How does Imam Khomeini’s ideal state is portrayed? This is a question that comes to the mind of the thinker after seeing the problems, disasters, disorder and crisis. He should try to illustrate the nature of the political order on the basis of the model of the order of reconstructing the community. At this stage, the theorist would pass the “is” and reach the “ought.” In other words, he imagines the world as it should be. “He usually uses his imagination at this stage trying to draw a picture of a political order that does not exist in his time.” Hence, it can be said that the orderly society that the theorist presents at this stage is an organized and healthy image of an unhealthy community that he has experienced.
After rejecting the status quo, it was necessary to outline the ideal state within the framework of an ideal model. In line with the principle of Enjoining good and Forbidding evil, Imam Khomeini rejected the taghut (illegitimate) governments and sought to establish the Islamic state as a good within the realm of reflective thinking. Imam Khomeini explains the necessity of guardianship (wilayah) and the formation of a government by depicting the deterioration of human life in a hypothetical society that lacks a government.
Human life, in the absence of a government or a religious upbringing, is doomed to be engaged in wars and the colonialization of people by the oppressors since man naturally follows his egos and evil desires.
The only way to end this chaos and insecurity is by establishing a government. The difference between the Islamic state and other governments is that this type of government is just and provides the grounds for the purification of society.
It is neither a tyranny nor an absolute government; it is constitutional of course not with its current common meaning based on which the laws are subject to the votes of individuals and the majority. It is constitutional because the rulers are bound up with a set of conditions specified in the Holy Quran and the sayings and practices of the Prophet. This set of conditions is the laws and teachings of Islam that must be observed and implemented. For this reason, the Islamic government is the rule of the divine law over the people.
The necessity of establishing an Islamic state from Imam Khomeini’s point of view has several reasons:
1) Necessity of the establishment of executive agencies
2) The tradition and practices of the Prophet
3) The necessity of continuation of implementing the Islamic laws
4) The action of the Commander of the Faithful, Ali ibn Abi Talib
5) The nature and quality of Islamic laws
According to the works of Imam Khomeini, the Islamic government has been crystallized in his views within the two contexts of Wilayat al-Faqih (The Guardianship of the Islamic Jurisprudent) and the Islamic Republic. The theory of Wilayat al-Faqih has been put forward a decade before the theory of the Islamic Republic. The theory of Wilayat al-Faqih is one of the most important theories of Shi’ah-Islamic political thought that has been put forward and discussed extensively in jurisprudential studies and political research.
Most of the jurisprudents are of the opinion that wilayah (guardianship) has been assigned to the jurisprudent during the time of Occultation. Accordingly, during the time of Occultation, Wilayat al-Faqih is the continuation of the authority and guardianship of the Prophet and the infallible Imam. Thus, the jurisprudent, like the Prophet and the infallible Imams, has three positions and duties:
(A) Propagating the religion and explaining the divine decrees through issuing fatwas; (B) Enforcing the Islamic laws based on divine decrees and laws;
(C) Managing the political-social affairs of society and enjoying the right to political sovereignty.
Imam Khomeini emphasized preserving the composition of the Islamic Republic for a number of reasons; first, he believed that the opposition groups of the Islamic Republic are more concerned with Islam than achieving democracy, and in such rhetoric, they seek the elimination of Islam from the new-established government.
Second, whereas the term Islamic republic has a clear meaning, the terms democratic and democracy have no clear meaning. Third, in Imam Khomeini’s view, has democracy really been practiced in the world, which they support to such an extent? The goal of the ideal government in Imam Khomeini’s view is serving the people. The significance of this is to the extent that while addressing the government officials he said: “In Islam, there is no such a thing as governing; rather, it highlights the concept of serving. You should not consider yourself the ruler of the people, you should consider yourself the servant of the people, governing is serving the people.”
In such a state, the real actors are the people. In his view, if the ruler does not meet the Islamic requirements for leadership, “he will be deposed and the nation should not obey him.”
Thus, it can be said that according to Imam Khomeini the legitimacy of the government in the Islamic state is a two-sided issue in the sense that God is placed on the one side and people on the other. However, the main pillar of the Islamic Republic of Iran is Wilayat al-Faqih. In the view of Imam Khomeini, the Islamic Republic, “enjoys the supervision and guidance of the Supreme Jurisprudent so that it would never fail to achieve the transcendent goals of the Islamic government and would avoid deviation.”
