The Theory of the Guardianship of Religious Jurist with Emphasis on Ayatollah Sistani's View

The question of establishment of an Islamic government in Iran on the basis of the Theory of guardianship of Religious Jurist has become a source of general and international interest. Therefore, it is very necessary to examine the views held by great faqihs (jurists) about this topic. Explaining the theological foundation of guardianship of religious jurist, the present paper elaborates on its legitimacy and its range. The study is based on Ayatollah Sistani’s legal works of fiqh and his practical measures. Theoretically, he believes in the correlation between religion and politics in three fields: issuing fatwa, judgment and non-litigious affairs in their broad sense, in addition to some other functions which the infallible Imam and Muslim ruler have. Therefore, regarding the political leadership of the society, he accepts the idea of guardianship of the faqih who enjoys all the requirements and who is accepted by most believers with the aim of safe guarding the system of the Islamic nation. Therefore, although he does not believe in the theory of absolute guardianship of religious jurist, he adopts a similar views to this theory through his expanding the scope of non-litigious affairs and exercising guardianship of religious jurist in as far as general affairs are concerned when the order of Islamic society is in danger.