The two factors of leadership and people as well as their interactions play an important role in the studying of the revolutions. This has led the theories of the revolution to be divided into two categories in terms of the importance they attach to each of these two factors.
People-Centred Schools of Thought
Undoubtedly, people, in a general sense, have been the focus of all political and social uprisings. People are of particular importance as a factor to which the movement is designed to serve or an element, which contributes to the movement. Moreover, in some cases, they have played a major role in many political and social developments. Except for the military coup d’état carried out by a few people, the role of the public is clearly can be seen in the political and social developments. The revolution itself, which is one of the most evolved forms of political and social change, has no meaning without the participation of people, and, in fact, one of the three pillars of the revolution is the active presence of people in the revolutionary developments.
Therefore, some schools of thought see people as the main factor in the victory of the revolution and believe that they play a key role in this process.
Of course, a clear definition of the word people has not been given so far, and each school of thought, in accordance with its dynamism and influence within the social-political developments, has its own definition and understanding of this term. The Marxists only consider the labourer who is a member of the proletariat class as the productive and revolutionary, whereas the liberals rely on the middle and intellectual classes of the society and believe that as leaders and pioneers of the society they are influential in any society and political developments especially the revolutions while emphasizing on the intellectuals and their movements as well as the parties. In the French Revolution, the role of the aristocracy and ultimately the bourgeoisie is undeniable. In the Cuban Revolution, the military and guerrilla groups were highlighted; the Chinese Revolution succeeded by relying on the power of the peasants and farmers. Also, through conducting a sociological study one can find the main factor around which the other revolutions are revolved.
Leader-Centred Schools Of Thought
Some schools of thought believe that the victory or defeat of the revolution is solely depending on the leader or the leaders and that it is the role and capabilities of the leadership which mobilize the masses and make them participate in the revolution. Most of these schools attribute a charismatic authority to the leader believing that the revolution revolves around him. Among the most fundamental theories about charismatic authority is Max Weber’s theory. He believes that: “Within the politics which carries the characteristic of authority, three types of authority concerning three types of behaviours can be found: legal, traditional and charismatic. This division is based on the particular motivational character in which the obedience is rooted.”
The legal-rational authority is grounded in clearly defined laws as well as the legitimacy and competence of the persons in authority. This authority is based on the belief in the sacredness of the ancient traditions and the legitimacy of those who have the authority.
Charismatic authority points to an individual who possesses certain traits that make a leader extraordinary who is not only capable of but possesses the superior power of charisma so that people put unbreakable faith in him. Both rationality and charisma can bring about revolutionary change against the tradition, with the difference that the power of rationality first brings changes to the social environment and then the worldview of people, whereas charisma, first of all, would bring changes to one’s inner life. Although in Weber’s view neither all charismatic dominations are revolutionary nor all revolutions are charismatic, he believes that many new revolutions have had a charismatic feature.
Due to its revolutionary features, charismatic authority is the most common means of overthrowing legal and traditional governments. This type of authority is based on the extraordinary traits that the leader possesses or the followers and devotees attribute to him. There is a policy within the charismatic authority upon which people have to accept him as their undisputed leader. The charismatic leader redirects the normal course of the politics and, by proposing a new meaning of affairs, questions the legitimacy of the existing authority. In addition, by negating the past status, it would become a revolutionary force. Charisma requires constant movement and mobility. This type of authority is found in periods of psychological, physical, economic, moral, religious, and political constraints and pressures.
Social-political discontent coincides with the emergence of a character who claims to bring a new mission. He has the ability to make an emotional connection with the masses and has extraordinary qualities, or the followers think he has such qualities, all of which will result in social and intellectual changes. In the study of the Islamic Revolution identifying the relationship between people and the leader is of importance considering the above-mentioned issues and that most of the scholars and observers admitted that it had been the most popular and people-centred revolution in which Imam Khomeini undoubtedly played a key role. As Ayatollah Khamenei put it, “this revolution is not known anywhere in the world without the name Khomeini.”
The question which is posed here is that why despite the key role that people played in Iran’s socio-political developments, such as the constitutional movement and the nationalization of the oil industry, these developments eventually failed and the people left the scene, but in the Islamic Revolution, despite all the worldwide support for the Shah’s regime, they succeeded in overthrowing the regime without using weapons and confronting all the plots and crises over twenty-five years? To answer this question one should focus on the relationship between Imam Khomeini and people and study his views regarding the methods of people’s participation as well as his interactions with them.
