Islam and the Foundations of Political Power Ali Abdel Razek
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eCommons@AKU In Translation: Modern Muslim Thinkers ISMC Series 1-1-2013 Islam and the Foundations of Political Power Ali Abdel Razek Maryam Loutfi Translator Abdou Filali-Ansary Editor Follow this and additional works at: http://ecommons.aku.edu/uk_ismc_series_intranslation Part of the Islamic World and Near East History Commons Recommended Citation Abdel Razek, A. , Loutfi, M. , Filali-Ansary, A. (2013). Islam and the Foundations of Political Power Vol. 2, p. 144. Available at: http://ecommons.aku.edu/uk_ismc_series_intranslation/1 IN TRANSLATION: MODERN MUSLIM THINKERS Established in London in 2002, the Aga Khan University, Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations aims to strengthen research and teaching about the heritages of Muslim societies as they have evolved over time, and to examine the challenges these societies face in today’s globalised world. It also seeks to create opportunities for interaction among academics, traditionally trained scholars, innovative thinkers and leaders, in an effort to o I promote dialogue and build bridges. s f l a P IN TRANSLATION: MODERN MUSLIM THINKERS m o Islam and the Series Editor: Abdou Filali-Ansary l a i This series aims to broaden current debates about Muslim realities which often ignore seminal t n works produced in languages other than English. By identifying and translating critical and i c innovative thinking that has engendered important debates within its own settings, the series d Foundations of a hopes to introduce new perspectives to the discussions about Muslim civilisations occurring on l the world stage. t h P e o Political Power w Islam and the Foundations of Political Power F o e u Ali Abdel Razek r Ali Abdel Razek n Translated by Maryam Loutfi Edited by Abdou Filali-Ansary d a Edited by Abdou Filali-Ansary t ‘There could not be a more propitious time for this translation that – almost a century after its publication i Translated by Maryam Loutfi o – raises issues still relevant to the governance of Muslim societies and authority.’ Azim Nanji, Stanford University n s The publication of this essay in Egypt in 1925 took the contemporaries of Ali Abdel Razek by storm. Challenging fundamental ideas about political power, it was the focus of much attention and the seed of a heated debate. It was especially potent as at this time the Muslim world was in great turmoil over the question of the abolition of the caliphate by Mustapha Kamal Ataturk in Turkey. The essay gave rise to a series of ‘refutations’ and unleashed the Arab world’s first great public debate with polemics supporting or refuting Ali Abdel Razek’s ideas published all over the press. Eventually he was tried by the Al-Azhar court, denounced, stripped of his title of ‘alim and barred from future employment in education A l i and the judiciary. A b d Ali Abdel Razek graduated from Al-Azhar University in 1915 and went on to study for a short period at e Oxford University. After returning to Egypt he served as an Al-Azhar ‘alim, a judge in the traditional Islamic l R Courts of Alexandria and as a teacher of Arabic. a z e Maryam Loutfi has worked as a freelance translator both in Morocco and in Europe. k Abdou Filali-Ansary was the founding director of the Aga Khan University Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilizations (2002–9). He is author of several books including Is Islam Hostile to Secularism? (1996, 1999) and Reforming Islam? An Introduction to Contemporary Debates (2003). Jacket design: McColmDesign.co.uk ISBN 978-0-7486- www.euppublishing.com Islam and the Foundations of Political Power In Translation: Modern Muslim Thinkers Series Editor: Abdou Filali-Ansary Books in the series include Islam: Between Message and History Abdelmadjid Charfi Islam and the Foundations of Political Power Ali Abdel Razek Governance from the Perspective of Islam Ayatullah Aqa Sheikh Muhammad Hussein Na’ini With a Commentary by Ayatullah Sayyid Mahmud Taleqani www.euppublishing.com/series/tmmt Islam and the Foundations of Political Power ALI ABDEL RAZEK Translated by Maryam Loutfi Edited by Abdou Filali-Ansary in association with THE AGA KHAN UNIVERSITY Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations The opinions expressed in this volume are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Aga Khan University, Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations. © Ali Abdel Razek, 1925 Introduction © Abdou Filali-Ansary, 2012 English translation © Aga Khan University, Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations, 2012 Edinburgh University Press Ltd 22 George Square, Edinburgh eh8 9lf www.euppublishing.com Typeset in Garamond