Authority is defined as “the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience.”[1] In our discussion here, we are using authority in the context of government and ruling because “in sociology and political science, authority is the legitimate power of a person or group over other people.”[2]

There are different words for authority or the source of authority (masdar al-sultah مَصْدَر السُلْطَة)[3] in the Islamic texts, such as sultan (سُلْطان), jamā’ah (جَماعَة) and ulu’l-amr (أُو۟لِى ٱلْأَمْرِ).

Sultan

In its original usage by the Ancient Arabs (العَرَب العاربة), the word السَليط means oil, and السِلْطة means a long arrow (السَهْم الطَوِيل). “The central meaning is the ability to conquer from afar[4], like a long arrow that strikes from afar, and like oil that is used to light a lamp to overcome darkness, and enable one to see things.”[5] Therefore sultan conforms to the definition of authority being “the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience.”[6]

Sultan may refer specifically to the ruler, or to authority sultah (سُلْطَة) in general i.e. government. The term may also refer to the source of authority from which it gains its legitimacy to rule. As will be discussed later, this locus is the ummah, or more specifically her political representatives known in the classical texts as the Ahlul hali wal-aqd (أَهْل الحَلّ والعَقْد), which literally means ‘the people who loosen and bind’, i.e. those who have the authority to contract, remove and account the caliph.

We can see these three meanings in the hadith of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ where he said,

مَنْ كَرِهَ مِنْ أَمِيرِهِ شَيْئًا فَلْيَصْبِرْ، فَإِنَّهُ مَنْ خَرَجَ مِنَ السُّلْطَانِ شِبْرًا مَاتَ مِيتَةً جَاهِلِيَّةً

“If anyone sees in his Ameer something that displeases him let him remain patient. For behold! He who separates himself from the sultan by even so much as a hand span and dies thereupon, he has died the death of jahiliyyah (days of ignorance).”[7]

The word sultan here is mutlaq (unrestricted) and can refer specifically to the ruler, or the government in general because the caliph (imam) is the state, and in origin all executive power is with him similar to the US President. This is based on the famous hadith of the Prophet ﷺ where he said,

فَالْإِمَامُ الَّذِي عَلَى النَّاسِ رَاعٍ وَهُوَ مَسْئُولٌ عَنْ رَعِيَّتِهِ

“The Imam[8] is a guardian, and he is responsible over his subjects.”[9]

Abdul-Qadeem Zallum (d.2003) comments on this hadith, “This means that all the matters related to the management of the subjects’ affairs is the responsibility of the caliph. He, however reserves the right to delegate anyone with whatever task he deems fit, in analogy with wakala (representation).”[10] These officials of the state (wakeels) are then part of the overall authority (sultan) of the state.

We also find the words Hukm (حكم) and Mulk (ملك) used in the Qur’an and hadith which refer to ruling and authority. Abdul-Qadeem Zallum says, “Ruling (al-hukm الحكم), reign (al-mulk الملك) and authority (al-sultan السلطان) have the same meaning which is the authority that executes the rules.”[11] In other words they are all synonyms for ruling and authority.

Sultan in this hadith may also refer to the source of authority (masdar al-sultah) which is the ummah and the Ahlul hali wal-aqd. This is the main focus of this article.

Jamā’ah

Jamā’ah (جَماعَة) is a general word that includes many types of groups.[12] “The central meaning is the coming together of many homogeneous things, by meeting, coalescence, or accumulation.”[13]

In a hadith whose wording and meaning is similar to the one above, the Prophet ﷺ said,

مَنْ خَرَجَ مِنَ الطَّاعَةِ وَفَارَقَ الْجَمَاعَةَ فَمَاتَ مَاتَ مِيتَةً جَاهِلِيَّة

“Whoever withdraws obedience (to the Ameer) and separates from the jama’ah and dies thereupon, he has died the death of Jahiliyyah.”[14]

The word jamā’ah in this context is a synonym to sultan, and means the ummah and the Ahlul hali wal-aqd i.e. the source of authority.

Hudhaifa bin Al-Yaman narrates that ‘The people used to ask the Messenger of Allah ﷺ about the good but I used to ask him about the evil lest I should be overtaken by them. So I said, “O Messenger of Allah! We were living in ignorance and in an (extremely) bad atmosphere, then Allah brought to us this good (i.e., Islam); will there be any evil after this good?” He said, “Yes.”

