The persuasion of audiences in Nahjolbalaghe

Persuasion is a process that is performed to change the attitude of the audience and to direct their thoughts towards pre-specified objectives. Various techniques and methods are used in the persuasion process. Since various persuasions are constantly being developed to affect the formation and structure of human thought، and the audiences’ thoughts are continually being modified in the direction of the persuaders’ interests، investigation of this issue in Islamic sources and in particular in Imam Ali’s discourse could assist us in confronting emerging challenges which are collectively dubbed as soft war. Therefore، this study aimed to elucidate the persuasion phenomenon and investigate its implementation in Nahjolbalaghe. Adopting a religious approach and an analytical method، the study consulted social psychological literature، communication psychology sources، and sources related to Nahjolbalaghe. Conducted analyses revealed that، in his discourse، Imam Ali used a variety of persuasion techniques and methods such as religious propagation، wisdom، and preaching to persuade his audiences. Since Imam Ali applied each of these techniques and methods in appropriate temporal and spatial circumstances، they exerted their maximum influence over the audiences. In addition، for the persuasion of his audiences Imam Ali strictly adhered to a set of criteria which included open-mindedness، purposefulness، avoiding lies and deceptions، and etc.