Customer Reviews

Khomeini: Life of the Ayatollah

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
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1 star:		(8)

 

 

This biography of Ruhollah Khomeini (1902 - 1989) is not just a biography. It also is an excellent introduction to the theological and intellectual, as well as political, currents of 20th century Iran. I was struck by how different Baqer Moin's `view from inside Islam' is from others' `view from outside Islam.' One can glimpse the feelings, frustrations, and motivations of a people caught in a world where they were losing control over their own fates. The first chapters of this book are mind-bogglingly informative, telling the story of how a Western-influenced elite futilely tried to create a secular state atop a deeply traditional Shiite society. Ultimately the elites were so out of touch that they lost control; Iranian Shiism and its religious leaders channeled popular discontent and were able to control the directions in which Iran would evolve. Baqer Moin brilliantly documents Ruhollah Khomeini's development over a lifetime, explaining him in terms of Shiite theology, mysticism, and law - not to mention as power politician and demagogue. He states: "Khomeini established his credentials as a prominent religious leader before moving on to the political arena in order to both strengthen his standing within the religious establishment and widen his power base in general." As Moin also points out: "Khomeini was, in a sense, one of the few to have reached the stature of a leading jurisprudent, the highest level of theoretical mysticism and also to have become a highly-regarded teacher of Islamic philosophy. He was unique in being at the same time a leading practitioner of militant Islam." Ultimately the author documents a fanatic firmly convinced that he is the representative of God on earth, using his religious position to command absolute authority. Khomeini's deep debt (usually unrecognized) to Islamic mysticism is fully explored. Were his ideas mysticism run amok? Did his mystic dreams merge into megalomania? Was Khomeini a `heretic?' Baqer Moin (a former Islamic seminarian from Iran) makes a strong case that, in his last years, Khomeini's brand of fundamentalism was diametrically contrary to classical Shiism -- and in many ways un-Islamic. Moin definitely paints a somewhat darker picture of everyday Iranian Islamic life than does, for example, Ann Armstrong, in her more sympathetic portraits. (This book, incidentally, is cited in Karen Armstrong's "The Battle for God", her recent work about international fundamentalism). Though the author carefully examines the Grand Ayatollah's motivations, one is left with an understanding that never seems to go deeper than the intellectual. I suspect that this is not Moin's fault, but a reflection of Khomeini's cerebral inhumanity. By the time the cleric first got into serious trouble with the Shah's regime (initially imprisoned -- then exiled first to Turkey, next to Iraq, and finally to France) he was already in his 60's. (Khomeini `the old man' was wily, successful, and brilliant - he was certainly NOT likeable.) This book is certainly an excellent first step to understanding modern Iran and the man who changed it so much. I found this book so appealing that after I read it the first time, I went back and read it through a second time! I thoroughly recommend it...

The strength of the book is describing Khomeini's views towards Islam. It is very informative about mysticism and Khomeini's attachment to it. On the other hand, the book is not very detailed and I was yearning for more insight and information. There is little detail on the personality and personal life of Khomeini. Instead, the author focuses on the events that take place during Khomeini's lifetime more than Khomeini's life. In other words, I would recommend it for those who do not know much about history of 20th Century Iran. For those who have even a basic understanding of that period of Iranian history, I would not recommend it.

Sadly, there are very few books in English which discuss the Islamic Revolution in Iran from the Iranian point of view. The truth is that the late Ayatollah Khomeini was and still is very popular among Iranians living inside Iran. This book, while trying to portray itself as being objective, follows the same agenda as other books written previously.

Baquer Moin, an Iranian Cleric himself, traces an extremely interesting portrait of Khomeini personality and career as a political and religious leader.

The model used by Baquer Moin to analyse Khomeini's life and achievements is based on the division of the Iranian leader's experience in there main parts: mystic, jurisprudence (that is Islamic law) and the politics: three cornerstones, of Khomeini career. Mysticism as the one fundamental drive in the formation of a religious leader who becomes one with God, jurisprudence or knowledge of the Islamic law and its application to modern world and politics as the art of transforming the role of the Iranian clergy.

This book explain how the Iranian clergy, after five century of collaboration with the conservative Iranian monarchy and 50 years of opposition to the modernising monarchy of the Palavi, has turned itself in the ruling power in control of Iranian State and society.

Furthermore, the book analyses and explains an otherwise difficult figure for most westerns, and contribute to the understanding of Khomeini popularity in Iran and abroad, despite the many shortcomings of the Islamic regime he inspired and built.

A very well-written biography on a rather unknown man in the West (which is odd, considering the effect he has had on the latter part of the 20th Century).

As other reviewers have noted, this book is more than just a biography of Khomeini. It is also the story of an evolving Iran in the 20th Century, and can be read for that reason alone. But, from the humble roots of Khomeini's ancestors, to the man who became known as the "Imam," the book tells the often fantastic tale of Khomeini's remarkable, yet ultimately destructive, life.

