Sayyid Ruhollah Mousavi Khomeini (Persian:روح الله موسوی خمینی, pronounced [ruːhollɑːhe muːsæviːje xomejniː] ( listen)) (24 September 1902 – 3 June 1989) was an Iranian religious leader and politician, and leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution which saw the overthrow of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran. Following the revolution and a national referendum, Khomeini became the country's Supreme Leader—a position created in the constitution as...
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Sayyid Ruhollah Mousavi Khomeini (Persian:روح الله موسوی خمینی, pronounced [ruːhollɑːhe muːsæviːje xomejniː] ( listen)) (24 September 1902 – 3 June 1989) was an Iranian religious leader and politician, and leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution which saw the overthrow of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran. Following the revolution and a national referendum, Khomeini became the country's Supreme Leader—a position created in the constitution as the highest ranking political and religious authority of the nation—until his death.
Khomeini was a marja or marja al-taqlid ("source of emulation", also known as a Grand Ayatollah) in Twelver Shi'a Islam, but is most famous for his political role. In his writings and preachings he expanded the Shi'a Usuli theory of velayat-e faqih, the "guardianship of the jurisconsult (clerical authority)" to include theocratic political rule by Islamic jurists.
Beloved by millions of Iranians he was "the Imam, an ascetic spiritual leader whose teachings...
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