ABSTRACT
This chapter explains the characteristic complexity and the systemic centrality of power in Faḍlallāh’s thought. In al-Islām wa-manṭiq al-quwwa, he constructs the notion of power as a system that represents an inherent and interdependent component of Islam. For Faḍlallāh, Islam is the power that permeates all domains of life with a new system of values and – through organisation – transforms them into a complex and coherent force that puts these supreme values into practice. This systemic perception of power is the lens through which faith, ethics, spirituality, and social order as elements of power are understood. In Faḍlallāh’s concept, power provides the frame to human action, a sphere in which and a tool through which Islam is realised. Both power and Islam are comprehensive, for they are inseparable and inherently related. However, only the just power can truly represent Islam.