Now, I must say first that I despise the man Khomeini for the things he has done to this once rich and beautiful country, full of intelligent people and beautiful history. But, after reading this objectively written book, I have grown to respect the man - not for his horrible ideas, and not for his brutal nature, but because of the things he was able to accomplish, however horrible and misguided they were.

As the jacket notes, Khomeini helped overthrow the rule of man and replace it with the rule of God (according to him, of course). This seems backwards when considering the modern revolutions, where dynastic kings and divine monarchs were tossed out (with their arbitrary rule) in favor of the rule of man, law and justice. What's remarkable is that Khomeini was able to do this while wearing the robe of a cleric. Unlike other dictators like Saddam, Mao, Stalin, or even Castro, Khomeini did not strut around as a tough-guy in military fatigues. he did not openly carry a weapon nor did he openly rule as a "thug." Rather, he appeared holy and worked hard at keeping that image. In fact, there is no doubt that Khomeini was probably a very deeply religious person who truly believed he was instituting the rule of Allah on Earth. It is this aspect of Khomeini that sets him apart from other dictators (although the bloody aftermath and the arbitrary and brutal rule he imposed keep him firmly in the dictator category). The author does a great job of explaining, throughout Khomeini's life, with examples and contemporaneous reports, how he was able to use propaganda, the spiritual nature of Persian society, unhappiness with the Shah, perceived influence by the Brits and Americans, and the power he attained as a religious leader, to overthrow the regime and put in place his "rule by God."

Of course, he had the help of the Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah once he got the ball rolling, but the story of the man and his Religious Revolution is quite fascinating. The author includes excerpts of Khomeini's writings (some of which are no more than spiritual poems, others give hints to his eventual rule and treatment of women). The author also includes anecdotal evidence of Khomeini's hatred for the Western world while he was in exile in Turkey and France.

The book also does a good job of detailing the moves of Khomeini's rivals and enemies, showing you just how close his Revolution was to failing, etc. A few times you wonder why the Shah did what he did...

And, like all good biographies (if you ask me), this book starts from the beginning and works to the end completely chronologically, from his grandparents, to his birth and boyhood, to his young ministry, to his aging, and finally his death. The book does not skip around between decades and so it reads smoothly. The author does not overwhelm the reader with names and places, either.

Very well done.

...The book contains some interesting titbits about the life of Khomeini, the mullah who presided over a reign of terror in Iran in the 1980s. ( According to Amnesty Internatoional at least 100,000 people were executed during Khomeini's decade-long rule. This book, however, does not cite a single one of those political murders.)
Because he is a trained cleric, the writer also offers some insight into the psychology of mullahs, especially their consummate skill in deception.
The problem, however, is that the author has studiously avoided any discussion of Khomeini's policies. It is as if Khomeini were a movie star or another celebrity with absolutely no connection with politics.
The author also largely ignores Khomeini's position as an ayatollah, thus saying very little about his theological writings and opinions on matters of faith.
Moin wants to avoid running into trouble with the Khomeinist regime in Tehran and thus flatters the late ayatollah whenever he can get away with it.
At the same time , however, because the book is designed to sell in Western markets, he tries to hint at some, very mild, criticism without ever getting into any depth.
Anxious not to appear to be taking sides, while taking sides,the author causes much confusion and, eventually, annoyance.
One wonders why this book was written. Pierre Benedile, London

The Ayatollah Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini was the central actor of the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, and one of the truly transformational men of history. Without understanding Khomeini, one cannot understand the revolution, nor the state he left behind (with which we are still dealing to this day). This is probably the best treatment of him available in English, despite its limitations, and so I consider it an essential part of the reading of anyone who wants to understand modern Iran. I also found it entertaining to read.

Yet I have to say that this book would have been better subtitled "The PUBLIC Life of the Ayatollah." Baqer Moin has not written a true biography of Khomeini, for few details of his life are included which are not directly relevant to his public role. We read virtually nothing of his family life, for example, and only learn of the names of two of his sons (he had several children) when they become part of his public life. Maybe he had no hobbies or acquaintances outside of theology and politics; nevertheless, the book is fairly narrowly drawn.

Moin does well to bring out Khomeini's mystical side. The ayatollah was not simply a radical Islamist, he was a mystic and a theologian of rare intellectual creativity. He is best known for his doctrine of velayat-e-faqih (the principle is a general one, but his conceptualization of it is radically different from most Shia clerics, including those considered authorities worthy of emulation by all believers, the marja-e-taqlid). Yet his ideas on Islamic spirituality, while not original - they were controversial because they derived from Muslim mystics long condemned by clerics - were combined with his concept of Islamic political philosophy in a revolutionary way.

Khomeini was also a philosopher, and he enjoyed writing poetry, some of which (in translation) is pretty good. There is also some discussion of the more traditional elements of his thinking, although not enough to really constitute an intellectual biography. A fuller biography would flesh out his intellectual development much more.

