Junayd, Shaykh

Junayd, Shaykh

(born 1430, Iranian Azerbaijan?—died March 4, 1460, near the Kura River) Fourth head of the Safavid order of Sufi mystics. He became head of the order on his father's death in 1447 and set out to turn a society known for piety and learning into a political force. The arming of his followers led to a conflict with Jahan Shah (died 1467), ruler of Iranian Azerbaijan, and resulted in the expulsion of Junayd and his followers from Ardabil, the traditional centre of the Safavid order, in 1448. He continued his military adventurism in the lands of present-day Syria and Turkey and was finally killed in battle against a force of Christian Circassians. His policies were carried on by his son, Haydar, and eventually culminated in the founding of the Safavid dynasty under Junayd's grandson, Isma'il I, assuring the dominance of Shi'ite Islam in Iran.