Matin Research Journal

Matin Research Journal

Imam Khomeini's Wilāyah Studies Based on Mystical Ontology, Emphasizing the Ranks of Mystical Wilāyah in the Arc of Descent and Ascent of Existence

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Hamid Hanaei Nejad 1
Gholamreza Hosseinpour 2
1 1. PhD (Islamic Mysticism and Imam Khomeini's Thought), Research Institute of Imam Khomeini and Islamic Revolution, Tehran, Iran, and Instructor at the University of Qur'an and Etrat Teachings, Isfahan, Iran.
2 2. Assistant Professor, Department of Islamic Mysticism and Imam Khomeini's Thought, , Research Institute of Imam Khomeini and Islamic Revolution, Tehran, Iran.
10.22034/matin.2023.405137.2178
Abstract
The present study examines the concept of mystical guardianship (Wilāyah) from the perspective of Imam Khomeini, focusing on its hierarchical stages in the arc of descent (qaws al-nuzūl) and the arc of ascent (qaws al-suʿūd). Conducted through a library-based method by studying Imam Khomeini's mystical works, this research justifies its necessity in explaining the ontological system of mystical guardianship with an emphasis on these two arcs, which have received less attention in contemporary studies. From Imam Khomeini's viewpoint, guardianship is a unified reality and the manifestation of the Greatest Name of "Allah," from which all beings benefit according to their existential capacity. This reality begins in the arc of descent from the Divine Essence, the Unseen of the Unseen (dhāt ghayb al-ghuyūb), and manifests through the Five Divine Presences (al-hadarāt al-khams): Ahadiyyah, Wahidiyyah, Arwāḥ, Mithal, and Kawn Jamiʿ, as well as stages such as the Most Holy Effu.
Keywords
Velayat
Imam Khomeini
mysticism
mystical ontology
arc of descent
arc of ascent

Subjects

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