Gazi Osman Özgüdenli

STRUGGLE OF RELIGIOUS SECTS IN THE ILKHANID COURT

Gazi Osman Özgüdenli, Translation

In his book Die Mongolen in Iran Bertold Spuler states that “we do not know how much the activity of Oljaitu made the spreading of the Shia sect in Iran possible”. The purpose of this short article is to evaluate this statement. The conversion of the Ilkhanids to any of the Moslem religious sects was due to the efforts of court rivals. Oljaitu grew up among the Hanafi Sunnis but when he came to power in 1304 his influential Grand Viziers were Shafi’i and Shi’i. This led to great rivalry between the Hanafi, Shafi’i and Shi’i sects. As described by Abu’l-Qāsim Kāshānī, the fanatic Shi’i Tāj al-Dīn Āwajī, who was an assistant of the Vizier Saʻd al-Dīn Sāwajī, was ultimately the most successful and Oljaitu converted to Shi’ism resulting in the revision of Friday prayers and the changing of coinage. However these changes were largely superficial and in the Sunni areas of Iran these changes were resisted during Oljaitu’s lifetime. There is evidence that after the execution of Saʻd al-Dīn Sāwajī and Tāj al-Dīn Āwajī the enthusiasm of the Ilkhanids for Shi’ism began to wane and Oljaitu came to regret his conversion. Shi’ism in Iran went into decline after Oljaitu’s death.

Keywords: Ilkhanids, Oljaitu Khan, Rashīd al-Dīn Fazlallāh, Saʻd al-Dīn Sāwajī, Tāj al-Dīn ʻAlī-shāh

Page: 128-133