Islamic philosophy and its historical development

¶ … Art of Ruling an Islamic Society

It is the purpose of this paper to compare and contrast the ideologies of three prominent Muslim scholars in regards to the art of ruling an Islamic society. The scholars in question are Al-Farabi, Ibn Khaldun and Ibn Taymiyya. Al-Farabi was born in 870 in Turkmenistan. He became a renowned scholar, making significant contributions to mathematics, physics and philosophy. His great contribution to the political sciences came in the form of the Model City, a book that has been compared to Plato's Republic in its scholarship and profundity. Since his death in 950, he has become known by Muslims worldwide as the Second Teacher (the First Teacher being Aristotle). Ibn Khaldun was born in 1332 in Tunisia. Also a renowned scholar in his day, Ibn Khaldun's most notable work is the Muqqadimah. This book not only served as a world history up to his own day, but was also the first book to treat history as an objective science that relied on provable facts instead of questionable stories from unreliable sources. Ibn Khaldun is also credited with the invention of the science that later came to be known as sociology. Ibn Taymiyya was born in 1263. In a time of great innovation amongst Muslims, he was a voice of conservatism and fundamentalism. While a reputed scholar and historian, he was also the target of much religious criticism. He was even imprisoned three different times for expressing some of his religious views and teachings. Despite this, or maybe even because of it, his teachings are popular amongst militant fundamentalist Muslims in the modern age.

All three of the scholars have certain ideas in common in regards to good governance. First and foremost is the idea of the Muslim state. The idea of separation of church and state has never taken root in the Middle East. Indeed, the idea is contrary to their religious beliefs. Muslims prefer their leaders to be Muslims. Islam is not just a religion, but also a way of governance. Separating church and state is expressly against the teachings of the Koran. They hold very little faith in secular government, as they are not seen as being properly grounded in Islam and the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad.

In the Model City, al-Farabi lists the qualities of a virtuous Muslim city, clearly defining the roles and responsibilities of five distinct social classes. He also describes four different corrupt cities, each of which is plagued by some chronic social problem. His main measure of the success of a society was the happiness of its inhabitants. In the Muqqadimah, Ibn Khaldun gives a systematic study of what factors affect the health and happiness of a society. Both authors show the relationship between the masses and the governing elite in terms of cooperation and mutual responsibility. The masses have the responsibility to follow the directions of the elite, while the elite carries the responsibility of ruling with the best interests of the masses at heart. Ibn Taymiyya, as well, emphasizes the same virtues in both the leaders and followers in Islamic society. In order for a Muslim society to function at its best, everyone should be Muslim.

There is some variance in opinion on the qualities that constitute a good leader. al-Farabi and Ibn Khaldun hold that the leader should be a scholar and philosopher first. As the leader of the community, he must understand the spirit of Allah better than anyone else, and this is possible only through the study of philosophy. Philosophy also relies on what Muslims call independent investigation, the use of your own mind and experiences to speculate on the nature and will of god. However, Ibn Taymiyya states that god is not served by innovation or independent investigation, instead focusing on tradition and past authority. In contrast to other more liberal views, Ibn Taymiyya writes that it is not the goal of Islam to love god or know god or even speculate about his nature, the goal is to serve god through worship and obedience. According to him, happiness of the individual is not a factor, for we have been put on this earth to serve Allah, not be happy.

It is quite often the case in Islamic societies, as all others, that the rulers fall short of the supposed requirements to be fit for their given duty. Al-Farabi makes it clear that if no one person extols all the suitable virtues of good rulership, it is better for rule to pass to a council of men. Ibn Taymiyya on the other hand, believed that it is often better to place someone in charge that lacks knowledge of Islam but has strong leadership qualities as opposed to someone with strong knowledge of Islam but weak leadership qualities. However, Ibn Taymiyya also points out that the former leader should be always ready to accept the counsel of those who are wiser in Islam than himself.