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The Big Four refers to the four contemporary leading Grand Ayatollahs of Twelver Shia Islam based in the holy city of Najaf in Iraq. [1] [2] [3]
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The Big Four refers to the four contemporary leading Grand Ayatollahs of Twelver Shia Islam based in the holy city of Najaf in Iraq. [1] [2] [3]
All orthodox Twelver Shia Muslims follow the Islamic rulings of a Grand Ayatollah. Under Saddam Hussein, the clerics were oppressed. At present, the most prominent among them is Ali al-Sistani; who also serves as the head of the Najaf Seminary. [4]
| Grand Ayatollah | Date of birth | Place of birth | |
|---|---|---|---|
(The names are arranged in alphabetical order) | |||
 | Ali al-Sistani | 4 August 1930 | Mashhad, Iran |
| Bashir al-Najafi | 1942 (age 81–82) | Jalandhar, British India | |
| Muhammad al-Fayadh | 1930 (age 93–94) | Ghazni, Afghanistan | |
 | Muhammad Saeed al-Hakim | (1934-2021) | Najaf, Iraq |
Al-Najaf or An-Najaf al-Ashraf, is a city in central Iraq about 160 km south of Baghdad. Its estimated population in 2018 was about 747,000 people. It is the capital of Najaf Governorate. It is widely considered amongst the holiest cities of Shia Islam and one of its spiritual capitals, whilst also remaining the center of Shia political power in Iraq. It is reputedly the burial place of Muhammad's son in law and cousin, Imam ‘Alī ibn Abī Tālib. It is also the location of the largest cemetery in the world, Wadi-us-Salaam, of one of the most important seminaries in the Shi'i Islamic world, and a major pilgrimage destination for Shia Muslims.
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Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Muhammad-Saeed al-Tabataba'i al-Hakim was an Iraqi senior Shi'a marja, one of the Big Four Grand Ayatollahs of the Hawza of Najaf and one of the most senior Shia clerics in Iraq after Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.
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