Imam Khomeini as a Charismatic Leader
The love and affection expressed by people towards Imam Khomeini during his lifetime and even afterwards have led many scholars and researchers to characterize his relationship with people as charismatic. Among them is the article “studying the adjustment of the charisma theory to the reality of the Islamic Revolution,” in which the author states “Certainly, Imam Khomeini’s leadership in the Islamic Revolution of Iran exemplified Weber’s charisma theory in the contemporary world… Much of the theoretical effort to explain this event has been directly and indirectly influenced by Weber’s intellectual achievements.”
But a deeper study of the history of Imam Khomeini’s leadership gives us some evidence to refute the above-mentioned theory. During his leadership, Imam Khomeini always used to provide people with the necessary prerequisites before giving orders and convince them by explaining the reasons for the decision. That said, in a relationship based on fascination, there is no room for reason and persuasion. Even in cases where the general public’s view was different from Imam Khomeini’s, instead of using his intellectual and spiritual influence to make them accept his views, he would prefer the implementation of the public opinion so that its correctness or ineffectiveness will become clear.
Thus, it can be concluded that even though Imam Khomeini had possessed all the characteristics of a charismatic leader and his populist appeal, the relationship between the leadership and people in the Islamic revolution was not based on charismatic authority.
Imam Khomeini as a Marja’
In contemporary Iranian history, the role of the maraja’ (singular: marja’ – “source of emulation” – senior religious authority in Shi’ah Islam) in the formation and the successfulness of the Islamic movements is undeniable. On the one hand, because the Shi’ahs are always in need of an authentic reference for their legal issues, the maraja’ directly or indirectly through the clerics, have always been aware of their needs and issues. On the other hand, the fatwas of the maraja’ have been viewed as the Prophet’s decrees with which people should comply. Therefore, throughout history, and especially in the last century, the religious fatwas of a marja’ could quickly involve people in various political crises and as a vast and undeniable force disturb the usual equations of power. This is the power through which Mirza Shirazi issued a verdict prohibiting the use of tobacco that easily terminated an international treaty which was against the interests of the country without causing any violence or chaos, or in the relatively distant past, the maraja’ issued the fatwa of carrying out jihad against the tsar of Russia which changed the positions of the domestic and foreign politicians.
Imam Khomeini as a Leader of the Islamic Awakening
Studying Imam Khomeini’s life and his relationship with people before and after the revolution, we can conclude that despite the people’s deep affection for him, his relationship with people has never been a mere blind imitation. Imam Khomeini was a knowledgeable personality in the field of education, both in terms of theories and methodologies. He has succeeded in making a nation that for years has been experiencing weakness and ignorance and became indifferent to its fate, to start a massive uprising and pioneer the religious movements around the world.
Imam Khomeini repeatedly emphasized the vital role of the culture in dealing with people, saying: “Culture is the source of the happiness of the nation...what constitutes the nations is the proper culture.”
The followings are some of the characteristics of Imam Khomeini’s behaviour and attitude towards people:
Having Deep Insight into the Feelings and Ideas of the People
Since the oppressed groups constitute the majority of society, but also the world, so after the exclusion of uncaring individuals to other people’s needs as well as the arrogant people from the revolutionary front, all members of society are potentially the revolutionary forces.
That is why Imam Khomeini strongly opposed the phenomena such as nationalism and ethnicism believing that they have been created by the elements of domineering systems in an attempt to create divisions and disintegration within Islamic societies and the oppressed nations so the domination of arrogant powers will be maintained. He states in this regard:
“The plan of the great powers and their dependents in the Islamic countries is to separate these Muslim denominations, among which Almighty God has established brotherhood and described as the brothers, under the title of the Turkish nation, Arab nation, Persian nation making them be the enemies of each other. This is totally against the path of Islam and the Holy Quran.”
