Meaning and Position of Politics in Ja'fari School

Document Type : Research Paper

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Abstract

Politics is a science formed within the framework of belief principles and time circumstances. This fact guides us to accept that there is no unified understanding of political science in the outside world, and we witness the formation of different viewpoints and theories in this regard according to the schools and circumstances. The approach of this article is limited to the principles of Ja'fari School which is derived from Imam Ja'far Sadegh's lifestyle. I have tried to answer the following question: What is the position of politics in Ja'fari School in theoretical, epistemological, methodological and applying aspects? In order to achieve this goal, I have tried to design and present a comprehensive theoretical framework dealing with analysis of politics at four levels of ontology, epistemology, teleology and methodology. The analysis of Imam Sadegh's lifestyle indicates that: in Ja'fari School, politics is not the science of power, but the science of happiness. Thus we can claim that the Islamic pattern of politics can be considered as an alternative theory instead of secular political science.

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