I said, “Will there be any good after that evil?” He replied, “Yes, but it will be tainted (not pure).” I asked, “What will be its taint?” He replied, “(There will be) some people who will guide others not according to my guidance. You will approve of some of their deeds and disapprove of some others.”

I asked, “Will there be any evil after that good?” He replied, “Yes, (there will be) some people calling at the gates of the (Hell) Fire, and whoever will respond to their call, will be thrown by them into the (Hell) Fire.”

I said, “O Messenger of Allah! Will you describe them to us?” He said, “They will be from our own people and will speak our language.”

I said, “What do you order me to do if such a state should take place in my life?” He said, “Stick to the jamā’ah and their Imam.”

I said, “If there is neither a jamā’ah nor an Imam?” He said, “Then turn away from all those sects even if you were to bite (eat) the roots of a tree till death overtakes you while you are in that state.”[15]

This hadith makes a clear distinction between the jamā’ah and the ruler (Imam), so jamā’ah is the source of authority meaning the ummah and the Ahlul hali wal-aqd.

In regards to the meaning of the word jamā’ah, Imam Al-Tabari states: “The correct interpretation is that Muslims are obligated to hold fast to the jamā’ah, the group that agrees on who should be appointed to rule, and then obeys him. Anybody who violates his bay’a (pledge of allegiance) has thereby left the jama‘ah.” He continues referencing the hadith of Hudhaifa bin Al-Yaman above: “It is related in the hadith that when the people do not have an imam, and thus split into parties, a Muslim, if he can, should not follow anyone into a schism. He should stay removed from all parties, for fear that he may fall into evil.”[16]

Ulu al-amr

The ulu’l-amr (أُو۟لِى ٱلْأَمْرِ) means those in authority, and is taken from the Holy Qur’an where Allah ta’ala says,

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ أَطِيعُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا۟ ٱلرَّسُولَ وَأُو۟لِى ٱلْأَمْرِ مِنكُمْ

“O believers! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you.”[17]

In answer to the question of who are the ulu’l-amr, Al-Shawkani (d. 1834) says,

وأُولِي الأمْرِ: هُمُ الأئِمَّةُ والسَّلاطِينُ والقُضاةُ وكُلُّ مَن كانَتْ لَهُ وِلايَةٌ شَرْعِيَّةٌ لا وِلايَةٌ طاغُوتِيَّةٌ،

“Those in authority: They are the Ameers and Sultans and Judges, and any who have a legitimate mandate (sharia wiliyah) not a tyrannical mandate (taghoot wiliyah).”[18] These officials of the state all derive their authority from the Imam and are wakeels (delegates) to him as mentioned previously.

Ibn Ashur says:

فَأُولُو الأمْرِ هُنا هم مَن عَدا الرَّسُولِ مِنَ الخَلِيفَةِ إلى والِي الحِسْبَةِ، ومِن قُوّادِ الجُيُوشِ ومِن فُقَهاءِ الصَّحابَةِ والمُجْتَهِدِينَ إلى أهْلِ العِلْمِ في الأزْمِنَةِ المُتَأخِّرَةِ، وأُولُو الأمْرِ هُمُ الَّذِينَ يُطْلَقُ عَلَيْهِمْ أيْضًا أهْلُ الحَلِّ والعَقْدِ.

“The people in authority (Ulu al-amr) here are those other than the Messenger, from the Caliph to the Hisbah[19], from the army commanders, from the jurists (fuquha) of the Companions and the mujtahids to the people of knowledge in later times. The Ulu al-amr are also those who are called the Ahlul hali wal-aqd.”[20]

Muhammad Abduh says,

بأولي الأمر جماعة أهل الحل والعقد من المسلمين، وهم الأمراء والحكام، والعلماء ورؤساء الجند وسائر الرؤساء والزعماء الذين يرجع إليهم الناس في الحاجات والمصالح العامة، فهؤلاء إذا اتفقوا على أمر، أو حكم وجب أن يطاعوا فيه بشرط أن يكونوا منا، وألا يخالفوا أمر الله ولا سنة رسوله ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ التي عرفت بالتواتر، وأن يكونوا مختارين في بحثهم في الأمر، واتفاقهم عليه، وأن يكون ما يتفقون عليه من المصالح العامة، وهو ما لأولي الأمر سلطة فيه ووقوف عليه، وأما العبادات وما كان من قبيل الاعتقاد الديني فلا يتعلق به أمر أهل الحل والعقد، بل هو مما يؤخذ عن الله ورسوله فقط ليس لأحد رأي فيه إلا ما يكون في فهمه

