Fahmida Riaz is Pakistan’s premier female poet. She became a sensation in the early 1970s when her bold, feminist poetry created a stir in the convention ridden world of Urdu poetry. Riaz was expressive, sometimes explicit, and politically charged. She created a completely new genre in Urdu poetry with a post-modern sensibility. Later, she remained prominent with her defiance of General Zia‘s martial law, her exile to India and the continuous evolution of her fiction and poetry.
Since the late 1990s, Fahmida Riaz has discovered Jalaluddin Rumi, the 12th century Turkish poet and jurist, and now an international celebrity. Her recent publication – Yeh Khana-e aab-o-gil – is a unique translation of Rumi’s ghazals in the same rhyme and meter. Since her navigation of the Rumi universe, she has explored another dimension of her individual and cultural consciousness, where the influence of Islamic scholars and Sufis is paramount.
Last winter, she read a letter by Hazrat Ali bin Abi Talib (AS), the fourth Caliph and son-in-law of the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH), while browsing a translation of Nahaj ul Balagha (a collection of sermons, letters and sayings of the Caliph). Later, in an email, she related to her friends across the globe how angry she felt for not knowing about this letter all her life, and how the real jewels of Muslim history were concealed “generation after generation.”
At the time she was preparing for a Conference at Heidelberg, Germany. Lo and behold, she made a dramatic speech about Ali‘s (AS) letter at the international moot. Thereafter she showed the text of the letter to Dr Patricia Sharpe, a US-based writer who was impressed by it and immediately paraphrased and uploaded it to on her website under the title “Good Governance Early Muslim Style.”
Ali (AS) had written a comprehensive letter – articulating principles of public policy – for the guidance of the newly appointed Governor to Egypt, Maalik al Ashtar. In this fascinating directive, Ali (AS) advises the new governor that his administration will succeed only if he governs with concern for justice, equity, probity and the prosperity of all. There is a timeless applicability of this famous letter. Selected passages from the text are reproduced below:
Religious tolerance: Amongst your subjects there are two kinds of people: those who have the same religion as you [and] are brothers to you, and those who have religions other than yours, [who] are human beings like you. Men of either category suffer from the same weaknesses and disabilities that human beings are inclined to; they commit sins, indulge in vices either intentionally or foolishly and unintentionally without realising the enormity of their deeds. Let your mercy and compassion come to their rescue and help in the same way and to the same extent that you expect Allah to show mercy and forgiveness to you .
Equity is best: A policy which is based on equity will be largely appreciated. Remember that the displeasure of common men, the have-nots and the depressed persons, over-balances the approval of important persons, while the displeasure of a few big people will be excused… if the general public and the masses of your subjects are happy with you .
The rich:…are the people who will be the worst drag upon you during your moments of peace and happiness, and the least useful to you during your hours of need and adversity. They hate justice the most. They will keep demanding more and more out of State resources and will seldom be satisfied with what they receive and will never be obliged for the favour shown to them if their demands are justifiably refused.
On judiciary: You must select people of excellent character and high calibre with meritorious records . . . When they realise that they have committed a mistake in judgment, they should not insist on it by trying to justify it . . . They should not be corrupt, covetous or greedy . . . . These appointments must be made . . . without any kind of favouritism being shown or influence being accepted; otherwise tyranny, corruption and misrule will reign . . . Let the judiciary be above every kind of executive pressure or influence, above fear or favour, intrigue or corruption.
Poverty: If a country is prosperous and if its people are well-to-do, then it will happily and willingly bear any burden. The poverty of the people is the actual cause of the devastation and ruination of a country, and the main cause of the poverty of the people is the desire of its ruler and officers to amass wealth and possessions, whether by fair or foul means.
Corruption undermines national well-being: I want to advise you about your businessmen and industrialists. Treat them well . . . They are the sources of wealth to the country . . . One more thing . . . you must keep an eye over their activities as well. You know that they are usually stingy misers, intensely self-centered and selfish, suffering from the obsession of grasping and accumulating wealth. They often hoard their goods to get more profit out of them by creating scarcity and by indulging in black-marketing.
