Justice is the backbone of social life; without social justice dignity is not at all possible, avers PROF. JAMIL FAROOQUI
Humans are the most superior and the best creatures of Allah the Exalted. They are not only superior from the physiological point of view but also in terms of their virtuous and righteous way of life. They are created in the most sophisticated, auspicious and superior element that is in the spirit of Allah and as such they are inclined toward rectitude, decency and goodness and supposed to manifest them through their behaviour. Allah exalted their position by appointing them His vicegerents on earth and assigned them the very significant function of inviting people to the right path and prohibiting them from doing wrong.
This is another feather in their cap. Their distinctness lies in the fact that they have to follow the Divine Guidance and spread it all over the earth. This and other favours and graces of the Creator of the world bestowed upon human beings are the highest dignity, nobility and honour. It is declared in the Qur’ān:
“We have bestowed dignity on the progeny of Adam… and conferred on them special favours, above a great part of Our creation.” (Qur’ān, 17: 70)
Dignity from the Islamic perspective is the natural right of humans irrespective of their caste, creed and other affiliations. It does not depend on the status and position of a person, but is bestowed upon birth by virtue of his being born a human. Islam impresses on humans to uphold the principle of dignity in their behaviour, in their relations with others and overall, in their lives. They should treat others well and lead life with dignity, honour and decorum.
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) exhibited an exemplary character in showing respect to others and treating them in high esteem. Once a funeral procession came through, the Prophet seeing it rose in respect until it passed. One of his companions informed him that the deceased was a Jew. The Prophet, showing disapproval reacted thus, “Was he not a human being?” This was the reason that the Prophet’s companions took part in the funeral procession of a Christian woman, Umm al-Harith bint Abi Rabiah. The fact is that humans enjoy the highest prestige in the sight of Allah the Exalted. The Qur’ān and Sunnah confirm it.
Allah the Exalted grants them the highest privileges, assures their safety and protection and provides them with good subsistence. He declares, “… I am indeed close to them. I listen to the prayer of every supplicant when he calls on me.” (Qur’ān, 2: 186) At another place the Qur’ān proclaims the dignity of the believers alongside Allah and His Messenger: “Honour belongs to Allah and His Messenger and to the believers.” (Qur’ān, 63:8)
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) also demonstrated the same view that “people are Allah’s children, and those dearest to Allah are the ones who treat His children kindly.” In another hadīth, the Prophet considered the dignity of the believers similar to Ka’ba, the House of Allah and as such the holiest place on earth. Facing the Ka’ba, he said:
“You are most pure and dignified, but by the One whose hands Muhammad’s life repose, the sanctity and honour of a believer, his life and his property, is far greater than yours in the eyes of Allah (Mishkat).
These are the indicators that show the importance of dignity of humans in Islam and how it is emphasised by the Qur’ān and Sunnah in different contexts. It is in fact a special favour and love of the Creator to His notable creatures. This is the reason He subjugated the universe and its resources to the benefit and service of humans. These resources are at humans’ disposal; they can utilise them with decency and decorum to make their life in this world meaningful and comfortable. The Creator provides guidance on how to live in this world and interact with animate and inanimate objects with propriety and decency to fulfil the purpose of human creation, safeguard against degradation and maintain human dignity.
Human dignity signifies that human beings, without any exception, must have adequate opportunity to live in peace and tranquillity with comfort, honour, probity and respect. There must be adequate provision for security of their lives, properties and their intellectual heritage according to which they want to lead life. There are certain requirements of human life without which no one can live with honour and dignity. These requirements must be assured and provided by the socio-political systems. In case these systems fail to do so and do not take care of the needs of the citizens, they lose their relevance and credibility. The developed societies of the West have introduced the provision for social security under which they try to provide basic requirements of life for their citizens while Eastern societies have neglected this important aspect of social living.
The fact is that under poverty and decadence, the dignity of humans can neither be maintained nor be possible. This is the basic right of the citizens to get adequate support from the social order. Islam recognises this right and makes provision for giving a portion of the wealth of the affluent to the poor. The Qur’ān says that “in their wealth there is a specified right for the needy and the deprived” (Qur’ān 70: 24-25).
Human dignity is an essential feature of Islamic social order that is basically altruistic and concerned with the security, needs and dignity of human beings. It always assures and promotes unity, equality and fraternity. It creates a just and moral social order based on certain righteous and virtuous principles necessary to lead a dignified life. It is a commendable act in Islam to lead a dignified life and for that humans have been granted certain basic rights to live respectfully. At the same time, they have also been imposed certain obligations which they have to follow to allow others to live the same way.
