A Political Study of M-Mawarth with Special Reference to the Concept of Legitimacy by Mohammad Yaub Khan Arabic & Middle Eastern Studies University of Leeds November 2001 Submitted in accordance with the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy The candidate confirms that the work submitted is his own and that the appropriate credit has been given where reference has been made to the work of others I Acknowledgement My first thanks go to Almighty Allah who enabled me to write and complete my thesis. Next I express my gratitude to my esteemed supervisor, Professor Ian Richard Netton, for his invaluable assistance and supervision throughout my studies at the university. Indeed, without his patience, constant encouragement and careful reading of my first and revised drafts, it would have been difficult for me to complete the thesis. I also wish to thank to Dr. Sirriyeh and Dr. Abdul Rauf for their continued co- operation as well as to the staff at the document supply center of the Brotherton Library, University of Leeds, for providing me with the necessary inter library loan service. I owe gratitude to the Ministry of Education in Pakistan for bearing my expenses for university education as well as for providing me the necessary funding for my personal maintenance. I am thankful to the Department of Education, N.W.F.P, Peshawar for permitting me to undertake my Ph.D. studies in U.K. I am much obliged to my wife and children for their co-operation and support during my stay in U.K. Finally I would like to thank to all my relatives and friends for their good will, assistance and co-operation. II Abstract The establishment of a legitimate government was a primary concern of the medieval jurists. Consequently they were obliged to deal with the issue of authority and make it a regular part of their juristic formulation. It was, however, aI-Mãwardi who dealt with this issue more systematically and made it a subject of thorough investigation. In this study we will examine his political ideas with reference to the concept of legitimacy not only in his contemporary context, but also with regard to the governments of past Islamic history. The study will also examine various responsibilities of the ruler as well as his concept of political change in a broad context. The material has been divided into six chapters and a conclusion. The first chapter deals with the meanings of the Caliphate in a broader context, its significance and place in Islamic religious scheme, and various issues related to authority and government as al-Mawardi dealt with them in the light of the Qur'an, the Sunna and the Rashidtin period. The second and the third chapters deal with legitimate accession to authority and various responsibilities of the ruler in order of priority and importance. Stress has been laid on the ruler's acknowledgement of the same order in their execution. The fourth chapter deals with the exercise of authority in a legitimate manner. It examines why al-Mawardi recognized the 'Abbffsids as legitimate rulers despite criticizing them for their departure from the standard practices of the Räshidiin period. In chapter five the attention is focussed on the legitimacy of the weak 'Abbisid Caliph, the status of the Amir and the rebel provincial dynast and the relations of the latter two with the Caliph. The Sunnites and the Shfites of this period had different approaches towards the issue of authority. It will be examined how they still managed to arrive at a concordat at an official level which lasted for more than a century. In the sixth chapter, al-Mãwardi's concept of political change has been examined in a broader context. In the conclusion various research findings are brought together in consequence of studying al-Mãwardi's political concepts in relation to the concept of legitimacy. III Transliteration Note I have used the following Transliteration Through out my Thesis , b m r t th h J C w j h C y kh d Vowels dh short vowels long vowels r a ft H z o u u S o 1 sh L Diphthongs Doubled d aw uww t ay z '(ayn) Note: 1) In Proper names definite articles always appear with gh small 'a ' whether it is in beginning or in middle of sentence. f 2) 'Wal' is usually written as wa with the a! connected with q the next word. For example, wal Kitãb is being written as wa k al-Kit ib. Iv List of Abbreviations 1. A.D.: After Death. 2. A.H.:After Hijra. 3. A.S :AhkAm al-Sultäniyya. 4. A'lam: A'lãm al-Nubuwwa 5. Adab: Adab al-Dunyã wa al-Din 6. al- Bidya :al-Bidäya wa al-Nihaya 1 al-Kämil: aI-Kamil fi al-Tärikh. 8 al-Muntaam: al-Muntazam fi Tärikh al-MulUk wa al-Umam. 9. b. :bin 1O.Ed. : edited 11 .Edn. edition 12.Encyclopaedia Encyclonaedia of Islam lltyã' 'Ulüm: Ihyã' 'Ulüm al-Din. 14.Ltd : Limited 15.Nailiat : Nasihat al-Mulük 16.P.B.U.H. : Peace be Upon Him 1'Seerat: Seerat al-Nabi I8Tafhim : Tafhim al-Qur'ãn 19.Tafsir: al-Nukat wa al-'Uyi3n 20.Tarikh: Tärikh al-Rusul wa al-MulUk. 21.Tashil : Tashil al-Nazar wa Ta'jil al-Zafar. 22. Trans Translation Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.. I Abstract ...........................................................................................II TransliterationNote............................................................................. Listof Abbreviation.............................................................................Iv TABLEOF CONTENTS ....................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................. 1 BIBLIOGRAPHICALSURVEY.................................................................................................................. 7 PrimarySources..............................................................................................................................7 EnglishSources...............................................................................................................................9 CHAPTERONE ................................................................................................................................... 16 THE MEANINGS OF THE CALIPHATE: THE EVIDENCE OF THE QUR'AN, SUNNA , AND THE RASHIDtV PERIOD ........................................................................................................................... 16 ASTUDY OFTHE WORD CALIPH........................................................................................................16 THEPROPHETIC WAY OF ESTABLISHING AN ISLAMIC ORDER ............................................................23 TheFirst Stage..............................................................................................................................24 TheSecond Stage..........................................................................................................................25 TheThird Stage.............................................................................................................................26 PROPHETHOOD, SOVEREIGNTY, AND GOVERNMENT ..........................................................................27 THELIMITS OF OBEDIENCE TO THE RULER.........................................................................................32 THENECESSITY AND MERITS OF AUTHORITY ....................................................................................34 THECALIPHATE OF ABU-BAKR..........................................................................................................36 THECALIPHATE OF 'UMAR ................................................................................................................43 THECALIPHATE OF 'UTHMAN ............................................................................................................47 THECALIPHATE OF 'ALT..................................................................................................................... 51 CHAPTERTWO.................................................................................................................................. 55 LEGITIMATEMEANS OF ACQUIRING THE IMAMATE .......................................................... 55 NoFIXED RULE FOR THE CHOICE OF THE CALIPH .............................................................................. 55 ANINQUIRY INTO MOTIVES OF THE AL-AHKAM ................................................................................. 59 THEQUALIFICATIONS OF THE IMAM ................................................................................................... 67 THETwo MAIN METHODS REGARDING THE CHOICE OF IMAM........................................................... 68 STRIVINGFOR THE CALIPHATE NOT A CAUSE OF DISQUALIFICATION.................................................72 THE CALIPHATE OF THE PREFERRED (AFPAL) AND LESS PREFERRED (MAFPUL) ........................... 72 REFUTATIONOF Two SIMULTANEOUS IMAMS .................................................................................... 74 THE IMAM'S RIGHT OF NOMINATION .................................................................................................. 75 DEPOSITIONOF THE IMAM .................................................................................................................. 84 PhysicalDisability:.......................................................................................................................85 Loss of Limbs................................................................................................................................87