Urwat al - Wuthqa International Academic Research Institute Journal of the Socio-Political Thought of Islam 2981-1511 6 2 2025 09 23 A Comparative Study of the Concept of Freedom with an Emphasis on the Views of Imam Khomeini and Erich Fromm مطالعه تطبیقی مفهوم آزادی با تاکید بر دیدگاه امام خمینی و اریک فروم 139 164 253082 10.22034/jspt.2026.565885.1156 EN Seyyed Rasoul Mirasharafi Langroodi PhD in History, Culture and Civilization, Assistant Professor Department of maaref, IRIB, IRIB University, Tehran, Iran 0009-0005-9930-039X Mohammad Motallebi , PhD in Theological Schools of Thought, University of Religions and Denominations, Qom, Iran, Journal Article 2025 12 13 <span>Despite the codification of principles concerning individual and social freedoms, the effective realization of these rights in different human societies continues to face significant challenges. New forms of colonialism and various forms of dependency have reduced the concept of freedom to nothing more than the absence of coercion. Against this backdrop, a comparative examination of the views of Imam Khomeini and Erich Fromm on freedom and its constituent elements is of particular significance. Both thinkers regard freedom as a fundamental condition for the attainment of human happiness and the perfection of life; however, their definitions of freedom and their accounts of its essential components differ in accordance with their respective intellectual and ideological orientations.</span> <span>Employing a descriptive-analytical approach, the present study comparatively examines these two perspectives. A comparative understanding of their views can contribute to a deeper comprehension of the characteristics and limitations of freedom in contemporary societies, particularly in light of differing Islamic and Western approaches, while also helping to identify practical strategies for its realization. Coercive conditions and relations governing people's lives have diminished the scope of individual and social freedoms and have generated new forms of deprivation of liberty. Accordingly, analyzing and critically examining these conditions and identifying their various dimensions are essential to achieving genuine freedom.</span> <span>Imam Khomeini conceptualizes freedom in relation to religion, social justice, and <em>wilayat al-faqih</em> (Guardianship of the Jurist), ultimately orienting it toward spiritual proximity to God. Erich Fromm, by contrast, understands freedom in terms of independence from all forms of domination and as a condition for individual self-realization and responsible participation in society. Despite this fundamental difference regarding the source of legitimacy and the ultimate purpose of freedom, both thinkers maintain that freedom devoid of ethical and social orientation cannot lead to a desirable outcome. Overall, this study examines the points of convergence and divergence in the conceptualization of freedom in the thought of Imam Khomeini and Erich Fromm, with particular emphasis on individual and social rights, freedom as a pathway to human flourishing, responsibility, and resistance to domination.</span> با وجود اصول مدون آزادی‌های فردی و اجتماعی، تحقق واقعی این حقوق در جوامع انسانی مختلف همچنان با چالش‌هایی روبرو است. شکل‌های نوین استعمار و وابستگی‌های گوناگون، مفهوم آزادی را به فقدان جبر تقلیل داده‌اند. در این میان، بررسی تطبیقی دیدگاه امام خمینی و اریک فروم درباره آزادی و ارکان آن، حائز اهمیت است. زیرا هردو اندیشمند راه تحقق سعادت و کمال حیات را در آزادی می‌دانند، اما با توجه به نگرش اعتقادی ایشان تعریف و ارکان آزادی با تفاوت‌هایی همراه است. ازاینرو فهم تطبیق دیدگاه‌ها درک عمیق‌تری از ویژگی‌ها و محدودیت‌های آزادی با توجه به رویکردهای متفاوت اسلامی و غربی در جوامع معاصر و ارائه راهکارهای عملی برای تحقق آن کمک کند. شرایط و روابط قهری حاکم بر زندگی مردم، آزادی‌های فردی و اجتماعی را کمرنگ کرده و به اشکال جدیدی از سلب آزادی تبدیل می‌شوند. لذا، تحلیل و واکاوی این شرایط و ارائه راهکارهایی برای مقابله با آن‌ها، از ضروریات دستیابی به آزادی واقعی است. https://www.jspt.ir/article_253082_267304ad602cb5243d676ad236960df9.pdf