QUESTION AND ANSWER

During the caliphate of Ali ibn Abi Talib, a group of Muslims rebelled against him. They created intense unrest. Two battles took place in which nearly forty thousand Muslims were killed. Eventually, Ali himself was assassinated. During this period of unrest, a member of the opposing group met him and asked some critical questions. He asked, “Why is it that during your caliphate, such widespread conflict and division have occurred among Muslims, whereas when Abu Bakr and Umar were Caliphs, no such turmoil took place?”

Ali replied: “Because Abu Bakr and Umar ruled over people like me, and I am ruling over people like you.” (Muqaddimah Ibn Khaldun, p. 211)

This exchange brings to light an important truth: what is the most essential condition for the establishment of a proper Islamic government? The answer is that society must already have favourable conditions that support it. In Ali’s words, it would be accurate to say that the condition for establishing a righteous political system is this: on the one side, the head of state should be someone like Abu Bakr or Umar, and on the other side, society should be made up of people like the Companions of the Prophet. In other words, the caliphate should be in the hands of someone like Umar, and the society should consist of people like Ali.

This incident shows what kind of atmosphere existed during the early period of Islam—an ordinary person could directly question the Caliph of the time with criticism, and the Caliph would respond in a calm and balanced manner. It also demonstrates how, in a society where open questioning is allowed, confused minds can be cleared, and major doubts can be addressed and resolved directly by the relevant figures themselves.