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The Concept of Social Justice As Found in Sayyid Qutb's Fi Ziljl Al-Qur'an

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The Concept of Social Justice As Found in Sayyid Qutb's Fi Ziljl Al-Qur'an THE CONCEPT OF SOCIAL JUSTICE AS FOUND IN SAYYID QUTB'S FI ZILJL AL-QUR'AN ASYRAF HJ AB RAHMAN THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN THE DEPARTMENT OF ISLAMIC AND MIDDLE EASTERN STUDIES FACULTY OF ARTS, UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH OCTOBER 2000 "\%J.ED tr i yn .. 1 IN THE NAME OF ALLAH THE COMPASSIONATE, THE MERCIFUL DECLARATION I, THE UNDERSIGNED, HEREBY DECLARE THAT THIS THESIS IS WRITTEN BY MYSELF AND ANY REFERENCES MADE TO THE SOURCES ARE DULY ACKNOWLEDGED ASYRAF HJ AB RAHMAN ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT All praise be to Allah and peacebe upon the ProphetMuhammad. I would like to express my deep gratitude to my supervisor Dr Andrew J Newman to whom I owe much for his expert guidance, constant encouragement, constructive comments and invaluable assistance throughout my research at Edinburgh University. Acknowledgements are also due to my second supervisor, Dr Yasin Dutton, Professor Carole Hillenbrand, and all the academic staff of the Department for their guidance and assistance. I also would like to thank Miss Lesley Scobie, the Secretary of the Department, the librarians of the University of Edinburgh and the staff of the Faculty of Arts for their co-operation throughout the period of my study. I would like to express my thanks to the various institutions involved in sponsoring my studies in Britain, namely the University of Putra Malaysia and the Public Services Department of Malaysia. My thanks are also due to Professor Sulaiman Mohd Yasin, now Deputy Rector of the University College of Terengganu Malaysia and Dr Saharudin Abdul Hamid for their invaluable advice and moral support. I owe a great debt of appreciation to my wife Nooraihan Ali for her unbroken prayer, patience and continuous support. I greatly appreciate my children, Nur Widaad, Aslam and Aiman for their inspiration and encouragement. Finally, I am very grateful and thankful to my beloved parents, Abdul Rahman Abdul Latif and Wan Kalthom Abdul Qadir without whose guidance and sacrifice I would never have come as far as I have. May Allah bless all the above mentioned and give them a good reward. iii ABSTRACT Sayyid Qutb (d. 1966) represented one of the most outstanding Muslim writers on Islamic thought in the twentieth century. His importance stems from the fact that his writings influenced numerous generations of Egyptian Muslims and Muslims outside of Egypt. This study examines the concept of social justice as found in Qutb's F Zildl al-Qur'an. Chapter one is devoted to a study of the formative phase of Qutb's life and career before his emergence as an influential Muslim scholar. Chapter two discusses Qutb's socio-political thought between 1947 and 1952, prior to FT Zildl al- Qur'dn. In this chapter, Qutb's literary study of the Qur'an, which became a preparatory background for his interest in Islam, will also be examined. Chapter three deals with general features of F Ziläl al-Qur'an, including Qutb's approach to Qur'anic commentary. Chapter four examines the doctrinal bases of social justice. In this chapter, the nature of social justice and its foundations will be discussed in accordance with Qutb's understanding of the doctrinal conception of Islam (al- tacawwur al-i tigddi), including the divinity (uhihiyya), supreme authority (rubübiyya) and sovereignty (hdkimiyya) of God. Chapter five addresses the practical dimensions of social justice. In this chapter, the discussion will focus on Qutb's outlook on the implementation of social justice with respect to the practical reality of Muslims' lives. His discussions on the necessity of establishing an Islamic State and implementing proper management of the economic system according to Islamic principles will also be covered. The study concludes with an assessment of the significance of Qutb's notion of social justice and his treatment of the current social, economic and political problems facing the Muslim Umma and Egyptian society. Iv Transliteration S- ' (omitted the beginning at of a word) ý1 t b .Dj t C) th gh ti f L9 q kh k d Ji dh rm 0 ýj n Z h may' s 9w sh y cP S c, \ al-, 'I- CY a The diphthongs are written: ay aw (L9') The three short vowels are represented by a for fatlia, i for kasrra and it for (lamina. The long vowel are represented by 5, ü, i.. The tä' marbüta is represented by at when in construct and omitted at the end of the word. (except in words like _aküt and salüt which are maintained as they commonly appear