A comparative study of the status of ruler in Shahab al-Din Sohravardi and Imam Khomeini’s viewpoints

This research is an attempt to study the viewpoints of Shahab al-Din Sohravardi and Imam Khomeini about the issue of the leadership of the Islamic society based on their philosophical and mystical principles (ontology, epistemology, and anthropology). Sohravardi, through combining Islamic mystical and philosophical viewpoints, monarchical philosophical ideas, and the concept of the perfect human being, tries to formulate the most suitable preference for the leadership of an Islamic society. Imam Khomeini, through combining jurisprudential, philosophical, mystical, and theological notions within the framework of the concept of the perfect human being, looks for the most suitable preference for the leadership of an Islamic society. The argument of this paper that due to the fusion of the notion of perfect human being and power, which are respectively two mystical and political concepts, the ideas of the “theologian philosopher”, and, the “rule of jurisprudent” (Vilayt-e Faqih) were respectively formulated by Sohravardi and Imam Khomeini. Comparative-descriptive research method was employed and similarities and differences between the viewpoints of the two thinkers were discussed. The findings of the research indicated that the concept of the ruler of Islamic society was the outcome of the fusion of mystical and political viewpoints of the two thinkers.