In general, the most fundamental elements of the political system in Imam Khomeini’s interpretation are shari’ah, wilayah and people.
Imam Khomeini and the Image of a Revived Society (Remedy)
Solutionology is one of the components of political thought and is influenced by thought processes and objective facts. The theorist naturally offers recommendations for political action that he considers would provide the best solutions for solving the problem. “Sometimes the theorist explicitly makes recommendations. There are also cases where recommendations are not clear and systematic.” “Prescriptions of the political theories are very similar to the doctor’s prescriptions: like the doctor’s instructions, they imply a certain kind of coercion. They are not absolute moral rules. Rather, they are recommendations for people who value their health. These are forethoughts.”
Imam Khomeini’s solution to the creation of the Islamic state was a tendency to start a revolution or, as he stated, “the necessity of a complete political revolution.” On this basis, Imam Khomeini not only allowed the uprising against the established power and order but also while stating that this uprising is a religious duty of all people called upon them to fulfill such a cause and ideal. In the political thought of Imam Khomeini, the problem of despotism and, consequently, colonialism, is, first of all, a characteristic of the ruler which gradually would become a problem and suppress the people; and second, such a problem can neither be resolved by preaching nor the constitution, as an external construction, can make it reduced or eliminated. According to these two political propositions, Imam Khomeini sees all the problems to be originated from the top of the pyramid believing that the solution lies in there as well. “In fact, Wilayat al-Faqih considers both the displacement of the top of the pyramid by a just and pious individual and also outlines the mechanism of such a transition in the form of a revolution.”
For Imam Khomeini, making a revolution, as the same as the establishment of an Islamic state, is an obligation, because the shari’ah and the intellect denote that the survival and continuation of tyrannical and anti-religious sovereignties have no meaning other than the continuation of the sovereignty of shirk (polytheism) and taghut as well as the abolition of religious rulings. As a result, it is the duty of all Muslims to remove all of the indications of shirk with all its manifestations from the social and political life of the Islamic society and to overthrow the taghut governments. Thus, Muslims have two paths to follow, one to remain silent, to compromise and to maintain or endorse the rule of shirk and taghut, and the other is to oppose the existing situation and try to overthrow the established order with all their might and effort. This struggle for God’s cause is the religious revolution and, as Imam Khomeini put it, “it is the duty of all Muslims in each of the Islamic countries to help the Islamic political revolution gain succession.”
Like his earlier scholars, Imam Khomeini, due to the existence of grounds for establishing the Islamic government, was trying to enforce religious laws in the field of social relations, regardless of the form and type of the government. But the developments of the society, as well as the domination of internal despotism along with foreign imperialism and the continuation of the existence of numerous obstacles to the presence of religion at different levels of society, changed Imam Khomeini’s reformist thinking and thus the theory of revolution was created. In other words, for Imam Khomeini, to reach an Islamic society and establish Islamic rule, the struggle to reform must become a revolutionary struggle.
The issue of overthrowing the Pahlavi regime was first raised during Imam Khomeini’s exile in Iraq. Unlike the SAVAK’s prediction that the scientific and non-political atmosphere of the Najaf seminary would make him isolated and keep him away from the internal developments of Iran, the theory of revolution was presented in that country: “A theory which paved the way for overthrowing the monarchy and establishing an ideal government by undermining the principles of monarchy and condemning and reproaching the existing situation... Imam Khomeini, far from the tumult of the modern world, in the mosque of Shaykh Murtadha al-Ansari in Najaf, put forward the theory of revolution and presented it to his students,” questioned the theory of reconciliation with material power “and the” dual ruling of kings and jurisprudents “that have influenced the Iranian political thought since the Safavid era.”
Imam Khomeini believed that according to the religious teachings in order to confront despotism people have to rise up and resist oppression since the Islamic world has been in a backward state because of not doing so.
Accordingly, rejecting the observing of taqiyyah (taking precautions – dissimulation) he states that: “Today is not the day to behave like the righteous predecessor, we will lose everything if we remain silent and inactive.”
Addressing all strata of the nation, especially religious scholars, Imam Khomeini states that because in the past we did not rise up against the corrupt rulers, Islam faced a decline. The Islamic nation experienced division and disunity and the distortion and isolation of Islam in line with the goals of foreign colonists and their internal agents became prevalent.
