Ma`rifat Hoghoughi

This article aims to explain the epistemological foundations of regulation in the thought of Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi and to critique secular rationality within the framework of public law. From his perspective, human beings stand between two opposing forces — material attachments and divine attraction — which reveal their intrinsic need for divine guidance. Since human reason, due to its inherent limitations, cannot fully comprehend all dimensions of good and evil, the accurate path to perfection can only be discerned through divine revelation and the Sharia. Based on this premise, secular rationality and theories such as utilitarianism and social contract are challenged, as they lack a reliable criterion for discerning genuine welfare. The study presents a three-tier regulatory model derived from Allameh Mesbah Yazdi’s thought, delineating the macro level (divine–legal guidance), the meso level (prudential or interest-based rationality), and the micro level (implementation and supervision). Within this framework, the role of the people is analyzed as the guarantor of enforcement in both its affirmative dimension (participation and delegation of executive power) and its preventive dimension (duty-based oversight and critique). Finally, the innovative model of the “Committed Observer Triangle” is proposed, wherein the three pillars of divine guidance, rationality, and public supervision interact as a dynamic and stable field of normative force ensuring the integrity and vitality of religious governance.