The Dynamics of Religious Life and Secularism in Iran: Examining the Interaction of Religion and Politics in the Formation of the Islamic Revolution

The Islamic Revolution of Iran, as one of the most significant socio-political transformations of the twentieth century, differs from other modern revolutions in multiple aspects. This revolution not only challenged prevailing theories regarding the decline of religion in modern societies, but also demonstrated that in the age of modernity, religion could not only avoid decline but even lead to the establishment of a state founded upon religious values. This research, employing a descriptive-analytical method and utilizing library resources, examines the interaction between religious life and secularism in the formation of the Islamic Revolution of Iran. Various hypotheses have been proposed concerning the status of religion in the modern era, including the disappearance of religious beliefs, the transformation of the nature of religion into a contingent phenomenon, and the emergence of new religious and non-religious forms. This research demonstrates that secularism in Iran has not proceeded in a linear and monocausal manner, but rather as a complex and unpredictable process that, by providing a context for the emergence of novel forms of religious life, contributed to the formation of the Islamic Revolution of Iran. Accordingly, the Islamic Revolution of Iran, under the leadership of Imam Khomeini, was able, by synthesizing elements of religious, national, and civilizational identity, to offer a novel reading of the interaction between religion and modernity and to emerge as a unique model in the history of world revolutions.