as : akut and saht in some English texts). V TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii TRANSLITERATION iv TABLE OF CONTENTS v INTRODUCTION 1 Chapter One: Sayyid Qutb: The Formative Phase 1.1 Introduction 7 1.2 Life and Works 7 1.3 Twentieth Century Muslim Thought 25 1.3.1 Introduction 25 1.3.2 Al cAgqäd and the Dnväz school of poetry 25 1.3.3 Hasan al-Bannä and the Ikhwän al-Muslimün 33 1.3.4Al-Mawdüdi and the Jamä°atal-Islämi Movement 40 1.4 Conclusion 46 Chapter Two: Socio-Religious Commitment: Qutb's Thought between 1947 and 1952 2.1 Introduction 47 2.2 Literary analysis of the Qur'an 48 2.3 The Islamic answer 52 2.4 The call for an Islamic social system 54 2.4.1 Al-`Adäla al-Ijtimä iyya fi'1-Islam (Social Justice in Islam) 55 2.4.2 Ma`rakat al-Islam iva'1-Ra'smäliyya (The Battle between Islam and Capitalism) 64 2.4.3 Al-Salden al-`Älami wa'1-Isläni (Islam and Universal Peace) 66 2.5 Conclusion 69 2.5.1 An evaluation of Qutb's Islamic thought before 1952 72 vi Chapter Three: Fl Zildl al-Qur'an (In the Shade of the Qur'an) 3.1 Introduction 77 3.2 Background to the writing of Ziläl 78 3.3 The objectives of Zildl 83 3.4 Qutb's approach in Zildl 86 3.5 Conclusion 95 Chapter Four: The Doctrinal Bases of Social Justice 4.1 Introduction 96 4.2 The doctrinal concept (al-tasawwur al-i tigädi): Ulihiyya, Rubzibiyya, and Häkirniyya of God 97 4.3 Social justice: Its nature 104 4.4 The basis of social justice and its objectives 116 4.4.1 Freedom of Conscience 117 4.4.2 Human Equality 124 4.4.3 Social Solidarity 129 Chapter Five: The Practical Dimension of Social Justice 5.1 Introduction 140 5.2 The political system of Islam 142 5.2.1 The necessity of the state 142 5.2.2 Qutb's notion of the state 147 5.3 Characteristics of an Islamic political system 154 5.3.1 God's Sovereignty (Häkimiyyat Allah) 155 5.3.2 Caliphate (Khildfa) or Imamate (Imäma) Government 166 5.3.3 Consultative Government (Huki7inat al-Sht7rü) 174 5.3.4 Pledge of allegiance (Bay a) 181 5.3.5 Obedience (Tä a) 186 5.3.6 Justice and equality (al-`Adl wa'1-Musüwd) 190 5.4 Wealth and Social Equity 199 5.4.1 Nature of wealth 199 5.4.2 Ways of spending 201 5.4.3 Ownership in Islam (al-mulkiyya al-fardiyya) 210 5.4.4 Zakdt Institution 216 5.4.4.1 The obligation of zaküt 216 5.4.4.2 Property on which zakdt is payable and its rate 222 5.4.4.3 Those eligible for receiving Zrakat 224 VII 5.4.5 Usury (ribü) and its prohibition 228 5.4.5.1 Islamic injunction 231 5.4.5.2 Prohibition of usury (ribä) 234 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 242 BIBLIOGRAPHY 252 I Introduction The twentieth century continued to witness the decline of the Muslim world in its society, economy and politics as compared with the West. This phenomenon worsened with the appearance of corrupt political leaders in certain countries, who used their authority to exploit national. resources for their personal interest and that of their cronies among the bourgeois and autocrats without considering the needs of the general population. Under the guise of socialism, nationalism and democracy, these leaders manipulated the uncertain political situation so as to keep their countries and their people in their grip. In so doing, oppression and political pressure were sometimes used against any Muslim group attempting to revive or reform the countries on the basis of Islam. In addition, the West's interference in the politics and economy of the Muslim countries contributed towards the deterioration of the ' situation rather than solving the problems. Realizing this phenomenon, there appeared some Muslim scholars and thinkers in the early and mid-twentieth century, who were concerned about the problems and tried to find solutions from the Islamic perspective. Names like Jamäl al-Din al-Afghani (d. 1897), Muhammad cAbduh (d. 1905) and Rashid Ridä (d. 1935) were among those who saw that "something must be done" to understand the causes of decline so as to rectify the situation and restore Muslim countries to their proper place in the world. Sayyid Qutb (d: 1966) was one of the most important and influential Muslim figures of the twentieth century who focused on the problems facing the Muslim Uin, nü as a whole and Egyptian society in particular. The continuing dire economic situation of his country, the political corruption and the incessant squabbles of the political parties caused him to feel increasingly disillusioned and frustrated. In his 1 Saläh`Abd Sa»'id Qu/b: M7Idd ild'l-Istishhäd (Damascus:Där al-Fattäh al-Khälid , ntin al al- Qalam, 1994), 414-416. Seealso Yvonne Yazbeck Haddad, ContemporaryIslam and the Challenge ofHistöry (Albany: StateUniversity of New York Press,1982), 17.
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