Sociological investigation of the structure and function of government and politics in Nahj al-Balagheh

Master's Thesis, Social Sciences, Sociology Orientation

Abstract:

Since Nahj al-Balagha is an exhibition of the teachings of Imam Ali (a.s.) and is considered one of the richest and most authentic Shiite Islamic political texts and sources, it requires an explanation and a detailed analysis of the topics, including the sermons, letters, and aphorisms of the Prophet. The effort of this research is to: First: to formulate a theoretical framework of the basic special work of the government and government based on the opinions of political scientists, especially those who have a structural-functional perspective, the result of which is the formatting of tasks and special work in five main axes. Secondly: To regulate and review the principles of government policies, including government goals, the principles governing government policies, and the classification of government duties. Thirdly: In five chapters, it will examine the topics of culture building, legitimization, distribution of power, order and security, distribution of goods and services (providing welfare and comfort) in Nahj al-Balagheh. The end of the research is a conclusion that includes six conceptual and thematic results of the discussion. Statement of the problem Imam Ali has always been studied by social and political scientists as one of the prominent examples of clerical justice in society and one of the most elite popular politicians in Islamic history. On the 18th of Zil-Hijjah of the year 35 AH, Amir Mominan (AS) officially took the political reins of affairs and drank the cup of martyrdom on the 21st of Ramadan in the year 40. The duration of his rule was four years, nine months and three days, and during this period, he managed the vast Islamic country that reached from the east to the Indus River, from the west to the African desert, from the north to the Caucasus and from the south to the Gulf of Aden, under the shadow of his valuable theoretical and practical measures that few societies have seen. "Protection of the country" and "maintenance of power", "guardianship of property" basically means politics in the word, but what is important is familiarity with the principles on which planning and guarding are based in a way that guides the society in the best way. The principles of political science and governance that Imam (a.s.) followed were all under the cover of moral values ??and human principles and were based on justice and justice. In such a way that throughout Nahj al-Balagheh, which is considered the practical and theoretical life of the Imam, these principles are constantly seen. As stated in the principles of the sermons mentioned in this valuable book, in general, any kind of change in the political governance of the society originated from these principles of justice in the society and attention to the rights of the general masses, and the Imam repeatedly emphasized these principles and rejected any type of state administration other than these principles. In this way, as can be seen in 6 places in Nahj al-Balagheh, Imam thought about the future and prosperity of the society, not about the survival of power and personal political rule. It is possible for a politician to turn the hearts and minds of the people towards himself through trickery and trickery, and as a result, a kind of relative peace reigns over the mass of society, but since appearances and deception have a temporary effect and cannot always be effective, Amir al-Mu'minan (AS) is one of the policies of Mezadurane constantly criticized politicians and as it is mentioned in a sermon from Nahj al-Balaghe, he said: Hey! Lula al-Taghi stuttering Adhi al-Arab; If it wasn't for piety, I would have been the smartest and smartest Arab." One of the principles of political and governance of Imam (a.s.) is that he paid more attention to the satisfaction of the masses and the type of people in the society, and when the ruler is between two satisfactions (the satisfaction of the masses and the so-called democracy and the satisfaction of a certain class of them), the ruler should seek the satisfaction of everyone, not a specific class. This feature can be considered as one of the most important sociological aspects of Imam Ali's political leadership, which is also mentioned many times in Nahj al-Balagha. Another fundamental principle in Imam's policies, which in Nahj al-Balagha is considered one of the pillars of the Imam's government, is that the Imam never forgot moral values ??at the height of his power, and although, as he said in his sermons, the sense of revenge against the enemy forced him to ignore these principles, but the Imam was not a person who Surrender to emotions far from logic, even if he is full of anger and rage against the enemy. Based on this, in this research, we are trying to investigate all the sociological aspects of Imam Ali's political leadership and governance, which are mentioned in some way in Nahj al-Balagha, and in the meantime, in line with this sociological analysis, we refer to different parts of this valuable book.