Although he was a Shi’ah marja’ and a pious believer who was not favouring the state of being indulgent regarding the religion, yet he used to emphasize Shi’ah and Sunni unity. Even, he did not ignore the religious minorities assuring them that in Islamic society they will enjoy greater freedom to practice their religious teachings. Interestingly, even the religious-political leaders in the past, which did not pay enough attention to this enormous force and establish their socio-political movements on the foundations other than the mass movement were failed. Sayyed Jamaluddin Asadabadi saw the unity of the Muslim world in the guidance and advice of the kings and rulers of the Islamic countries and the creation of unity between them.
The leaders of the Constitutional Movement had hoped for and relied on the Western intellectuals, also Ayatollah Kashani was only focused on the marketers and middle-class intellectuals, and history showed that they all failed to achieve their transcendent goals. The reformist uprising of Imam Khomeini and his messages were not limited to Iranian society and other Islamic countries. He believed that all human beings are by instinct inclined towards monotheism, goodness, truth-seeking and justice and if public consciousness increases and the human egos, as well as the other evil forces, are restrained and weakened, human beings will live the life of justice and peace.
Therefore, in most of his messages, Imam Khomeini calls upon the oppressed nations of the Third World to rise against the arrogant powers and in the days following the victory of the Islamic Revolution he openly puts forward the idea of forming a world party of the oppressed.
“The oppressed nations of the world must uphold their rights and should not wait for others to give them their rights.” Therefore, except those who take issue with the transcendent ideals of the society, that is, the arrogant elements, all sections of society can and must come together under the banner of Islam. In this regard, he used to outline specific guidelines to help each of the classes in society to demand their legitimate rights. Imam Khomeini believed that society is comprised of the deprived people who should be helped to get their rights and that they should not be divided by nationality, religion and so on. So that people become aware of and being united in the necessity of rising to demand their rights and that they identify their positions and roles in the movements according to their profession or gender, he divided the society into different strata and addressed each one of them using his own language so that all classes of the society could contribute to the revolution.
This division allowed the different sections of society to find a new place in the victory of the revolution and its movement towards achieving goals making them putting every effort into contributing to the achievement of the revolutionary ideals. Now we take a glance at how he treated different classes of society:
Workers and Farmers
Despite respecting and appreciating the workers and peasants as the main productive groups of the society and regarding them as a blessing, Imam Khomeini, contrary to the Marxist theory, does not regard the sovereignty of society as their sole right and in his speeches refers to the role of the workers in this way:
“The farmers and workers are the basis of the country’s independence. As the army defends the territory, you help the country to confront the dependence. They strive in the way of God and you also strive in the way of God.”
In his statements about the two groups, Imam Khomeini states that their profession is vital not only to meet their needs but also to meet the needs of society and to break the bonds of the dependence of the country to the foreigners. Therefore, Imam Khomeini would teach workers and peasants how to view and consider their jobs in the service of society and for Islam.
Marketers
Unlike the Marxists who have a negative view regarding this class of society and defame them by the name of the “comprador bourgeoisie,” Imam Khomeini excludes only one group of marketers from the revolutionary front, who belong to the same class of arrogant elements. On different occasions, he introduces them as faithful and devotees to the revolution.
“Businessmen and marketers should make legal trading and avoid overcharging. It has been said that some people commit overcharging and do not observe fairness in trading. They should know that there are a lot of weak people in our nation and many of them have lost a lot of money in this case. If the marketers sell goods unfairly and commit overcharging, those people may get hurt. I ask all the classes of society to observe fairness and the satisfaction of God.”
Women
Although they constitute half of the society, so far they have been ignored even in Islamic societies, and they have been expected only to do housekeeping works and take care of children. During the Islamic Revolution and with the guidance of Imam Khomeini, women suddenly found a place in society. In fact, Imam Khomeini’s guidance gave women a special personality that had two aspects. He assigned two social missions to women, first to enter the battlefield as part of the creative force of the society and participate in demonstrations, strikes, and political activities, and second to contribute to the maintenance of the revolutionary activities by encouraging their husbands, children and brothers. So Imam Khomeini paid great tribute to the women who had played such a role, namely the mothers and wives of the martyrs.
“In this movement, women have a greater right than men. brave men are raised by women. Women help men become perfected as the Holy Quran does. If such brave women are taken from the nations, the nations will be defeated; Islamic law is for the benefit of both men and women. Women should take part in the basic affairs of the country. As you have played a key role in the movements, now you must again take part in the victory. Remember that, whenever it is needed, you should rise up. The country belongs to you. You should build the country, God-willing.”
