Fundamental Religio-Political Concepts in the Sources of Islam
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FUNDAMENTAL RELIGIO-POLITICAL CONCEPTS IN THE SOURCES OF ISLAM by SOURAN MARDINI Ph. D Thesis Submitted to the Department of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies, Faculty of Arts, UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH April 1984 DECLARATION I hereby declare that the research undertaken in this thesis is the result of my'own investigation -`composed and that it has been by myself. No' 'part it of. has been previously published in any other work. ABSTRACT This thesis purports -toýelucidate whether or not there is a framework of political, implications in the document of the Qur'än. The - investigation is prompted by a controversy existing among some Muslim, as well as orientalist, -scholars. -One, -group of scholars holds the view that the Qur'2n has political connotations and can-, -be considered as the source of political theory. Another group asserts that the Qur'än is a religious document and has no political implications. The author of this thesis assumes that by returning to the document of the Qur'an itself and examining its terminology against the exegecy of Muslim scholars and the background of the circumstances of revelation, ' a clearer view of the controversy can be attained. The introductory chapter outlines the controversy. The view of both: groups is briefly discussed. The methodology of research is explained The author introduces seven controversial terms which it is proposed to examine in the thesis. - iv - These terms are: ummah, walä', ikhwah,; khalifah, imam, ulü al-amr, and shüra. The first chapter deals with. the concept of ummah as it is' encountered in the Qur'än and its development. The term is examined in the light of the interpretations of the major Muslim exegetes: Here the lexical' meaning, as well 'as the possible political dimensions, are the focus of the discussion. The term is then examined in the light of the writings of Muslim political theorists, classical 'and modern. The ' concepts of walä' and ukhüwah are discussed in Chapter' 2. ' The focus of attention is directed to the possible implications the terms might have in relation to political phenomena. These terms are then examined in the context 'of "the their pragmatic and practical application -in historical setting of Madinah at the time of the Prophet. In the third chapter the concepts of khallfah, imäm and ulü al-amr are examined in the manner of Chapter 1. The terms here are examined against the background of their usage at the time of the -v- Qur'änic revelation. Their different shades of meaning are then examined in the light of the interpretations of the main writings of Muslim exegetes. The terms are also examined in terms of their modern concepts. The concepts of these terms are again examined with reference to their possible interpretations, first against the lexical meaning then against the writings of Muslim scholars. In Chapter 4 the concept of shürä is examined with reference to its nature and relevance to authority in the Islamic ummah. In Chapter 5 two practices within the ummah, namely al-zakat and al-jihad are discussed. Finally, an attempt is made to assess the political nature of the terms proposed in this study. CONTENTS Page: DECLARATION ii ABSTRACT iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS viii TRANSLITERATION ix ABBREVIATIONS X INTRODUCTION 1 CHAPTER 1: THE UMMAH 39 CHAPTER 2: RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE MEMBERS OF THE UMMAH 80 A. Walä' 81 Wall in the Qur'än 83 B. Ukhüwah 125 Ikhwah in the Qur'an 132 CHAPTER 3: AUTHORITY IN THE UMMAH 166 A. Imämah and Khiläfah 167 (i) Imam in the Qur'an 183 (ii) Khallfah in the Qur'an 197 B. U1ü al-amr 207 CHAPTER 4: CONSULTATION IN THE UMMAH: SHURÄ 220 - vii - CONTENTS (Cont'd): Page: CHAPTER 5: PRACTICES IN THE UMMAH 244 A. Zakat 247 B. Jihad 282 CONCLUSION 337 BIBLIOGRAPHY 358 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am grateful to Dr. Ian K. Howard for his kind and guiding supervision. His knowledge and insight into the intricacies of the subject made this thesis possible. I would also like to thank Professor Montgomery watt for his guidance in the initial stages of the thesis. Gratitude should also be made to Professor Latham for his kind encouragement and help. Particular gratitude and appreciation are due to Dr. Rosemary Douglas. Her support throughout the latter stages of writing this thesis gave me the opportunity to finish it. And finally I would like to thank Miss Irene Crawford, the Secretary of the Department, for her kind help and assistance; also my thanks to Mrs. Jenny Maisels who took particular care in the preparation of this