Vanguard of the Imam : religion, politics, and Iran's Revolutionary Guards

321 Pages·2016·5.627 MB·English

by  Ostovar, Afshon

Vanguard of the Imam

Vanguard of the Imam
Religion, Politics, and Iran’s Revolutionary Guards
AFSHON OSTOVAR
1
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For Michele and Ladan
For their love, patience, and for keeping me humble.
Very, very humble.
So turns the world; her favors are soon passed,
All whom she nourishes must die at last.
One she will raise from earth to heights unknown,
One she will cast down from a royal throne;
But there’s no cause to triumph or complain,
Such is the way she turns, and turns again:
Where are those heroes now, those champions, where?
Drive out such mortal thoughts, that bring despair.
— Abol- Qasem Ferdowsi, Shahnameh
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments xi
Note on Transliteration xiii
1. Introduction 1
BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE IRGC 5
CONCEPTUALIZING THE IRGC 9
PRO- CLERICAL ACTIVISM 9
PRIMACY OF THE LEADER 11
CONFLICT AND STATE FORMATION 13
CHAPTERS AND QUESTIONS 16
2. From Ali to Khomeini 19
THE FORMATION OF SHIITE ISLAM 20
RISE OF THE CLERGY 25
THE ISLAMIC MOVEMENT 29
REVOLUTIONARY IDEOLOGY 34
3. Vanguard of the Imam 39
ENTER THE VANGUARD 41
ROOTS AND RADICALS 47
KHOMEINI ÜBER ALLES 54
ONE SYSTEM TO RULE THEM ALL 59
4. The Imposed War 62
INVASION 64
A STYMIED WAR EFFORT 69
vii
viii Contents
DEATH OF THE OPPOSITION 71
THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC STRIKES BACK 74
5. The Long War 80
THE INTERNATIONAL DIMENSION 81
RUNNING INTO WALLS 82
IN THE PATH OF THE DIVINE 85
A FLEETING TASTE OF VICTORY 91
THE BITTER END 96
6. Exporting the Revolution 102
REVOLUTIONARY INTERNATIONALISM 104
A CONSERVATIVE TURN 107
ONWARD TO JERUSALEM 109
THE REVOLUTION COMES TO LEBANON 112
FALL OF THE RADICALS 118
7. Warriors of Karbala 121
THE ISLAMIC MODEL ARMY 122
POWER OF THE PEN 125
WARTIME CULTURAL ACTIVISM 126
VISUAL IDENTITY 128
ICONOLOGY OF THE SELF 130
WARRIORS OF KARBALA 133
8. When Johnny Comes Marching Home 141
POSTWAR RECONSTRUCTION UNDER RAFSANJANI 143
PROPAGATING VIRTUE, PROHIBITING VICE 147
TAKING BACK THE REVOLUTION 152
9. The War on Terror 159
AXIS OF EVIL 160
ELECTING AHMADINEJAD 165
AN IRAN ASCENDANT 169
THE SPECTER OF WAR 175
10. Big Bang, Big Crunch 179
“DEATH TO THE DICTATOR!” 180
THE SOFT WAR 188
Contents ix
SPRINGTIME 192
THE INSTRUMENTS OF COERCION 197
KNIVES OUT 201
11. In Defense of the Family of the Prophet 204
IN DEFENSE OF SAYYIDA ZAYNAB 205
A RETURN TO KARBALA 219
12. Epilogue 230
13. Conclusion 235
Notes 243
Bibliography 285
Index 297