"A man brought his car to his friend who worked as a car dealer and said, 'When I bought this car, you guaranteed that you would fix anything that broke.''Yes, that’s right,' replied the car dealer.'Well, I need a new garage.'""Islam is, first and foremost, a religious understanding of the world and the cosmos, mediated by the concepts of Tawheed. The Islamic sense of the world and of the role people play in it is inextricably bound up with the society that accepts this sense as part of its self-definition," said Jasmine while observing how the sound of athan constantly echoed around the world. Began from Indonesia, the fajr athan started in Papua, then to the West, Maluku, Sulawesi, Bali, Nusa Tenggara, Kalimantan, Java and Sumatra. From Indonesia, to Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, China, Russia, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Mecca, Medina, Yemen, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait. One hour later to Egypt, Sudan, Somalia, Turkey, Libya, Africa, and so until it reached the Eastern shore of the Atlantic ocean after nine and a half hours. Prior to the Adhan reaching the shores of the Atlantic, the process of Dhuhr Adhan had already commenced in eastern Indonesia.That society, or the Ummah, was formed as a response to the revelation granted to the Prophet (ﷺ). Despite the Islamic understanding of the ummah being based on the Qur’an, the early Islamic history, i.e. the period of the Prophet (ﷺ) and all the Companions (رضي الله عنهم) during his (ﷺ) lifetime, also plays an important role in this point. 'The Ummah' is a social-spiritual entity whose existence is not dependent upon any political system. Thus, while previous nations were initiated as ‘states’, namely political-military systems set up by the conquerors, the Ummah took its shape before it developed in the end into that political system that we now call ‘state’. The term ‘state’ (dawlah) as a political term did not appear before the success of the ‘Abbasid revolt, when the ‘Abbasids and their supporters started to say that it was their state, to denote that the amr had come into their hands from the Umayyads. Then we begin to see historians speaking of the Umayyad state or the ‘Abbasid state, the state of Mu‘awiyah or the state of Harun al-Rashid. These terms denote the transfer of amr from one dynasty to another, or from one king to another, terms which find their original meaning in the Qur’anic verse,وَتِلْكَ الْاَيَّامُ نُدَاوِلُهَا بَيْنَ النَّاسِۚ وَلِيَعْلَمَ اللّٰهُ الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْا وَيَتَّخِذَ مِنْكُمْ شُهَدَاۤءَ ۗ'... We alternate these days ˹of victory and defeat˺ among people so that Allah may reveal the ˹true˺ believers, choose martyrs from among you ....' [QS. 'Ali Imran (3):140]‘Political Fiqh’ did not appear until rather late, in particular with al-Mawardi. But what is fiqh anyway? Lutforahman Saeed suggests that many Islamic scholars believe that the literal meaning of fiqh is 'absolute understanding,' whether the issue is obvious or complicated. They claim that the term fiqh carries the same meaning as knowledge. They accept that the terms faqīh or ʿālim are synonyms, and there is no difference in the meaning. They rely on using this term in some verses of the Quran, such asوَاحْلُلْ عُقْدَةً مِّنْ لِّسَانِيْ ۙ يَفْقَهُوْا قَوْلِيْ ۖ'And untie the knot from my tongue, yafqahoo qawlee (that they may understand my speech).' [QS. Ta-Ha (20):27-28]In this verse, the term fiqh has been used in the context of understanding what a prophet says. Another verse of the Quran states,قَالُوْا يٰشُعَيْبُ مَا نَفْقَهُ كَثِيْرًا مِّمَّا تَقُوْلُ وَاِنَّا لَنَرٰىكَ فِيْنَا ضَعِيْفًا ۗ'They said, "O Shuʿayb, we do not understand (manafqahu) much of what you say, and indeed, we consider you among us as weak ....' [QS. Hud (11):91]While another verse says,وَاِنْ مِّنْ شَيْءٍ اِلَّا يُسَبِّحُ بِحَمْدِهٖ وَلٰكِنْ لَّا تَفْقَهُوْنَ تَسْبِيْحَهُمْۗ اِنَّهٗ كَانَ حَلِيْمًا غَفُوْرًا'... And there is not a thing except that it exalts [Allāh] by His praise, but you do not understand (laa tafqahoona) their [way of] exalting. Indeed, He is ever Forbearing and Forgiving.' [QS. Al-Isra (17):44]In these verses, the word fiqh means absolute understanding. On the other hand, some scholars believe that it means a deep and accurate understanding of a concept. They claim that the word fiqh in this verse of the Quran has been used to mean a deep and accurate understanding of a concept, not just surface knowledge:وَهُوَ الَّذِيْٓ اَنْشَاَكُمْ مِّنْ نَّفْسٍ وَّاحِدَةٍ فَمُسْتَقَرٌّ وَّمُسْتَوْدَعٌ ۗقَدْ فَصَّلْنَا الْاٰيٰتِ لِقَوْمٍ يَّفْقَهُوْنَ'And it is He who produced you from one soul and [gave you] a place of dwelling and of storage. We have detailed the signs for a people who understand (yafqahoon).' [QS. Al-An-'am (6):98]Examining the usage of the word fiqh in the Quran and other Arabic texts, Saeed suggests that this term has been used in deep understanding of verbal and ideological concepts rather than of objective issues. The term fiqh refers to a deep understanding, not a common understanding, of a concept. In the holy Quran, the term 'Fiqh' has been used to understand conceptual and theoretical topics that are limited only to verbal and textual issues; it is not used to understand physical or real things. Generally, the literal meaning of the term fiqh refers to understanding a verbal concept deeply and accurately, not a shallow level of understanding. In practice, there are many usages of the term fiqh among Islamic scholars. These differences come from different periods and various interpretations by scholars. Differences can also depend on the scope of related topics discussed and the range of issues covered by this term.What