Premier by Koinonia, Manchester, and printed and bound in Great Britain CPI Group (UK) Ltd, Croydon cr0 4yy A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 978 0 7486 3978 6 (hardback) ISBN 978 0 7486 5631 8 (webready PDF) ISBN 978 0 7486 5633 2 (epub) ISBN 978 0 7486 5632 5 (Amazon ebook) The right of Ali Abdel Razek and Abdou Filali-Ansary to be identified as authors of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. Contents About the Author vi A Tribute to Ali Abdel Razek from his Grandson, Amr Hamed vii Preface xi Introduction 1 Foreword 21 Book One: The Caliphate and Islam 1 The Nature of the Caliphate 25 2 The Status of the Caliphate 35 3 The Caliphate from the Social Point of View 43 Book Two: Islam and Government 4 The System of Power at the Time of the Prophet 59 5 Prophecy and Power 67 6 Islam: A Message from God rather than a System of Government; A Religion rather than a State 81 Book Three: The Caliphate and the Government throughout History 7 Religious Unity and the Arab People 99 8 The Arab State 107 9 The Nature of the Caliphate 111 List of Sources referred to by Abdel Razek 119 Appendix 123 Index 126 About the Author Ali Abdel Razek was born in 1888 in Abu Jirj, middle Egypt, to a family of wealthy, politically active landowners. His father and brother were renowned as liberals, who opposed both the Wafd Nationalist Party that fought against British rule in Egypt and the conservatives, who were mostly allies of the monarchy. Abdel Razek was educated in the traditional Islamic curriculum and graduated from al-Azhar University as an ‘alim1 in 1915. Following his graduation from al-Azhar, Abdel Razek received an introduc- tion to modern university education, enrolling for courses at the newly founded Egyptian University. He also spent a few months at Oxford University, where he studied politics and economics; however, his time there was cut short with the outbreak of the First World War. He later became a teacher of Arabic and a judge (qadi) in the traditional Islamic courts of Alexandria. It was during his time as a qadi that he began to investigate the founders of the Islamic justice system. He went on to examine the caliphate as the institu- tion which lies at the root of the “Islamic” social order and of which the justice system is an instrument. It must be added here, that it was the overall context at the time that provided a pressing initiative for such reflections; especially with the abrogation of the caliphate and the angst it had created. After being stripped of his title of ‘alim and banned from any positions related to it, it is said that Abdel Razek immediately changed his external appearance, adopting European clothes and displaying a disregard for traditional style, habits and appearance. Following the storm of criticism stirred by his essay, he made only a short return to public office (as minister of Islamic affairs). Abdel Razek eventually withdrew from the intellectual scene, took refuge in a stubborn silence and built himself a room in a tower where he dedicated the remainder of his life to study. 1 A traditional scholar or theologian. A Tribute to Ali Abdel Razek from his Grandson, Amr Hamed It was still dawn outside when the sound of the dawn call to prayer seeped into my ears, waking me to the dawn of Cairo’s freezing winter. As a young boy of nine or ten, it was my daily ritual to jump out of my warm bed in my room on the top floor of the old and noble house that was our family home. I would follow the voice of my grandfather, Ali Abdel Razek, in his steady recitation of the Qur’an, until I arrived at his rooms located on the ground floor. He would acknowledge my greeting with a smiling nod, continuing his recitation of the holy book uninterrupted. Once he had finished his recitation, we would fall into our playful banter of teasing and tickling each other like school children, with my grandfather seeming to magically cross an age gap of seventy years. I would then be seated in a corner and would watch him silently while he paced back and forth between his dressing room and the bath, grooming himself for the Fajr prayer, whilst reciting from memory his constant zikr. Half a century later, this image of my grandfather, Sheikh Ali Abdel Razek or Ali Pasha Abdel Razek remains indelible in my memory. To this day, I have not encountered anyone who prays and prepares for prayer with the singular dedica- tion of my grandfather. It seemed to me that he used to have a sacred daily date with his beloved Allah. I recall Ali Abdel Razek as a man who was gifted with everything: the gift of a true and solid belief; an enlightened mind; wisdom; a warm and generous heart; self-esteem; professional renown and recognition; and perhaps most of all, spiritual richness.