ABSTRACT
In his travelogue, Olivier, a French official in Iran during the early years of the Qajar dynasty, in a comparison with the Ottoman Empire, wrote that there is no state-religious organisation in Iran. He writes, ‘everybody who studies religious texts and law is an ålim . . . These ålims have no involvement with state offices. The only task they have is to go to the mosque for Friday prayer and other religious services, as well as interpreting QurÇn and ªad¥th.’2
