An Analytical Study of Anti-despotism Elements in the Theory of the Guardianship of Religious Jurist

Different views about how to administer human societies were presented throughout the history. One of them is the theory which has taken the form of guardianship of religious jurist. Some doubts have, for some reasons, been raised on this theory, the most important of which is related to the guardian jurist’s discretion and lack of defined limits for it. Furthermore, it is assumed that this theory makes the society move towards despotism. This study seeks to dispel such doubts by expounding the anti-despotism elements in the theory of guardianship of religious jurist. The theory of guardianship of religious jurist makes known the aims of government and the qualifications which the guardian religious jurist enjoys, and each of these two can play a major role in blocking any possibility of despotism. Also, this theory has prescribed some limits for the guardian religious jurist’s conduct as distinct from the features governing the despotic rule. Such limits as divine laws, positive laws, justice, expediency and public supervision are a good case in point. In addition to the framework established by these conditions, the guardian religious jurist is responsible for supervising the performance of the officials of all ranks in the political system to refrain from leaning towards the features of a despotic system. It is worth noting that a descriptive-analytical method is used in this research.