The other important aspect of dignity is social justice without which dignity is not at all possible. Justice is the backbone of social life and thus Islam promotes it and encourages individuals and the society to maintain it in every walk of life. Individuals are instructed time and again to do justice with themselves, with others and with society as a whole. If they fail to do justice, they face decadence and fall down from the pedestal of humanity.
Similarly, if a society does not develop its structure on justice, it has to face conflict and contradiction and will not last long. History shows that many societies and civilizations faced their doom and disappeared because they were unjust in their actions, gave privileges to one section and deprived others of their basic rights. Moreover, unjust social order not only generates inequality but also forces individuals to lead the life of animals.
SOCIAL JUSTICE
Justice, in the general sense, is the most appropriate act and thus considered beneficial for humans and society. It is the preferred act and society ensures it by developing certain mechanisms that its members perform for harmonious and smooth living together. The appropriateness of an act depends on certain ideals and cardinal principles that a society cherishes. As such, the concept and provisions of justice differ because ideals vary from society to society. Legal experts and men of knowledge try to find common grounds for the implementation and administration of justice and thus develop the concept of natural justice.
In legal perspective, justice is to conform to the law of the land. Social justice refers to the ideals and principles necessary to live amicably, respectfully and meaningfully in a righteous way and the same rights and opportunities should be granted to other human beings to live the same way. This is the reason it is related to equality among all as well as their entitlement to equal rights, freedom and human dignity.
All civilizations and social systems uphold the principles of justice and develop definite provisions to implement them and provide them for human beings. In this regard, they grant some basic rights to humans to live in peace with dignity. These are of two types: one is the Divine provision of justice bestowed upon human beings, granting equality and freedom as well as making the world subservient to them. The other is the mundane provision of justice. The provision of justice developed and enacted by humans is always tinged with their personal, group and socio-cultural interests.
As a matter of fact they suffer from certain lacuna because they give more privileges to their own group and neglect others’ interests. Human beings have certain limitations; they always think in terms of their own interest and seldom grant the privileges to others which they want for themselves. Whereas Divine provision of justice is according to the nature of human beings and in conjunction with the functions allocated to them by the Creator. It relates to the virtuous way of living, establishing peace and harmony and promoting good and righteousness. Justice in Islam is a divinely ordained concept, includes all virtues and applies to all human beings, unites them into one single family and develops elegance and sophistication in their minds and hearts.
Social justice is essential for the establishment of an altruistic society on earth. It also safeguards and promotes human dignity. It inspires humans to do good acts, establish cordial relations with others, share their grief and joy and live in grace and dignity. The Creator of the universe instructs humans to do justice, adopt the just path and avoid evil. It is said:
Allah commands justice, the doing of good, and liberality to kith and kin, He forbids all shameful deeds, and injustice and rebellion: He instructs you, that ye may receive admonition. (Qur’ān, 16: 90)
This shows that justice is a comprehensive concept and includes good deeds, affectionate relations with relatives and avoidance of indecent and unjust acts that are against the will of the Lord as well as human conscience. Allah the Exalted is the epitome of good, virtues and righteousness; He has shown the just and right way to live in this world in peace and harmony. The best example of justice is to follow His commandments and completely surrender to His will. It is proclaimed, “Say: My Lord commanded justice, and that ye set your whole selves to Him.” (Qur’ān, 7:29) This idea is again explained in the Qur’ān in a different way. The other aspect of justice is to ascertain the truth and witness to it. The highest and greatest Truth is Allah Himself, and as such to be witness to Him against the wicked, wrong and iniquitous whether they pertain to the person’s own self, his/her relatives or any other object is also indicators of justice. The Qur’ān says:
O ye who believe! Stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses to Allah, even as against yourselves, or your kin, and whether it be (against) rich or poor: for Allah can best protect both. Follow not the lust (of your hearts), lest ye swerve, and if ye distort (justice) or decline to do justice, verily Allah is well acquainted with all that ye do (Qur’ān, 4: 135).
PROPHET’S OBSERVANCE OF JUSTICE
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) followed the guidance of Allah in the true sense and with all sincerity. He was the true embodiment of Islamic principles and as such exhibited justice through his acts and applied them in his relations with other people. He treated them equally with Islamic fervour and never discriminated against anybody on the basis of creed, colour, socio-cultural and ethnic backgrounds. He was living in a society where people were divided in groups and sects. They were at daggers drawn over simple and ordinary matters and enmity among them perpetuated generation after generation. He treated them gently with sympathy and affection without any favour and amelioration. He did justice to all communities as he did to Muslims. He showed the same feelings to Christians, Jews and pagans, treating them equally and explaining to them the true religion. He never forced anybody to accept his views but impressed them to think over the matter and make up their own minds.
