Examination of the Religious Behavior of Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi during the Years 1953-1941 (Shahri)."

An examination of the reign of Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi reveals that he exhibited various religious behaviors and policies throughout his rule. This article aims to analyze the religious and spiritual behaviors and policies of Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi during the first twelve years of his reign, employing a descriptive-analytical methodology and gathering data through documentary-library methods. Therefore, the main research question is: What religious behaviors and policies did Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi adopt between 1953 and 1941, and what were the reasons and motivations behind these behaviors?

The findings of this study indicate that during this period, he portrayed himself as a monarch supportive of religion and faith through actions such as participating in religious ceremonies, agreeing to incorporate religious subjects into school curricula, establishing close relations with the clergy and scholars, providing resources for their propaganda, promoting the belief in divine support from God and His saints for himself and his regime, and abolishing the stringent religious laws of Reza Shah's era. The primary reasons and motivations for these religious behaviors stemmed from the latent religious beliefs within Mohammad Reza Shah during that time, an awareness of the discontent among Iran's religious community regarding the anti-religious measures of Reza Shah’s rule, a reliance on religion and the clergy to counter communist and nationalist movements that threatened his monarchy, and the use of religion to consolidate power and legitimize his rule.