“what is meant by those in authority is the group of Ahlul hali wal-aqd from among the Muslims, and they are the Ameers and rulers (hukkam), and the scholars and leaders of the army and all the leaders and chiefs to whom the people refer in needs and public interests. So if they agree on a matter or a ruling, it is obligatory to obey them in it on the condition that they are from us, and that they do not contradict the command of Allah or the Sunnah of His Messenger ﷺ which is known by continuous transmission (tawatur), and that they are free in their research into the matter and their agreement on it, and that what they agree on is from the public interests, which is what those in authority have authority and control over.

As for acts of worship (‘ibadat) and what is of the type of religious belief (‘aqeeda), the matter of the Ahlul hali wal-aqd is not related to it. Rather it is something that is taken from Allah and His Messenger only, and no one has an opinion on it except what is in his understanding.”[21]

We see again that the three meanings of authority are present here, the ruler, the government and the ummah and her political representatives. Rashid Rida defines the ulu al-amr as the ummah. He says this verse “commands obedience to those who hold authority [ulu al-amr]—who constitute the main body of the ummah—not the one who holds authority. That is because he is one of them. He is obeyed only on the basis that the Muslims who pledge allegiance to him support and have confidence in him.”[22]

Notes

[1] Oxford English Dictionary, https://www.oed.com/search/dictionary/?scope=Entries&q=authority

[2] Bealey, Frank (1999). The Blackwell Dictionary of Political Science: A User’s Guide to Its Terms. Wiley. pp. 22–23. ISBN 0-631-20694-9.

[3] Hashim Kamali, ‘Citizenship and Accountability of Government: An Islamic Perspective,’ The Islamic Texts Society, 2011, p.197

[4] Muhammad Hassan Hassan Jabal, ‘The etymological dictionary of the words of the Holy Qur’an,’ https://tafsir.app/ishtiqaqi/%D8%B3%D9%84%D8%B7

[5] Ibid

[6] Oxford English Dictionary, https://www.oed.com/search/dictionary/?scope=Entries&q=authority

[7] Sahih al-Bukhari 7053, https://sunnah.com/bukhari:7053

[8] Imam here means the khaleefah i.e. the great Imam الْإِمَامُ الْأَعْظَمُ. Ibn Hajar, Fath al Bari, https://shamela.ws/book/1673/7543#p1

[9] Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 7138, Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 1829

[10] Abdul-Qadeem Zallum, ‘The Ruling System in Islam,’ translation of Nizam ul-Hukm fil Islam, Khilafah Publications, Fifth Edition, p.111

[11] Abdul-Qadeem Zallum, Op.cit., p.12

[12] Abu Hilal al- Askari, “A Thesaurus of Assumed Synonyms in Arabic”, a translation of al-Furūq fī l-lugha. Adaptation By Prof Dr Mohammad Akram Chaudhary, p.408; Original Arabic: https://shamela.ws/book/10414/256

[13] Muhammad Hassan Hassan Jabal, Op.cit., https://tafsir.app/ishtiqaqi/%D8%AC%D9%85%D8%B9

[14] Sahih Muslim 1848, https://sunnah.com/muslim:1848a

[15] Sahih al-Bukhari 7084, https://sunnah.com/bukhari:7084

[16] Ibn Hajar, Fath Al-Bari, https://shamela.ws/book/1673/7468#p1

[17] Holy Qur’an, Surah An-Nisaa, ayah 59

[18] Muḥammad al-Shawkānī , ‘Fath ul-Qadeer,’ https://tafsir.app/fath-alqadeer/4/59

[19] Inspector of any rights which affect the community at large, e.g. market inspector, trading standards, environmental health etc.

[20] Ibn Ashur, https://tafsir.app/ibn-aashoor/4/59

[21] Rashid Rida, Tafsir al-Manar, https://shamela.ws/book/12304/1640

[22] Muhammad Rashid Rida, ‘The Caliphate or Supreme Imamate,’ Translated by Simon A Wood, Yale University Press, 2024, p.60; Original Arabic: https://shamela.ws/book/9682