1 - 2 - The importance and necessity of conducting research

In general, from the point of view of sociology, the science and technology of politics consists of managing, justifying and regulating human collective life in the direction of reasonable social needs and goals. Basically, the word politics is one of the words that have various definitions and interpretations in terms of theory. In Western books, politics is generally defined as the study of different forms of power. This definition is a definition based on experience and induction before it is a scientific or documented definition.

When those who believe in this theory see that the powerful and political leaders of the world have their politics based on their value, they interpret politics as a way of using power. Therefore, the examples they mention are more than examples of the actions of political leaders. But in the meantime, Imam Ali's principles of governance and political leadership, as interpreted in Najbalaghah, contain special and rare regulations that are expressed with the aim of uplifting the society and fostering special sociological values ??of the community and the masses of the people, and in the same short period of time, Imam Ali's political rule also took on a practical aspect to a great extent. Based on this, it is necessary to scrutinize these scientific and practical principles which are expressed with special precision and elegance in the incomparable book of Nahj al-Balagheh in the form of the words and pure wisdom of the Imam, to be researched and scrutinized from a sociological point of view, so that while comparing these principles with the current political charter of the world, from the point of view of social sciences, a critique can be obtained on the necessity of using these precious gems in the guidance of today's societies.

1- 3 - Review of literature and relevant records Among the best articles and researches conducted regarding government and politics in Nahj al-Balagha and the sociological study of Imam Ali's political leadership, the following can be mentioned: Barzegar Klishmi, Wali Allah, Social thoughts (sociological perspective) of Hazrat Ali (a.s.) in Nahj al-Balagha, Imam Sadiq University (a.s.), Faculty of Theology, Islamic Studies and Guidance, 1369 Master's thesis, professor Guide: Yusufian, Mohammad Javad. Alizadeh, Hossein, A Look at Politics in Imam Ali's Encyclopaedia, Culture Magazine at Islamic University, Spring and Summer 1383 - Numbers 21 and 22, pp. 357 to 366. pp. 30 to 36.

· Sabahani, Jafar, practical principles of politics in Nahj al-Balaghah, Nahj al-Balaghah magazine, winter 1382, number 7, pp. 25 to 41.

· Sabahani, Jafar, Imam Ali (a.s.) and the principles of politics, Book Review Spring 1380, number 18, pp. 30 to 49.

· Danash, Musa, politics and government in Nahj al-Balagheh, Mashkoh Magazine, 1379, Islamic Research Foundation, Vol. 68 and 69, pp. 148 to 188.

· Jumazadeh, Seyed Javad, Pathology of Islamic Society and Government in Nahj al-Balagheh, 1386, 102 - Political Science Quarterly, No. 17 and Ganjineh Maarif, Vol. 33 and 34, pp. 118.

Sadiqeh Islaminejad, Manifestations of an ideal society from the perspective of Nahj al-Balagheh in the context of sociological structure, Public Relations Journal of the General Department of Islamic Propaganda of Gilan Province, vol. 32. Ebrahim Siraj, Pathology of religious society from the perspective of Nahj al-Balagheh, Andisheh Bertar, vol. 75. In these researches and other similar cases, either the sociological dimensions of Imam Ali's rule have been looked at in general, or the investigation of political principles in Nahj The rhetoric is mentioned; While in the current research, we pursue the goal of comprehensively investigating the dimensions of politics and governance in Nahj al-Balagha from a sociological point of view. A matter that has not been comprehensively researched.

1-4 - The aspect of newness and innovation in research:

Some social scientists and sociologists, in order to remain clear of the problems with the political definition of power, divide it into two parts, material and spiritual power, so that cultural and spiritual managements include what researches on the political principles mentioned in Nahj al-Balaghe have shown. But the truth of the matter is that these categories are not separate from each other, and therefore, in this research, we seek to examine the political principles and governance of Imam Ali from the sociological point of view, which is mentioned in Nahj al-Balagha; A topic that has not been the goal of a comprehensive research like this before.