The Political Dimension of Religion in Shiism
- the Relation Between Religion and Power ==========================================
Asabady, born in Iraq, played an important role among the contemporary thinkers of Islam. He considered "internal dictatorship and colonialism as the great enemies of the Islamic societies".
During his journeys to Asia, he advised Muslims to assimilate occidental science but still to keep some reserves towards it. He supported stoutly: "interdependence between Politics and religion and each Muslim's necessity to involve in the Politics of the country". Asabady stressed the idea of Islamic unity, which he considered more than necessary, because it reduces the external danger and strengthens the collective conscience.
He was one of the thinkers who had a major role in Islamic acknowledgment of the notion of Jihad (holy fight). Asabady's ideas inspired the ayatollah Khomeini the ruler of the Islamic revolution and the founder of the first Islamic Republic: "Asadabady tried to prove that Islam represents the foundation of an ideology guiding to prosperity and moral success of people and tried to make clear social philosophy and Islamic laws by defining the secondary elements of religion.
From his Islamic position he opposed Occidental culture and way of thinking announcing the national revolution against English, in Iraq, in 1920."
The same conceptual approach was used in 1963 by the Imam Khomeini who opposed the Shah's reforms and started "the White Revolution" by denouncing the connections established by the Shah with the United States and Israel. The word "politics" used in Persian is of Arab origin and derives from "sas" and "iasus". It has more significance, the most important one being "absolute ruling".
A basic principle of Iranian Politics is found in Imam Hossein's testament: "I do not selfishly oppose against corruption and oppression. My goal is guiding Muslims according to Islamic precepts. I consider that one who does not obey the Holy Book and does not act for justice and respect for the true way cannot be called Imam or ruler. In Islam, right to legislation and appliance of laws belongs to prophets." The Islamic government's goals are:
o Use of wealth and budget in the interest of the Islamic nation. o Defense of Islam and nation. o Providing security and humans' peaceful life. o Protection of weak people.
When Islamic Revolution burst, the Imam Khomeini expressed his intention to fight against tyranny (the shah's), dependence on foreign powers, and corruption and to institute a society based on Islamic principles: "the idea that religion must break up with Politics and Muslim scientists should not get involved in political and social affairs is a strategy launched by colonialists. Not only that Islam isn't separated from Politics but even it is the religion of Politics, prayers having political substance."
Dr. Abolhamid from the University of Teheran appreciated that: "Islamic revolution corresponds to a fundamental change both in social, moral, economic, juridical sphere and moreover in the political one. Violence is often used in removing a political regime, situation which causes human victims.
In Khomeini's opinion, the origin of Islamic Revolution should be regarded from Iranian and Lebanese Shifts' point of view that supported the Islamic renaissance. Three fundamental principles lie at the basis of this concept and they are:
- the Islamic constitutional movement;
- the spread of Islam;
- martyrdom.
In Iran, the 1906 constitutional revolution was the symbol of the confrontation between Islamic culture and tradition and occidental values.
Due to the misunderstandings between modern fundamentalists and conservationists-traditionalists regarding to the establishment of the Islamic state, constitutional revolution was soon over, making way to anarchy. In these circumstances, in 1911, Russia supported the institution of a dictatorship regime.
After the assassination of two representatives of the Iranian Clerics, in 1961 and 1962, Imam Khomeini became marji al-taghid, the supreme juridical and religious authority. In 1963, he made reference to the Islamic revolution and asked people to adhere to his ideas.
In 1979, Imam Khomeini proclaimed the Islamic republic in Iran and Islam became state religion, the Islamic state being ruled by an Imam who would impose, by governing, the basic principles of Islam.
According to the great ayatollah Mohamed Bakr Al-Sadr, the Islamic governing shouldn't rely on Individualism and the uninvolvement of the individual in the society or on the imperialists or social values. The Islamic state is similar to God's state, it is neither absolutist or tyrannical to respect the rules mentioned in the Coran being a must for the governors.
The Islamic state has two spheres:
- Internal, which bases on the applying of the Islamic rules and on the creation and education of the Islamic identities.
- External, the promotion of Islam across the world, the support for poor Muslims in their fight against Imperialism and Communism, the assurance of material-spiritual security of the Islamic nation.