is the state, and what are its specific functions, have been the central questions of political theory. There is a wide range of scholarly contributions on the forms, structures, and functions of the state. In Islam, the state is not an end in itself but only a means to facilitate the interpretation and application of the ordinances of the law, that is, to administer justice, freedom, and equality among all people. Allah is the ultimate source of governmental and legal authority. Central to this belief is the claim that Allah does not descend to govern but sent down His law (shari‘ah) to govern. In other words, the shari‘ah is a guidance for the foundation of legislation. Thus government in Islam is specifically designed to implement the law that is to govern with justice under the decrees of the law. There is no place in the Islamic system for arbitrary rule by a single individual or group because there is always room for consultation (shura). Based on the consensus of Muslims, Allah's sovereignty will be implemented by implementing His law. This is what Muslims have agreed upon: Allah’s wisdom did not empower anybody to legislate for the people as he wishes or govern them on the basis of his own authority. Why?Ibn Taymiyyah (رحمه الله) said, 'The person who is obeyed in disobedience of Allah or the person who is obeyed in following other than the guidance of the religion of truth; in either case, if what he orders mankind is in opposition to Allah’s orders, then he is a Taghut. For this reason, we call the people who rule by other than what Allah revealed, a ‘Taghut’.'Ibn Al-Qayyim (رحمه الله) said, 'So a Taghut refers to all people who rule by other than what Allah or His Messenger rule. This would also apply in the case that the people worship him besides Allah or they follow him without sight from Allah or they obey him when they aren’t sure if they are obeying Allah. So, these are the Tawaghit of the world and if you look at them and see the condition of the people with them, you will see that most of them have switched from worshipping Allah to worshipping the Taghut; from ruling by what Allah and His Messenger ruled, to the ruling of the Taghut, and from obeying Him and His Messenger to obeying the Taghut and following him.'Therefore, constitutions or laws and regulations that are manipulated for the benefit of a particular person or group of people can lead to Taghut. As a political theory in Islam is completely based on the confession of faith or the testimony that ‘God is one’, therefore, the one who confesses that divinity belongs to none but Allah, and thereby confesses that sovereignty in human life belongs to Allah alone. Allah exercises sovereignty in human life, on the one hand by directly controlling human affairs by His will and, on the other hand, by establishing the fundamental order of human life, human rights, duties, relationships, and mutual obligations by His law and His program. This affirmation means that nobody can be associated with Allah, neither in His will nor in His law and plan. These essential principles are rightly based on numerous Qur’anic verses.In this context, the modern constitutional theory, held by a great majority of Muslim political thinkers, distributes the duties and functions of a Muslim state between three categories or organs: (i) the legislature, (ii) the executive, and (iii) the judiciary. This form of the distribution of powers is not obligatory for Muslims of all times, places, and generations. Numerous scholars have extended those three organs to four by adding another one, which is to spread the message. Some others integrate the duties of the legislature and the executive. The nature of the relationship between the duties of these organs varies and depends on the specific form of government. It is also difficult to discover any basis for the distribution of authority in the early stage of the Ummah.In the modern terminology of Constitutional theory, the first Caliph was the chief executive. He was entrusted with the administration of the affairs of the community, political, economic, security, and others. The circumstances of the time of the first four successors necessitated the establishment of two institutions: (i) the police force to maintain internal law and order, and (ii) a professional army to maintain security from external threat. The first four Caliphs also exercised judicial power but in doing so consulted learned individuals. With the passage of time, the Caliphs delegated their judicial functions to eminent judges, who were respected by the Caliphs, and who usually acted independently. In short, the main objective of the executive, legislature and judiciary was to facilitate the applica- tion of the Islamic Law so as to administer complete justice and equality among all people, ensuring freedom of all types and forms including freedom of religion for all people, and ensuring security from internal and external threat.The political system in Islam can be understood as a consultative rule, that is, rule by shurah (consultation). Consultation is a basic principle in all spheres of Islamic political and social systems. It is also essential for the proper function of the organs of the state, its overall activity, and Islamic identity. The Qur’an commands Muslims to make their decisions after consultation in both public and other matters. This makes consultation mandatory, by it being the subject of a direct Qur’anic command as specific as those requiring obligatory prayers and zakah. The shari‘ah does not confine consultation to the religious sphere, nor does it provide a specific form or detailed procedures for consultation. The shari‘ah left the door open for Muslims to choose the method most suitable to