hawza Ilmiyyah, a religious institution in Najaf and the preeminent seminary center for the training of Shia clergymen. There is a separate institution in Qom, Iran.

Marja

See also