نشریه حکومت اسلامی
سال بیست و نهم شماره 1 (پیاپی 111، بهار 1403)

One of the most important theories of Shiʿa political jurisprudence – which stand in line with each other – is the concept of al-Wilāyat al-Faqih (Guardianship of the Muslim Jurist). According to the theory of ‘Discretionary Sphere of the Law’, an Islamic ruler has the right to independently legislate and determine obligations and prohibitions which, in addition to their legal status, should be obeyed like divine commandments. Therefore, this right is not exclusive to infallible Imams, but also applicable to a fully qualified religious ruler in the absence of an infallible Imam during the Occultation Period. According to the theory of ‘Absolute Guardianship of a Muslim Jurist’, in the absence of an infallible Imam, a just Muslim jurist capable of establishing a government will have governmental authority equal to that of the Prophet and the Imams who successfully established governments. The joining point and the most important aspect of commonality between these two theories is the right to govern and the legitimacy of the Guardianship of the Muslim Jurist in the Occultation Period, with the most significant difference being the extent of their authorities. As far as the ‘Discretionary Sphere of Law’ is concerned, the ruler does not have the right to deviate from religious duties and legal obligations. However, in accordance to the theory of the “Absolute Guardianship of the Muslim Jurist”, the ruler, if deemed necessary, even has the right to temporarily suspend religious duties and violate laws in the interest of the Islamic system; for the Islamic government is regarded to be based on the primary ordinances of Islam.

One of the most important theories proposed in the context of Iranian social system is the theory of “religious democracy,” which was initially introduced by Imam Khomeini as the “Islamic Republic”, and the Iran’s political system was shaped after the Islamic Revolution based on this theory. Researches and various activities have been carried out with a focus on explaining the foundations of religious democracy, and on formulating it. Drawing upon the analytical-descriptive method, the aim of this research is to analytically examine religious democracy in terms of an interpretation presented by Ayatollah Khamenei. This interpretation (reading) is explained within the framework of his intellectual system through the two layers of worldview and ideology. Accordingly, the main question of the research is, “What is the role of religious democracy in formulating the principles of Islamic worldview and ideology from the perspective of Ayatollah Khameneī?’ The authors of this article hold the view that, in Ayatollah Khamenei’s intellectual system, religious democracy is explained for the realization of the goal of Islamic governance, and in his intellectual system, it has taken shape around the central theme of wilāyah, “guardianship”; a multi-faceted guardianship that will bring about the unity of people with each other, the unity of the Ummah (Islamic Community) with the Imam, and ultimately, the unity of the Muslim community,Ummah, with the Truth.

The legitimacy of protesting against Islamic government is one of the accepted principles in Islam and the Constitutional Law of the Islamic Republic of Iran. However, if protest turns into subversion, the Islamic government has to confront it and implement divine judgment regarding the subverters. The research question revolves around the Qur’anic foundations of the necessity to confront subverters, with the hypothesis that from the perspective of the Holy Qur’ān, all those seeking to overthrow the Islamic government must be confronted. In this study, we have concluded that any type of practical and deliberate confrontation aimed at striking against the “Islamic government entity” and undermining public security is considered subversion, so, initially, the Islamic ruler, and subsequently, all people are duty-bound to confront the subverters. The aforementioned encounter in the initial stage must be conducted with utmost peace, but unfair peace based on complacency with subverters is not endorsed or divinely approved. Traditions attributing the occasion of the revelation of verses to Imam Ali’s struggle against the Nākithūn (those who broke their covenants), the Qāṣitūn (those who deviated from divine guidance), the Māriqūn (the apostate, those who became renegade by seceding from the caliph’s camp) and enemies of Imam Mahdi (May Allah hasten his noble reappearance) are all indicative of the application of a universal concept on a particular one,  and  also of the fact that the same principle applies to those who want to subvert the Islamic government with no exception. The type of punishment for the subverters is specified by law.