their circumstances, in time and place.One should note that the idea that ‘sovereignty belongs to Allah’ does mean that Allah is the governor of the state in an Islamic perspective. This is because of 'sovereignty’ is not ‘Allah’, but it is vested in the law by Allah. A state, in the Islamic view, is limited both by and to the law. It follows that the sovereignty of an Islamic state is practically the sovereignty of the law and that the law limits the governmental power and regulates its functions. Limiting governmental power to the law does not imply autocracy, but implies democracy in its widest sense because the law requires consultation. In this way, the idea that ‘sovereignty belongs to Allah’ does not make the political theory in Islam differ from that in democracy, but increases the elements of similarity and compatibility between the two systems.The shari‘ah did not give detail on everything in this life but kept silent on some issues, including the method of consultation and other matters at the heart of the structures and functions of the state, and between the state and its subjects, between the subjects themselves, and between state and other states in the world community. The silence of the shari‘ah about these affairs is suggestive of the need for continuous temporal legislation. Muslims are allowed to legislate for affairs not touched upon by the shari‘ah, as well as the affairs for which the shari‘ah has provided only broad basic principles with no detailed laws. This means, first of all, that all, human legislation is temporal and interpretive and not absolute. Second, in Islam, people legislate to people, as people legislate to people in a democracy. In either case, human beings will use their talent and expertise to legislate in ways suited to their situation. Here, the difference is only that the people in Islam will legislate based on the spirit of the shari‘ah, while the people in a democracy will legislate on the basis of the spirit of humanity (if it is not on religion at all). The spirit of the shari‘ah is not against the spirit or the nature of humanity, but in harmony with it. The shari‘ah with its spirit has come to deal with human reasoning and communicate with human intellect and the spirit of humanity. In short, legislation on the basis of the spirit of the shari‘ah or on the basis of the spirit of humanity does not mean that Islam and democracy are adversaries, and it does not set one system against the other, but adds more to the force and intent of the elements of similarity between the two systems. However, the absolute transcendence of the sovereignty of Divine and of the laws in the Qur’an and the shari‘ah more radically relativise human legislation than the mere vesting in the individual person.As an Islamic state is not an end in itself but only a means that facilitates the ordinances of the law and manages the affairs of the people, it is obvious that the person who has the qualifications and skills to discharge these responsibilities may be entrusted with the office of head of state. The condition of eligibility also implies the notion of election and democracy. The methods and procedures were left for the people to devise and choose the best for them. The chief executive then can be elected by representatives and then presented to the people. Whether the chief executiveshould be elected by representatives (a limited number of persons, or one or two houses—upper and lower house) of the community, or by the whole community, the decision is up to the people. In either instance or method, the people should have the final say. The point that needs to be made here is also that the people are not bound by the will of the former chief executive, or his predecessor, nor is the position inherited.The chief executive is not sovereign and sovereignty does not belong to him at all. He is but one from amongst the people, elected by the people and required by the law to take counsel from the consultation counsel in all important matters of the state. The chief executive must facilitate the application of the principles of Islam, to find rational and systematic solutions to unprecedented problems, to administer justice and equality between all people, and to protect the affairs of the state from internal and external threats. Loyalty or obedience to the government, in Islam, is conditional on the obedience of the government to Islamic Law. The chief executive should be obeyed only to the extent that his decisions conform to the principles of Islam and have a bearing on public interests. As this principle is critical to the identity of the state, any government that is not based on this principle cannot be called Islamic, even if the government is run by an official religious body. The obedience of the people is to be given only if, and as long as, the chief executive recognises that sovereignty belongs to Allah alone and then implements the principles of Islam without any qualification other than freedom, justice and equality between all the people.The result of the election is not considered to empower the chief executive to adopt laws that lack the legitimacy of the principles of Islam or are in conflict with it. If the government departs from the law, the authority of this government is not legitimate and it should be removed from office. The community, through Constitutional means that are agreed upon, has the full right to challenge the decisions of the chief executive whenever these decisions are seen to contravene the principles of Islam. The result of the election gives the elected chief executive a mandate to govern his people according to the law. Accepting the mandate implies that the elected chief executive has entered with the people into