Academics, Intellectuals and Clerics
Imam Khomeini considers the nation and the deprived people as the real leaders of the society and believes that the scholars and intellectuals should assume the responsibility of education and awakening of people rather than representing them. Therefore, he emphasized the unity of the seminaries and the universities and was concerned about a university that is influenced by Western intellectual teachings and is separated from Islamic ideologies.
The Armed Forces
Although before the victory of the revolution, the armed forces had been considered as part of the anti-people system, perused the mission of suppressing the revolution and were generally seen as the main means of the power of the enemy, yet Imam Khomeini, through advocating the view that the armed forces are our brothers and confronting them would be regarded as killing a friend, urged people to give the flowers to the armed soldiers! On the other hand, by providing the necessary background and awareness, he ordered the troops to evacuate the barracks and join people. This order was so effective that not only no soldier was left for the commanders, but in some cases, the soldiers stood up against their commanders.
In other words, instead of engaging in an armed confrontation with the soldiers, their hearts were conquered.
Interestingly, after the victory of the Revolution and the collapse of the Pahlavi regime, and even though the armed forces were infamous for killing so many people and hence some would suggest that the army should be dissolved and the People’s Army should be created, Imam Khomeini not only opposed the dissolution of the armed forces but also he made efforts to organize those now serving the revolutionary system, providing the grounds for national reconciliation and closeness of the armed forces to the revolutionary people. However, he dealt with those who perpetrated massacres or committed other acts of treason through the Revolutionary Courts and punished them for their actions:
“And I have to give the army some advice. Also, I should thank some of the sections of the army. My advice is that we want you to be independent…”
The relationship Between the People and the Islamic Government
In Imam Khomeini’s view, the Islamic state, regardless of apparent differences in goals and ideals, also has fundamental differences with contemporary political systems in terms of organization and structure. In this theory, the majority can only gain legitimacy through the concept of the right, and consequently, the necessity of the implementation of the divine guardianship depends on its conditions being met, including the general acceptance of the people which is proclaimed through elections directly or indirectly by electing the members of the Assembly of Experts. Therefore, the relationship between the leader and people is naturally a deep and fundamental doctrinal bond. Thus, Imam Khomeini founded and led one of the most people-centred types of government. Unlike all existing political systems in the world, people are not merely involved in elections and choosing the leader. Rather, their participation in administering and governing the Islamic society as well as the fate of the Islamic country is regarded as their religious duty.
Creating Self-Awareness and Self-Confidence
Unlike Western theorists including liberals and Marxists, who ignore the masses and believe that the intellectual and elite should represent people through parties and lead them towards what they consider as the prosperity of the nation, Imam Khomeini believed that the mission of community leaders is to educate the masses about their rights and duties, and thus create the belief that they not only could shape their fate but also are supposed to uphold their right by standing up against the oppressors.
Humiliating the Enemy
One of the most important psychological tools to dominate the nations is to instill terror in their hearts and inculcate this idea in their minds that the enemy is powerful. After World War II and the invention and exclusive ownership of nuclear weapons by the superpowers, especially the United States, this mentality was created in the mind of the Third World nations that they not only unable to confront those superpowers but also have no choice but to rely on them for survival. It was the undisputed law of the Cold War era that the small and weak nations and governments had accepted. It has happened many times that as soon as the American fleets move toward one area of the world, small regional governments would surrender to their demands and abandon their desires and positions. Imam Khomeini questioned such a matter because based on his religious views he believed in the power of the nation: “The United States cannot do a damn thing.”
Relying on the Weapon of Sacrifice and Martyrdom
While considering Islamic teachings, Imam Khomeini believed that society and nation would be able to confront the enemy and defeat it without being afraid of its power provided that it could deal with the issue of death and realize that death is not the end of life, but an honourable death that is martyrdom is the beginning of a new life. Hence, it was through such an amazing method that Imam Khomeini, despite having an extraordinary and charismatic power and possessing the religious authority as a marja’, chose the long and difficult path of guidance and awareness by which he managed to educate a nation such that it would follow his path and create a power that will become the main pillar of stability and sovereignty of the Islamic Republic.
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