Journal of Islamic Studies Advance Access originally published online on July 21, 2006
Journal of Islamic Studies 2007 18(1):14-42; doi:10.1093/jis/etl042
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Ayatollah Khomeini and the Contemporary Debate on Freedom
Trinity University, San Antonio, TX
E-mail: ssiavosh{at}trinity.edu
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Abstract |
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The evolving and transitional Iranian polity is experiencing an intense and soul searching debate on a variety of philosophical and ideological matters. At the heart of the debate are two competing notions of freedom that highlight the tension between individual rights on the one hand, and, the power of the community/state on the other. Due to the obvious political implications of such issues the participants in the debate consist of not only intellectuals but members of political factions who, in their quest to win, rely on the writings and sayings of authoritative figures including Ayatollah Khomeini.
Since Khomeini's critique of liberalism is well-publicized, it seems natural for authoritarians to appropriate Khomeini and his views for their agenda, But, the question that remains, especially for those who are not closely familiar with the entire corpus of Khomeini's writings, is how could the reformists make an appeal for support to the founder of the Islamic Republic in a discourse on freedom. The present article tackles this puzzling question by focusing on two factors: the ambiguity imbedded in the notion of freedom itself; and the diverse and at times contradictory positions taken by Khomeini on this subject. Both these factors create opportunities for multiple interpretations of Khomeini's words. After an elaboration on the concept of freedom and a brief description of Iran's various ideological and political tendencies, the author focuses on Ayatollah Khomeini's abstract epistemological and philosophical treatises, as well as his concrete political statements, hoping to shed some light on his complex contribution to the debate on freedom.