While the majority of mystics abandoned the world to retreat to a life of contemplation, Ostad Elahi did the exact opposite: he renounced a life devoted to ascetic practice and meditation in order to experiment with a new form of spirituality, one that was based on constant attention to the Divine while concurrently living a normal and active life in the midst of society. Thus, when he joined the judiciary in 1934, not only did Ostad part from an ascetic lifestyle, but also from the entire concept of traditional mysticism. As it turned out, his new environment would provide him with a unique opportunity to deepen his reflections and to truly test his ethical principles.

Throughout my career as a judge, I began each working day with the following words: ‘O God, I place myself in Your hands. Since You know my intention is only to accomplish Your will, forgive me if I err in my judgment.’ God be praised, for He prevented me from committing judicial mistakes.

When Ostad was born in 1895, Persia (now called Iran) was ruled by sovereigns of the Qadjar dynasty who had been in power since 1796. In 1924, however, Reza Shah seized power, deposed the Qadjar, and instituted the Pahlavi dynasty. Determined to modernize the country, Reza Shah began to reorganize the government according to a Western model. Setting the foundations of a new judicial system, the penal code was promulgated in 1926, followed by the civil code in 1928. Naturally, it would take some time before these radical changes had any impact on the customs and habits of a society that was still under the influence of Qadjar times. When Ostad joined government service, Persia retained a quasi-feudal structure in which influential families continued to play the role of lords. Small towns were ruled by clans and headed by rich merchants or landowners who wielded their influence to control the administration and judiciary; in short, corruption was prevalent throughout the system.

My intention in joining the judiciary was to reclaim the rights of the oppressed from the oppressors. Unfortunately, laws are conceived such that by tampering with a few files, it is easy to condemn the innocent and exonerate the guilty. When I lost my illusions, I was deeply affected.

It was within such a context that Ostad Elahi performed his judicial duties from 1934 to 1957. Throughout his entire career he was confronted with constant pressure from influential families in the regions where he worked, as well as arbitrary decisions that were handed down from an unstable Ministry of Justice, which was often under the influence of these very same families. Because of his integrity and determination to apply justice regardless of the unpropitious circumstances, he was repeatedly transferred, either at the request of local notables who realized they could not bribe him, or by his own administration when he refused to carry out actions and decisions that were contrary to his ethics. These recurring transfers made Ostad’s life particularly difficult, forcing him to part with his family on many occasions, or to move with them to regions that were often remote and inhospitable.

When performing my duties as a judge I would do things no one else dared to do, for I was accountable to God, not to the Ministry of Justice, and I was not afraid of anyone.

In spite of these difficulties, Ostad practiced his profession for approximately thirty years. He gradually rose through the ranks of the judicial system, from magistrate to President of the Court of Appeals. Later, when he would reflect on this period of his life and the influence that his profession had on his spiritual journey, he emphasized that a single year spent in the judiciary striving to accomplish his duty for God’s satisfaction had taught him more spiritually than the twelve years of uninterrupted asceticism he had practiced in his youth.

For more information, please see: The Professional Ethics of Ostad Elahi