Give me strength!

I knew of course that as a religion Islam is more than simply divided between Sunni and Shia and that the faith encompasses a number of different sects. What I had not known until I listened to Radio 4s Analysis was that Iran's President Ahmadinejad and his inner circle are members of a Shia sub-sect that are awaiting the imminent return of the Hidden Imam or Mahdi. He is expected to emerge from a well in Southern Iran and notes are dropped down this well to keep the great man abreast of cabinet decisions. A place is set for him at meals. He is expected to return at any time. And we used to worry about Bush's grip on reality.