a ‘contract’ that is to govern by the law.The meaning of shari‘ah is not limited to the principles of government and its laws but includes everything that is prescribed by Allah to order human life. It encompasses the fundamentals of belief, government, behaviour, knowledge, legislative decisions, and the principles of ethics by providing the values and standards that rule society and by which people, things, and events are evaluated. Then it takes the form of knowledge in all its aspects and of all the fundamental principles of intellectual and artistic activity.The limits placed on Islamic government by the shari‘ah essentially militate against potential dictatorship, despotism, autocracy and similar abuses of power. From the perspective of the state in Islam, justice comes from the law itself. For the correct application of this law, Islam relies on its clear codes, the conscience of the judge and society’s observation of its injunctions. Every individual in the Ummah is obliged to prevent injustice, to admonish the ruler whenever he exceeds his limits and to advise the judge whenever he errs. In Islam the individual sins if he does not testify or if he allows wrong or, at least, does not draw attention to it when he becomes aware of it. The shari‘ah provides protection through a number of channels such as that of the guarantees of security, the guarantees for material requirements, social equilibrium and the belief in the law. It takes into account that society can function effectively when all its members feel safe and secure. Guarantees of security are an important part of Islamic Law. For example, the shari‘ah guarantees preservation of life for every human being irrespective of race, colour or religion. It provides guarantee of honour and property. The guarantee of honour is implied in the penalties for adultery, fornication and accusation. As for lawfully acquired possession, a guarantee is implied in the penalty for wanton theft. It guarantees the inviolability of the home. Nobody has the right to enter another’s home without permission. It provides guarantee of privacy. Spying is prohibited. It provides guarantee against slander and perjury. Individuals must be safeguarded against false indictments, verdicts and evidence. To this end the shari‘ah provides almost foolproof rules and procedures. By applying the shari‘ah all the personal and social guarantees of human rights to life, honour, property and justice are secured for the individual by his society.As for the requirements of living, the shari‘ah appreciates the importance of material requirements but does not unduly emphasize their role in human total welfare, for in Islam humans are physical as well as spiritual beings. Recognition of spiritual needs that must be satisfied differentiates Islam from materialistic doctrines. The shari‘ah is quite aware that laws and guarantees are not effective if the individual cannot supply his needs. The shari‘ah guarantees everyone a decent standard of living to ensure social equilibrium in the community. In Islam, the first of the means that enables humans and provides them with a livelihood is work. Overall, Islamic Law provides social security. Social equilibrium is easily discerned in the Islamic political system, in its legislation, in its judicial structure, and in its system of social security.The ruler therefore has no rights that do not belong to an individual Muslim except for obedience to his command, advice, and assistance in enforcing the shari‘ah. The ruler has no legal or financial rights beyond those of the ordinary Muslims, nor does his family. In the Islamic system, family structure and individual rights for all citizens are also governed by the shari‘ah. The shari‘ah functions as a protective shield in defence of the rights and liberties of citizens against arbitrary power.By way of conclusion, thus we have come to see that governance in Islam, like all other aspects of life, requires first the submission of the people and those who govern them to the ultimate sovereignty of the law whose necessary framework for life has been outlined in the Qur’an and the Sunnah. This however does not mean that governance in Islam takes the form of theocracy because those who rule are not divinely set apart and they remain subject to the scrutiny of the people, who may remove them if they enact legislation or behave in ways that are contrary to the shari‘ah. The role of consultation is central to Islamic governance and is critical both in the appointment of leaders and in the conduct of the affairs of the state. In all of this, there are features of Islamic governance that resemble Western forms of democracy and other features that give the system its Islamic identity. And Allah knows best.""There are still many good topics to talk about such as people participation, human rights, differences in opinion, etc., but allow me to end this episode. My colleague, Cananga, will continue our conversation, Insha Allah, in the month of Shawwal. Finally allow me to greet you all my brothers and sisters, HAPPY EID UL FITR, TAQABBALALLAHU MINNA WA MINKUM, TAQABBAL, YAA KARIIM."
Citations & References:
- Lutforahman Saeed, Islam, Custom and Human Rights: A Legal and Empirical Study of Criminal Cases in Afghanistan After the 2004 Constitution, 2022, Springer
- Abdullah Al-Ahsan, Ummah or Nation?: Identity Crisis in Contemporary Muslim Society, 1992, The Islamic Foundation
- Edmund Burke, III & Ira M. Lapidus (Eds.), Islam, Politics, and Social Movements, 1988, University of California Press
- Gerhard Bowering, The Princeton Encyclopedia of Islamic Political Thought, 2013, Princeton University Press
- John L. Esposito (Ed.), The Oxford Dictionary of Islam, 2003, Oxford University Press
