Man is the trustee of God and His vicegerent on earth and as such he has to lead a just, moderate and peaceful life with all decency and discreetness, under the guidance of Divine injunctions as ordained in the Qur’ān.
“It is He Who has made you (His) vicegerent, inheritors of the earth. He has raised you in ranks, some above others: He may try you in the gifts He has given you: for your Rabb (Cherisher and Sustainer) is quick in punishment: yet He is indeed Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” (6:165)
As a trustee, the human being is therefore, not supposed to cause corruption and mischief in any form on earth. Living on this earth is a great responsibility and not mere existence. This very essence of struggle is a test with accountability and hence will be followed by either reward or punishment. Allah has naturally equipped His vicegerent with the characteristics, qualities and potentialities which are inevitable to carry out the mission for which he is sent over here. It has been clearly stated in the Qur’ān that you (Muslims) are the greatest and noblest creature who are sent to the people so that you ask people to do good deeds and prevent them from evils. It means that Muslims have two obligations towards society and if they don’t fulfil, there is punishment by Allah. Every person is held responsible for the welfare of others. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) wisely explained this philosophy: “Each of you is a shepherd and all of you are responsible for your flocks.” (Bukhari)
Islam gives the concept of resurrection where every individual will have to face the grand accountability. Thus the foremost responsibility of society and a major function of governance is to provide full security for the life and prosperity of its members. The ruler, as a trustee, should discharge the obligations of that trust to the people. The people who are ruled should be careful to invest only such persons in authority who fully deserve it; and after vesting this authority in them, they should extend fullest cooperation to them, for the power to choose rulers has been bestowed upon you as a gift from God.
When Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) migrated to Medina, he found a state and in a very short span of time there emerged a city, state of Medina with a federated type of government, with the Prophet as its supreme head. He provided human rights established by oath of allegiance known as baih, a symbolic contract between the leader and the people wherein the leader promises to obey Islamic law and the people in exchange promise their allegiance. In essence, baih is the election of a leader, for without the baih the purported leader has no legitimacy and thus can’t act as the head of the state.
Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) received the baih from the people. A clear example of the role of democracy in Islam is manifested in the Prophet’s passing away without appointing a successor to rule the Muslim state. He willingly left it to the Muslims to come together to make this crucial decision based on what he had taught them. As Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) had the highest credentials to take the reins of leadership, the majority voted for him and individual citizens ratified the selection by pledging their allegiance one by one to the new head of the state.
In his first public address after his appointment, he said: “You have made me your leader, although I am in no way superior to you; cooperate with me when I go right; correct me when I err; obey me so long as I follow the commandments of God and the Prophet, but turn away from me when I deviate.”
Leadership in Islam is considered an amanah (trust) and a responsibility. A leader is required to meet this obligation to God, the supreme power as well as to discharge his duties towards the people to the best of his abilities. Allah enjoins principles and values upon which good leadership is based: Taqwa (God-consciousness), Jihad (struggle in Allah’s way), Ilm (knowledge) and sincerity of purpose. Allay says:
“God will raise up, to (suitable) ranks and degrees those of you who believe and who have been granted (mystic) knowledge. And Allah is well acquainted with all ye do.” (58:11)
The word imam as used in the Qur’ān means a source of guidance, thus the leader should guide the people to the right path and act as a role model. The Qur’ān states that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) is the best of leaders according to the following ayat:
“For you the life of Prophet is a good model of behaviour.” (33:21)
Thus through the study of Prophet Muhammad’s life, deeds, sayings and personal qualities valuable leadership lessons can be derived. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) started with a small group of believers and moulded them into cohesive organisation. He taught that a strong leader has strong faith and belief in higher entity. Wisdom, courage, knowledge, determination and unity among the organisation were also the traits displayed by the Prophet.
Following the teaching of the Qur’ān and Sunnah, the Caliphs played ideal leadership role and guided their followers to the right path and discharged their duties as leaders in an exemplary and extremely humane manner.
As the ideal Islamic government is the property of public, not hereditary or personal, the community decisions must be made through a process of consultation. The Qur’ān describes the qualifications of true believers:
“and who conduct their affairs by mutual consultation;” (42:38)
“and consult with them upon the conduct of affairs.” (3:159)
The glorious Qur’ān is the first book which has asserted government by consent and consultation in the history of political philosophy. These verses refer to the entire community. Therefore, the legislative assembly must be representative of the entire community and to achieve true representation, the members of the legislative assembly must be elected through free election with wide suffrage. The Prophet used to take and accept the deliberation of noble companions on every matter related to the state and administration. On the eve of the Battle of Uhud, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) called al-Shura as to how to face the enemy, whether to defend the city from inside or fight in the open field. Most of the companions favoured fighting in the open field. While he was of the opinion that the city should be defended from within, he did not impose his own opinion and accepted the majority opinion.