Therefore, Imam Khomeini declared defending the Quran and the honour of Islam and the independence of the country as well as opposing colonialism as the main goals of his struggle and the Iranian people calling on the Iranian nation to sacrifice “under the monotheistic banner of Islam for eliminating the colonialism and expelling those who exploit our resources from the Islamic country.”
Imam Khomeini, two days after arriving in Paris, addressing the students of universities and seminaries of Iran, pointed out the nation’s preliminary demands; achieving redemption, freedom, independence, a just and Islamic government, true justice, and enjoying the divine blessings. Likewise, during the military government of Gholam-Reza Azhari, Imam Khomeini once again elaborated on the basic aims of the people’s revolution:
“The purpose is what I have stated in my speeches and declarations:
(A) Overthrowing the Pahlavi monarchy and the imperial regime;
(B) Establishing the Islamic Republic based on the Islamic principles and the freedom of the nation.”
In addition, “liberation from the bonds of colonialism and despotism” was also included in the aims of the struggle.
Differentiating between material and spiritual revolutions, Imam Khomeini considers all revolutions in the world to pursue material purposes in which only one state replaces another. But the Iranian revolution is different from other revolutions in the world. The revolutions that so far have taken place throughout the world shifted the power from a powerful and oppressive ruler to someone else who is also an oppressor.
The Method of Fighting for Establishing the Islamic State
In Imam Khomeini’s view, the first step on the way to establish an Islamic state is propagation. In his view, political and economic issues, as well as the Islamic laws, are more important than the issues related to the rituals, and that the duty of Islamic scholars is to create an intellectual wave through propagation, “so that a social flow may emerge and gradually the conscious and religious masses will rise up and establish an Islamic state.”
The second step is to create communities that serve the aim of propagation and education. In Imam Khomeini’s view, some of the Islamic precepts, such as congregational prayer, pilgrimage and Friday prayers, in addition to strengthening the spiritual and moral values in society, are the source of social and political services.
“Islam has provided such congregations so that they will serve religious purposes; strengthen the sense of brotherhood and co-operation; encourage the intellectual growth; find solutions to their political and social problems and seek jihad and make collective endeavours.”
The third step is to create another Ashura.
“We have preserved the message and teaching of Ashura and people still commemorate that day by setting the mourning gatherings. You should also (while addressing the ulama) create a wave against the regime so that the congregations and holding mourning sessions would continue and hence people remained aware of them… Provide people with the teachings of Islam, which is the school of jihad and the religion of struggle, refine their beliefs and make efforts for overthrowing the illegitimate regime and establish an Islamic state.”
The fourth stage in the struggle for the establishment of the Islamic state is patience, because “we need diverse and continuous actions to succeed in establishing the Islamic state. And that is a goal which requires time.” According to Imam Khomeini, “we should continue our struggles even if the next generation sees the result.”
Making reforms in seminaries is the next phase of the struggle. Because “the introduction and presentation of Islam require reforming the seminaries. Hence, the curriculum and the method of propagation should be completed... and the thoughts of the sanctimonious individuals shall be corrected.”
Eliminating the intellectual and ethical effects of colonialism in the seminaries is the sixth stage of the struggle. According to Imam Khomeini, the seminaries are also part of the community and the people. Therefore, they may also be influenced by “the colonialist practices and the educational and political systems of puppet governments and it is the duty of scholars to “strive for making intellectual and moral reforms in seminaries.”
“Dealing with the sanctimonious individuals is the next step because Imam Khomeini believes that they would hinder the reform and the movement and also they prevent us from continuing our struggle.” He believed that such people “would act against Islam in the name of Islam.” “They have come from the seminaries.”
The eighth step is to purify and make reforms in the seminaries.
“The seminaries are the places for gaining knowledge, propagating Islam and managing the Muslims’ affairs. The jurisprudent who is working for and following the orders of an oppressive government is not trustworthy and cannot be a divine trustee.”
The ninth stage of the struggle is the rejection of the akhund-e darbari (a court cleric), because “such individuals are not the Muslim jurisprudents. Many of them have been recruited by the Iranian security agency.”
Finally, overthrowing the oppressive regimes is the last stage of the struggle.
“It is our job to overthrow the taghut, the oppressive political powers that exist throughout the Islamic world. The state-run institutions must be replaced with the public service institutions and should be governed by Islamic laws, and gradually an Islamic state should be established... Muslims can exercise their faith and preserve their morality and live in security when the rule of law and justice, that is a government which Islam has designed its system of governance and laws, would protect them.”
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