Ma`rifat Farhangi Ejtemaei

The importance of social control towards preventing deviation of individuals and groups in the Islamic society is clarified through recommendations available in religious texts and the variety of its methods including divine control, as well as individual, organizational, and public control. A part of the public control emanating from the responsibility of individuals towards each other is manifested through the two obligations of “commanding right” and “forbidding wrong”. Despite the relevance of these obligations and serious attempts in this regard, it seems that “commanding right and forbidding wrong” in its jurisprudential and traditional ways does not have necessary and sufficient influence specifically on the younger generation. Thus the present article seeks to find novel and efficient ways of social control based on Nahj al-Balaghah teachings, besides commanding right and forbidding wrong in its jurisprudential sense. Of course, these ways do have the effects and consequences expected of commanding right and forbidding wrong. Researching into Nahj al -Balaghah, we find out that Imam Ali calls people to good things and prevents them from evil things, in addition to direct commands and prohibitions as one of the ways of social control. The indirect method is used by Imam Ali based on requirements of time, place, and audience in a variety of ways such as encouragement, blaming, praying for, asking divine punishment, expressing surprise, asking questions, preaching, etc. The present research has studied different ways of social control and monitoring in a descriptive analytical method in Nahj al-Balaghah.