Justice is the important quality which forms the core of Islamic government. The Prophet as well as his wise Caliphs attached great importance to justice. The holy Qur’ān says: “O ye who believe, stand firm for justice as witness to God, even as against yourselves, or your parents, or your kin and whether it be (against) rich and poor : for God can best protect both.” (4:135)
This verse sets highest standard that no other religion or system can match it. At the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be to him), a woman from the Makhzum tribe committed theft and some companions tried to mediate with the messenger for the sake of woman. The Messenger objected to it and said: “O ye people! The people before you were wrong because they did not apply hudood (prescribed Islamic penalties) strictly when dealing with influential people guilty of having committed theft while they inflicted the hudood only on the weak. By God, if my daughter Fatimah was caught stealing, I would have her hands cut off.”
In a suit brought against a Jew by Caliph Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) both went to the Qazi. The Qazi on seeing the Caliph rose from his seat out of deference. Caliph Umar considered it such an unpardonable weakness that he dismissed the Qazi at once.
Social security being the prime concern of Islamic state is the means of providing sustenance and comfort for its citizens. Although Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) propagated the message of Islam, yet gave all people the freedom to choose any other religion if they so liked. The Jews, Christians and Zoroastrians were contractual members of the Muslim state. When non-Muslims became members of a Muslim nation either through capture of territory or through migration, they were free to practise their beliefs. The Prophet developed a social contract, a pact signed by all the tribal leaders, naming Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) as the leader and establishing law binding the tribes to cooperation, assistance in defence of the city and the protection of its inhabitants.
This constitution of Madinah established the importance of consent and cooperation for governance in Islam. According to the pact, Muslims and non-Muslims were equal citizens of the state, with identical rights and duties. Communities of different religious orientations enjoyed religious autonomy, which was essentially wider in scope than the modern idea of religious freedom. The principles of equality, consensual governance and pluralism are beautifully enmeshed in the pact of Madinah.
In Islamic economic system, public welfare and social security is the foremost economic obligation of the state. It is the responsibility of the state to provide relief for people in sudden calamity, hereditary deformity, temporary unemployment, on the natural death of the family guardian. At the time of Umar when serious drought or famines in Arabia, Umar Ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) asked the provincial governors of Syria, Iraq and Egypt to send food grains and other necessities of life for the citizens. According to a tradition, every month, two weights of wheat, two of olive oil and two of vinegar were given to everyone.
Zakat (religious obligation on a Muslim to pay 2.5% out of his wealth), Ushr (tax on agricultural land), Sadaqua (spending for the pleasure of Allah), and Jizyah (tax on the non-Muslim for providing security) and Khums (one-fifth of the spoils of war) were credited to the treasury for the use of the benefit of state, producing a higher standard of living and suppressing the urge to commit crimes.
Islam teaches that humans are only the owners of the property that belong to him and encroaching into somebody else’s property or money or siphoning off of money is illegal. The Blessed Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) sent one of his Companions to Yemen as a revenue officer, and on his return from Yemen he brought with him a lot of gifts (not bribe); the Prophet ordered him to submit the gifts in Bait al-Maal as the gifts were given because of the post that he was holding. Thus Islam closed the doors of bribe by not accepting even gifts.
Caliph Umar bin Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) showed the best example for eradicating corruption. While he was discussing official’s matters with a person, the speaker turned his discussion to personal matters. Immediately Umar put off the light saying that public finance should not be utilised for private matters. As the Bait al Maal was the property of people, the Caliphs never spent it for their private benefit. It is reported that Abu Bakr Siddique (may Allah be pleased with him) took a small portion from Bait al Maal for his family’s upkeep because he had to give up his own business when he became the Khalifah. On his deathbed, he instructed his family to return to the Bait al Maal whatever was left of his possession. During Caliph Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), his companions wanted to increase his stipends from the Bait al Maal but he flatly refused despite the Islamic domain having extended far and wide and having acquired great riches.
Islamic system of government established by Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) and the first four Caliphs is the paragon of democratic system of government because of total justice, security, equality, prosperity, progress and ideal leadership principles characterised that era. The holy Qur’ān, the life of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) and deeds of the Caliphs offer the most beautiful and marvellous principles of ideal governance.
The government established by the Prophet and the Rightly Guided Caliphs is a pattern of emulation to mankind. It was the real form of democracy, free from dictatorship and mobocracy, with only sovereignty of Allah. The duties and responsibilities of a ruler and his subjects are clearly depicted in that period. The leadership principles and policies practised by them transcend racial, religious as well as geographical boundaries. By understanding, acquiring and applying them, our present system of government can also be an ideal one.