On communicating with people: You must take care not to cut yourself off from the public. Do not place a curtain of false prestige between you and those over whom you rule. Such pretension and shows of pomp and pride are in reality manifestations of an inferiority complex and of vanity. The result of such an attitude is that you remain ignorant of the conditions of your subjects and of the actual cases of the events occurring in the State.
Peace leads to prosperity: If your enemy invites you to a peace treaty . . . never refuse to accept such an offer, because peace will bring rest and comfort to your armies, will relieve you of anxieties and worries, and will bring prosperity and affluence to your people . . . Be very careful never to break your promise with your enemy; never forsake the protection or support that you have offered to him; never go back upon your word, and never violate the terms of the treaty.
This document, written centuries ago, reflects an astute understanding of the class structure of society – ages before class as a political construct was defined, analysed and elaborated upon. The underlying ethos of a welfare state is captured here: protecting the poor and the disadvantaged .
Unlike many classics on governance, which tell you how to invite your enemy to dinner and then stab him, and how to perpetuate the exercise of power, Ali (AS) emphasised the creation of a state that provided the greatest opportunities to the people. Indeed, Riaz became a little poetic by stating that we hardly deserved the honour of being associated with a faith and vision that Ali (AS) propagated; in what unworthy hands his teachings fell!
The common stories about Islam or Muslims have to do with the chopping of arms and killing of infidels. We are told that Muslims had a great empire, after many conquests and subjugation of the “infidels.” And what have we learned in the textbooks: Ali (AS) was a brave general with a legendary sword? Have we heard this:
Do not close your eyes from glaring malpractice of officers, miscarriage of justice and misuse of rights, because you will be held responsible for the wrong thus done to others. In the near future, your wrong practices and maladministration will be exposed, and you will be held responsible and punished for the wrong done to the helpless and oppressed people.
Fahmida‘s exuberance indeed was heart-warming. Alas, not all her friends were impressed. A couple of agnostic liberals in Karachi were appalled – comrade Fahmida of yesteryear talking about Ali (AS) and Islamic history? So it turned into a spiteful, bitter litany against her for being “reactionary.” A self-styled intellectual from Karachi went to the extent of saying that she, being a woman, could not be fit to understand history and politics. This was shocking – all in response to a personal discovery that the poet shared with child-like enthusiasm. She was chided for everything under the sun, including supporting enlightened moderation, mullahs and dictatorship.
Undaunted, Fahmida composed a poem, and later wrote an allegorical short story on how a dreg of the earth, a cleaner in our society, finds a parchment of this letter and asks a mullah about it, who holds that the contents of this letter are beyond the comprehension of the cleaner. But there is a connection as the story proceeds, that universal principles of justice, fairplay and equal opportunity are valid for all – not just the elite or the powerful.
Thanks to Fahmida, many of us have (re)discovered this gem. Doubts on the authenticity of all ancient texts exist, and many a sceptical friend reminded me of this possibility. There are other ‘believers’ who contest such doubts. My view is simple:
one has to relish these little moments of pride and happiness in finding such wisdom from our heritage in an otherwise bleak world dogged by the constructs of Islamism and religious fundamentalism
Translations of the letter are based on the versions in “The Peak of Eloquence,” published by Islamic Seminary, Karachi – An earlier version appeared in the Friday Times, Pakistan.
Omer Saheb: First of all it was not the “collection of the sayings” but this particular letter .
Alas, what you say is correct. This state of affairs is not too flattering for us. But please note that the task of religious instruction has for decades been confined to clerics (with varying approaches and different sects) –
The version of Islam imposed on the country by the hardliners who incidentally opposed the creation of Pakistan itself is partial and motivated. Islam has been used as a political tool in Pakistan since its inception when a band of religious parties took it upon themselves to be the guardians of faith, homeland and public destiny.
This is why, there has been an under-appreciation of our own heritage by the secular intellectuals. Add to it the colonial system of education that looked at local religions and traditions from an orientalist lens – it is not difficult to understand the way the ‘educated’ and the ‘intellectual’ have viewed their history and religious heritage.
