Taqlid: When Leaving Imam Khomeini’s Fatwā, Must I Refer to the Same Mujtahid?

Practical Laws of Islam as per the teachings of Imam Khamenei

Taqlid: When Leaving Imam Khomeini’s Fatwā, Must I Refer to the Same Mujtahid?

English:

Question #30

To stop acting upon one of Imam Khomeini’s (q.) fatwās, is it obligatory for me to refer to that mujtahid whose permission I obtained to continue following the deceased mujtahid, or may I refer to other mujtahids also?

Answer #30

Caution goes with reference to the fatwās of the mentioned mujtahid unless there is another living mujtahid who is the most knowledgeable and whose fatwā in the matter of changing one’s taqlīd differs from that of the first one. In such a case, it is an obligatory caution to refer to the most learned mujtahid.

- Imam Khamenei, Practical Laws of Islam, Rules of Taqlid, To Change from One Marji’ to Another