Populist Scientism: Case Study of the Shiite Jurists in 7th and 8th Centuries

One of the important features of science in the Islamic thought is its utility. This feature, originated from the Quranic verses and the traditions, has affected all the elements and kingpins of the science in the realm of the Islamic civilization. Variety of educational environments, ease of the formation of educational environment, placement of the schools in the crowded parts of the cities such as bazaar and access to scholars are among the consequences of this feature of science. The religious scholars’ attention to the society’s needs and making their scientific reservoir in accordance with social behavior in their own arrangements with people and the elite groups and the authorities or even accepting political positions by them can all be put in this framework. Scientism of the Shiite jurists in the 7th and 8th centuries in the territories of Iraq and Iran shows that those jurists have followed populism in domains such as conventionality in issuing fatwas, paying attention to the wishes of the Shiites in various regions, paying heed to the scientific wants of the non-Muslims, writing suffrages, and writing biographies of martyrs.