Political Knowledge within Mental System of Imam Khomeini (ra)

Politics and its pertinent knowledge is regarded as one of the main issues of human sciences, which has preoccupied minds of many theorists and scientific environments. For the same reason, reviewing the writings of great thinkers can noticeably help understand and localize politics and its knowledge. One of the personalities, thoughts and mental system of whom can beneficially contribute to theorists in this field about cognitive study of politics and its localizing methods is Imam Khomeini (ra). Since politics, as to opinion of Imam Khomeini (ra), has an exalted status in Islam, this approach has been crystallized in the ideas of the deceased Imam and he puts great emphasis upon the category in his mental system. Of course, unlike western views, his manner of looking at politics and knowledge derived from it ceases to be single dimension and merely materialistic one; rather, he illustrates material and worldly aspects for politics that can be enabled to bring human prosperity in all his lifetime. While stating that politics creates substance for happiness and salvation of people, he enumerates a good deal of effects for knowledge among which community-wide elimination of corruption, upholding justice, countering with political systems tyranny, paving grounds for liberty of citizens and so on can be referred to. In order to let politics reach the highest aim, he underlined its localization and its indices can be observed to strengthen Islamism, monotheistic attitude towards Islam and utilization of Islamic sources. Local politics in mental system of Imam Khomeini (ra) has the following structure: aggregation of idealism and realism, connection of ideology with manifestations of civilization, ranking of people, collectivism of Islam, bi-dimensional salvation (material and spiritual) and justice-centeredness. Through such approach, components of knowledge of local politics can be articulated in the eyes of Imam Khomeini (ra) to have a nature of Ijtihad, argumentation, obligation, time and space centeredness, instrumental knowledge, finalism and the other world centeredness.