thesis. TRANSLITERATION Arabic Letter Transliteration Short Vowels X_ a b=u .: r tI .. r th Long Vowels 7 ý ha ý kh d `"sý T dh Diphthongs r"ý aw ay iyy sh r V uw i J. 4l ' t C gh f J. q k l m n h w y ä t ABBREVIATIONS Jawäd 'OA1i: A1-Mufa$sal fl Ta'rikh al-Arab gabl al-Islam. al-Baydäwi: Anwar al-Tanzil wa-Asrä. r al-Ta'wil. al-Firüzäbädi: Tanwir al-Migiäs min Tafslr Ibn Abbas. al-Jalälayn Tafslr al-Jaläla n. °Ult1m Ibn Jazz!: Kitäb al-Tashil li al-Tanzil. Ibn Kathir: Tafslr al-Qur'än al-CA:; im. Ibn Manzür: Lisän al-Arab. al-Qurtubi: al-Jämic li-Ahkam al-Qur'an. Jamic a1-Tabari:0 al-Bayan fl Tafsir Qur'än. ° al-Zamakhshari: A1-Kashshäf an Hagä'ig Ghawämid c al-Tanzil wa- Uyün al-Agäwil fl Wujüh al-Ta'wil. 1 INTRODUCTION 2 In this thesis it is proposed to show whether or not in the sources of Islam and particularly the document of the Qur'än, there is a framework of political implications. For this purpose certain basic assumptions are put forward in the introductory chapter. Muslims consider the Qur'an to be the revealed word of God. This attitude is reflected in the writings of Helmut G. tje, The collection of divine revelations in the Qur'än serves Muslims as the primary source of their doctrine. ' In this study the document of the Qur'än is considered as a document issued by Muhammad, and claimed by him to be the word of God. It is treated here as an integrated whole. This attitude is expressed by some Western writers on Islam, 2 e. g. John Burton and Weitbrecht Stanton. George 1. Helmut Gätje, The Qur'an and its Exegesis, Tr. Alford T. Welch, -Routledge & Kegan Paul, Cont'd:... 3 Sale says Mohammad was really the author and chief contriver of the Koran is beyond dispute; though it be highly probable that he had no small assistance from others, as his countrymen failed in their conjectures as to the particular persons who gave him such assistance. Concerning the development of the Qur'än during the eventful life of Muhammad, Canon Sell Cont'd: third edition, London, 1976, p. 16. 2. John Burton, The Collection of the Qur'an, Glasgow University Society, Glasgow, 1969-70, Chapter 1; also H. U. Weitbrecht Stanton, The Teaching of the Qur'an, S. P. C. K. Holy Trinity Church, London, 2nd Impression, 1969, pp. 3- 29. 1. George Sale, The Preliminary Discourse to the Koran, Frederick Warne and Co. Ltd., London, (n. d. ), pp. 68-9; a similar view is also offered by Arthur N. Wollaston, The Religion of the Koran, The Orient Press, London, 1904, p. 11. 4 writes, we are enabled to see how admirably this 'piecemeal' revelation was fitted to meet ` the requirements of Islam as they arose. The view advocated by John Wansbrough that the Qur'an is a composite work is not, however, considered as a working basis for this thesis. 2 1. Canon Sell, The Historical Development of the Qur'än, - Society for prompting Christian knowledge, London, 1909. Introduction IX. 2. John Wansbrough, Qur'änic Studies, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1977. Wansbrough attempts in his work to establish two main points. The first point suggests that the Qur'an was not compiled in its final shape cUthmän under but that the Muslim canon came to its final shape towards the end of the second century A. H. The second point Wansbrough tries to establish, and this may be related to the first point, is that the Muslim canon is nothing but a diluted form of Cont'd:... 5 The factor which prompted the writing of this thesis is the controversy between two schools of thought as to whether or not the document of the Qur'än has any political implications. ' It is assumed that by returning to the document of the Qur'an the validity of one view or another can be established. ' Cont'd: Judaism; and that Islam took a long time before it came to its present shape as it gradually developed from Judaism. This view, which suggests, in effect, that there has been a great conspiracy by Muslims of the 2nd and 3rd centuries, has yet to demonstrate its validity in terms of proving such a conspiracy. It is rejected by most scholars and can be regarded as at best a hypothesis based on a rather tenuous interpretation of the Qur'änic text. 1. Thomas Arnold alludes to such a controversy in his treatise, The Caliphate, Oxford, 1924, p. 45. 2. The Khwaja Kamal-ud-Din considers the Qur'an as a reference that appeals to reason and understanding and reflects the truth and is Cont'd:... 6 The view regarding the Qur'än as a source of political teachings is represented by the classical writings of Muslim scholars, including such writers as al-Mäwardi, Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn Khaldtzn. The political writings of these scholars represent in themselves the development of fully fledged theories in Islamic political thought.