Readers should beware that Moin assumes a fair amount of knowledge of 20th century Iranian history. For example, with regard to the November 1979 hostage-taking at the U.S. embassy in Tehran, Moin doesn't mention it at all when he covers 1979, but later - assuming the reader is aware of the ongoing hostage crisis - begins talking about how Khomeini used it to his advantage in internal struggles. He does the same thing with regard to Iraq's invasion of Iran in the fall of 1980; he doesn't mention the war starting or discuss it on its own terms to provide background, but at one point just jumps into how Khomeini reacted to it. (The reviewer who described this book as a history of 20th century Iran clearly hasn't studied Iranian history.)

Moin's picture of Khomeini includes the elements familiar to Westerners; his intense dogmatism, his radical commitment to Muslim power, his ruthlessness and his blindness to the immense suffering caused by his decisions. Yet demonization does not bring understanding, and it is important for Westerners to understand the charisma and power of mind and person possessed by this man. Khomeini was not representative of most Shia Muslims, and certainly not most Muslims, but the phenomenon he and his movement represented is an integral part of the Muslim world, and of our world today.

This is a hymn in praise of the late Ayatollah Ruhallah Khomeini, the man who led the 1979 revolution in Iran and subsequently turned the country into a base for international terrorism. Moin describes Khomeini as " a great Islamic philosopher and scholar." The truth is that Khomeini was a second rate mullah with boundless political ambitions. This can be ascertained by a reference to his books- or rather silm pamphlets. These are written in a gramatically-challenged Persian with copious injections of Arabic malapropisms. There is nothing remotely philosophical about the diatribte that Khomeini distills. Attempts at turning Khomeini something of a saint did not start with Mr. Moin's efforts. Nor will Moin's panegryic be the last. The Islamic Republic in Tehran has been spending vast sums of money trying to manufacture such an image. The interested reader, however, will need go no further than examining Khomeini's own writings, including scores of speeches he made before and after he seized power. Some of these have been translated into English by Hamid Algar, a leading admirer of Khomeini. A few others are included in " The Spirit of Allah: Khomeini and the Islamic Revolution" by Amir Taheri, an exiled opponent of the late ayatollah. Those who can read Persian can refer to the 40-volume oeuvre of Khomeini that the present Iranian government has published to find a man with very scant knowledge of Islam and an almost genetically anti-philosophical mind. Mr. Moin tries to justify Khomeini's crimes including the execution of tens of thousands of Iranians without trial, the holding of American and other hostages in Tehran and Beirut, the assassination of over 100 Iranian dissidents in 11 foreign countries, including Britain and the United States, the death fatwa against trhe novelist Salman Rushdie and the illegal imprisonment of more than one million Iranians for varying lengths of time in trhe 1980s. Here are a few gems from Khomeini, or " the great philospher", according to Mr Moin: " Democracy is a form of prositution becuase it allows whoever collects more votes to govern." " God did not create Man to have a good time in this world; God created man to be tested throug suffering, struggle, holy war and martyrdom." " Human rights are an invention of Jews and Cross-worshippers, designed to mislead humanity. How can believers in the True God have exactly the same rights as those who do not believe? The only human rights that Islam recognises is the set of rights contained in the Holy Koran for the followers of the Prophet, who must earn them by deeds and not just by being there." A READER IN LONDON

This is one of the only, and one of the best biographies about Khomeini written in the English language. it is obvious that the people who gave this book 1 star did so because of how they feel about khomeini, not because of what they think of the book. Moin's book is well researched and referenced. It is not a propoganda tool, seriously! how ridiculous! It is a great book that serves a great function- to actually give a thoroughly researched, well investigated, heavily footnoted, comprehensive discription regarding the life of, whether you like it or not, one of the most influential and powerful figures in modern history. So, you can now do one of several things: be a baby and not read the book and rate it one star anyways since it is about khomeini, and you have linked him to evil and death, or you can read the book, and say it was terrible because you dont believe what Moin is saying because it flies in the face of all you thought you ever knew, even though you are not head of bbc persian, OR you can read the book with an open mind. If you choose the latter, you will come out of the experience with actually factual knowledge regarding the life of Khomeini. I read the book, and i thought it was very objective. I actually wondered what Moin's personal view on Khomeini was. I still do not know. That is how objective the book is. If you are an Iranian ex-pat, i dare you to read it. But only if you are ready to take a look at the facts, and not all the propoganda they have been feeding YOU.

Moin takes the chronological approach to explaining Khomeini's rise to power. It is probably the easiest way of tracing the man's astounding rise out of seemingly nowhere. Moin does not seem to particularly like Khomeini's ideas but still has some quasi-reverential passages that may make this book sound more like a hagiography than an objective biography. But if one reads the book closely, one will see that this is not the case.

Anyone expecting Khomeini to be lambasted in this book has missed the point anyway and should not be reading it. For the open-minded, it is an interesting read. It is evident that Moin has had access to a lot of information that many Western writers would have had a hard time getting.