The Life of Two Mujtahidahs: Female Religious Authority in Twentieth-Century Iran

Abstract

This chapter introduces two Iranian female mujtahidahs , Nusr at Amīn (1886-1983) and Zuhrah Si fātī (1948-), who represent like few of their contemporaries the status of female religious authority in twentieth-century Iran, divided by the important cesura of the 1979 revolution. Both women's work was strongly influenced by the socio-political environment in and against which they defined themselves. A comparison of the two women's lives and works reveals the extent to which political circumstances have shaped the opportunities for women to aspire to and acquire religious authority. An examination of female religious scholars in Iran and their status in the field of religious learning entails certain challenges. The chapter provides a brief overview of the two scholars' biographical data, some theological positions they have held, and how they have shaped their environment by virtue of these as well as their public role. Keywords:female religious authority; mujtahidahs ; Nusr at Amīn; socio-political environment; theological positions; twentieth-century Iran; Zuhrah Si fātī