About Arabs: I did not understand your remark. Are you saying that the early Islamic thinkers/rulers were mere “Arab” – this is a little narrow and echoes orientalism where Islam’s rise is seen as the “History of Arabs”. Indeed they were Arabs, were born in the middle east and continued the Abrahamic traditions – but Islam’s message was universal.
Read the last sermon of the prophet and countless other verses of the Quran where arab and non-arab differences have been discouraged for the univeralism of Islam’s message.
This is why H Ali’s letter reads like a document that can be applied anywhere – Asia, Africa or the Middle East.
Of course, it is your right to not be too impressed with “rather risky bit of boasting” – and I respect that.
As you can see I ( and a few others) have different views on that…
What a relevant article, Raza. I, too, am angry at why such obvious facts of Islamic history are so readily ignored by a large majority of Muslims; a lot of people are unfortunately under the impression that Islam calls for a dictatorial and very harsh style of government.
I guess it makes sense that certain groups would try to keep stuff relating to Hazrat Ali (AS) under the radar; after all, it may open up gaping holes in their historical view of Islam. ;-)
I believe it was Imam Ali (AS) who said something to the effect of “Kufr kee hokoomat chal jaye gee laykin Zulm kee hokoomat kabhi nahi chal sakay gee.”
How true this is today; most expats living in the U.S. would agree that local (NOT foreign) policies in the U.S. towards them are comparitively so much better than the treatment that their own so-called Muslim generals and politicians have afforded them.
Raza sahib,
I would give some thought to the fact that a collection of sayings that is basically a re-iteration of all the ancient wisdom of the near east is causing such excitement in a woman who is supposedly a leading intellectual….doesnt this say something less than flattering about our intellectuals. Can you imagine the derision that would greet a major public individual in the West if he or she suddenly announced that he had discovered that Aesop’s fables contain many great pieces of wisdom, hence our ancestors were not fools, our civilization is not barbaric, etc etc? or if a serious chinese intellectual suddenly got all excited about the fact that Confucius wrote such fine things about good governance 2500 years ago! This is a rather risky bit of boasting and may not bring much credit to our current intellectuals! (I have no issue with the idea that Hazrat Ali or Mauwiya or Malik al ashtar were capable men of high intelligence…all or some of them certainly were…why wouldnt they be? Are Arabs somehow not human? Arabs must have produced intelligent men who said wise things just as every other civilization has..)
This is a most lively discussion –
Mirza Faisal: thanks for the comment.
Watne Aziz, bhitai, ali.mm khan, Viqar and Talawat Bokhari: I am grateful for adding new dimensions to this debate and indeed I stand educated (and where applicable corrected as well).
Israr: this was my reaction as well – I had read excerpts of this letter here and there and also had not read Nahjul Balagha. Only after reading this letter a couple of years ago, I started reading it. Pity that we are not taught about such things in our education system.
SH Kavi: thanks for stating that the principles of this letter preceded the concepts of social contract and equal society (Marx etc.). This is precisely why this letter is so important.
Ahsan: I am not sure if you understood my comment correctly. A few years ago, the Danish cartoons linked the current bogey of Islamic terrorism to our Prophet (peace be upon him) and several motivated and self styled historians have constructed theories about the nature of Islamic governance in the time of Prophet and the Caliphs. Mainstream media in the West (e.g. Fox news) do not stop calling our Holy Book the “manual of terror’ (not my words God forbid).
This letter presents debunks such nonsense – and that was the point.
This is such a wonderful post but the comments are so disturbing. The pettiness and fitna-pasandi and focus on irrelevant detail is evident. Why can’t we simply focus on the beauty of the message. No matter who it is from. I think the rot that plagues Muslims all over is evident just in these comments. No one wants to engage intelelctually in the message, it is the politics and the ritual and the slogans that everyone is engaged in. We are fighting over nonsensce and missing out on teh beuty of the message which woudl be equally beautiful if it was by someone else and derives its power from its content and not from who said it. Anyone who wants to understadn why the glorious intellectual traditions of Muslims lies in the pits today shoudl first read the original post and then the messages left here. Thansk Raza Rumi and shame on all of us.