The Big Four refers to the four contemporary leading Grand Ayatollahs of Twelver Shia Islam based in the holy city of Najaf in Iraq.
Background
All 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 Hawza of Najaf.
List Grand Ayatollah Date of birth Place of birth Death Ali al-Sistani Mashhad, Imperial State of Iran Bashir al-Najafi Jalandhar, British Raj Muhammad al-Fayadh Ghazni, Kingdom of Afghanistan Najaf, Iraq Muhammad Saeed al-Hakim Najaf, Kingdom of Iraq Najaf, Iraq
References