The strategic components of combating extreme arrogance constitute a multidimensional process encompassing various working procedures and methods serving as a political, social, and cultural concept, responsible for articulating the principles and indicators of confronting tyrants. Drawing upon a descriptive-analytical method, the upcoming research has evaluated aspects of struggling against arrogance (istikbār) in the conduct of Shiʽa jurisconsults.  This section highlights 1) the rejection of governmental positions due to opposition to current government methods and policies; 2) participation in political positions aiming to strengthen Islamic political thinking; 3) struggling through issuing religious decrees; 4) exile and expulsion from the homeland, which, in turn, creates a basis for an intellectual revolution in the religious community; 5) theorizing about the the Islamic political thought in order to present new ideas, concepts, and models for explaining and interpreting Shiʽa political thought; 6) laying the groundwork for the realization of justice, as well as cultural, economic, and social development goals within Islamic society, along with other significant components briefly addressed in discussions.

Mental or psychological security means preserving an individual’s life, property, honor, social, and family status from risks, threats, and external factors. Any threat to psychological security of society is considered a threat to the health of society leading to disintegration, disruption, and hindering its progress. The crucial question is “what responsibilities does the Islamic government have towards ensuring the psychological security of citizens?”
In this paper written with a descriptive-analytical approach, various aspects of mental security are examined through the analysis of certain Qur’anic verses, narrations (traditions), and jurisprudential documents. The procedures and the context for ensuring mental security of broad interest to the Wise Divine Legislator are also mentioned. The paper also highlights the management and planning of different affairs, the preservation of the security of the government structure, the establishment of security for institutions, values, norms, culture, beliefs, and ideologies prevailing in the government system and society, and safeguarding them against any form of threat or encroachment as part of the responsibilities of the Islamic government in ensuring and maintaining the mental security of the society.

Drawing upon a descriptive-analytical method, this article explores the role of the governing authority in the Islamic society within the family legal system. It aims to explain certain Islamic principles regarding governance and family. In the Islamic legislative system, the ruler or, broadly speaking, the governing authority is the one that clearly directs governmental laws, coordinates institutions, and organizations. Moreover, the ruler is responsible for supervising social and political institutions. In Islamic jurisprudence and law, one of the entities that the Muslim ruler is permitted to enter is the private sphere of the family. The governing authority is permitted to enter the family's privacy only when the legal and ethical standards are overlooked. The question then arises: “What is the basis for the governing authority to enter the family’s privacy based on juridical-legal standards?” This study initially documents the rule “Al-Hākim walī al-mumtaniʿ” [sovereign is the substitute for the person who refrains to perform his obligations] indicating the judicial entry of the governing body into the family sphere before examining and analyzing the supportive dimensions of the governing authority in the family legal system.

Politics, like other human phenomena, is based on theoretical foundations. In its paradigm of faith, political theory is based on the obligation-centered principle. The current research is an attempt, based on the intellectual system of the contemporary political thinker, ʿAllāmeh Muhammad Taqi Miṣbāh Yazdi, to analyze the aforementioned principle after clarifying its concept and to illuminate its relationship with “consequentialism” in his thought. The findings of this descriptive-analytical research suggest that although, according to the theory of ‘necessity by analogy’ in the philosophy of values, consequentialism should be considered the correct theory in faithful politics, the consideration of the duality of outcomes and their non-exclusivity in material and superficial results, the inadequacy of mere activism of the political agent for achieving results, and limitations in human understanding of all outcomes, interests, and real benefits and harms, hint that there is no contradiction between consequentialism and obligation-centered principle. Therefore, it can be concluded that the statements of the two Grand Leaders of the Islamic revolution, Imam Khomeini, and Imam Khamenei, regarding duty-centred principle are not only compatible with the philosophical principle of consequentialism but are evaluated in line with this principle. Consequently, a faithful politician should first and foremst correctly identify duties, and, free from any pressure or political motives, pivot around the truth based on legal proof, and act according to obligation (duty) to promote real interests associated with it.