The Prophet always proclaimed that all humans are equal; the distinction on the basis of caste, colour and genealogy is false and superfluous. They are the creatures of Allah, progeny of the same father and mother and thus deserve similar rights, treatment and justice. He reminded people of the Qur’ānic injunction that addresses all humans:
O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know each other (not that you may despise (each other). Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things). (Qur’ān, 49: 13)
At several occasions the Prophet emphasised the equality of humans in the sight of Allah. One hadīth reports, “You are sons of Adam, and Adam came from dust. Let the people cease to boast about their ancestors” (Abu Daoud). On another occasion, he clearly declared, “These genealogies of yours are not a reason to revile anyone. You are children of Adam…. No one has any superiority over another except in religion and taqwa (Godliness)” (authenticated by Al-Albani). Similarly, in his famous Last Sermon, the Prophet called on Muslims, “There is no superiority for an Arab over a non-Arab and for a non-Arab over an Arab; nor for the white over the black nor for the black over the white except in piety.”
A significant and obvious example of the Prophet’s observance and implementation of justice is related to the story of the noble woman who had stolen and the reaction of the Prophet to Usama’s intercession. It is narrated by A’isha, how a lady from Bani Makhzum had committed theft, and the problem was who will intercede for her with Allah’s Messenger. Some suggested the name of Usama Ibn Zaid, who was closer to the Messenger. When Usama spoke about it to the Messenger, he said, “Do you try to intercede for somebody in a case connected with Allah’s prescribed punishment?” Then he got up and delivered a sermon:
What destroyed the nations preceding you was that if a noble among them stole, they would forgive him, and if a poor person among them stole, they would inflict Allah’s legal punishment on him. By Allah, if Fatimah, the daughter of Muhammad stole, I would cut off her hand. (Al-Bukhari)
This is the true sense and real spirit of justice that demands that it should be applicable to everyone without any exception. The Prophet practised, implemented and administered justice in the same spirit and established a consequential precedent. Further, he exhibited justice when he entered into an agreement with the Christians of Najran in the south of the Arabian Peninsula according to which the lives, properties of the people of Najran and its surrounding areas, their valuables, religion and places of worship came under the protection of Allah and the guardianship of the Prophet.
A similar example is found in the Treaty of Madinah signed by Muslim immigrants from Makkah (the Muhajireen), the indigenous Muslims and the Jews of Madinah. It established justice among communities of different faiths and beliefs, ensuring the protection of their various interests. The important feature of the treaty was the freedom of belief given to the people. The result was that the long-standing enmity between communities came to an end and the people began to live in peace.
Two of the articles of the Treaty as reported by Ibn Hisham are important in the context of the present state of conflict, dissension and hostility between different communities. One said, “The Jews of Banu ‘Awf are one nation with the Muslims; the Jews have their religion and the Muslims have theirs.…” Another article stated, “The Jew who follows us is surely entitled to our support and the same equal rights as any one of us. He shall not be wronged nor his enemy be assisted.”
The above examples are the true manifestations of justice; if followed in the true sense it will create a caring society where people will be concerned with the needs and dignity of each other, share the ethos and pathos of each other and live in perfect amity and equanimity.
PROPHET’S TRAINING OF HIS COMPANIONS
The other notable contribution of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) in the establishment of social justice is the creation of a team of dedicated persons committed to the doctrine of Islam. He trained persons who joined his company and instilled in them high moral qualities. Consequently, he produced great personalities, who strictly abided by the principles of faith, followed his noble precedents and established such examples of justice, equity and generosity that we do not find in the entire human history.
Umar ibn Al-Khattab, the second Caliph was famous for maintaining justice and equality. Once he had to go to Jerusalem to receive the surrender of the city. He was accompanied by one slave and had only one camel. It was decided that they would take turns riding the camel. When they reached Jabia, it was the turn of the slave to ride. The slave requested the Caliph to ride the camel but he refused because it was a violation of the previous decision and against justice. As they entered Jabia, the world witnessed the splendid act of fairness and justice where Caliph Umar’s slave was on the back of the camel while the Caliph was walking on foot holding the reins of the camel.
The other example was set by Abu Bakr, the first Caliph who once had 40,000 dirham which he spent on the emancipation of Muslim poor slaves, leaving behind a meagre amount for him and his family. Similarly, Ali ibn Abi Talib, the fourth Caliph, gave out in charity the only three loafs of bread he had to the poor, an orphan and a prisoner of war.
The justice that the Prophet manifested is the backbone of dignified and civilized living on earth. This is the noble way to understand each other’s feelings, ethos, faith and way of life as well as to respect and accommodate them in the present system. This is the way to live in a humane way in peace, serenity and congruity and allow others to live in the same way. If we follow these precedents and be generous to grant the rights and provide opportunities for others to live according to their own choices and liking, we will surely end the conflict and dissension between communities and groups and establish enduring peace and harmony.