Table of Contents

Acknowledgments Introduction 1. "The Scholars Are Heirs of the Prophets" 2. The Holy Man in Islam 3. Routinization of Charismatic Authority: The Shi'i case 4. The Office of Charismatic Authority: The Functions of the Rijal 5. Textual Authority and the Struggle for Legitimacy in Biographical Texts Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index

About the Author

Liyakat N. Takim is Associate Professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Denver.