In the Fadakiyah sermon, Hazrat Fatima Zahra (PBUH) says: In the Fadakiyah sermon, Hazrat Fatima Zahra (sa) says:
فَجَعَلَ اَللَّهُ اَلْإِيمَانَ تَطْهِيراً لَكُمْ مِنَ اَلشِّرْكِ وَ اَلصَّلاَةَ تَنْزِيهاً لَكُمْ عَنِ اَلْكِبْرِ وَ اَلزَّكَاةَ تَزْكِيَةً لِلنَّفْسِ وَ نَمَاءً فِي اَلرِّزْقِ وَ اَلصِّيَامَ تَثْبِيتاً لِلْإِخْلاَصِ وَ اَلْحَجَّ تَشْيِيداً لِلدِّينِ وَ اَلْعَدْلَ تَنْسِيقاً لِلْقُلُوبِ وَ طَاعَتَنَا نِظَاماً لِلْمِلَّةِ وَ إِمَامَتَنَا أَمَاناً لِلْفُرْقَةِ وَ اَلْجِهَادَ عِزّاً لِلْإِسْلاَمِ وَ اَلصَّبْرَ مَعُونَةً عَلَى اِسْتِيجَابِ اَلْأَجْرِ وَ اَلْأَمْرَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ مَصْلَحَةً لِلْعَامَّةِ وَ بِرَّ اَلْوَالِدَيْنِ وِقَايَةً مِنَ اَلسُّخْطِ وَ صِلَةَ اَلْأَرْحَامِ مَنْسَأَةً فِي اَلْعُمُرِ ] مَنْمَاةً لِلْعَدل [ وَ اَلْقِصَاصَ حَقْناً لِلدِّمَاءِ وَ اَلْوَفَاءَ بِالنَّذْرِ تَعْرِيضاً لِلْمَغْفِرَةِ وَ تَوْفِيَةَ اَلْمَكَايِيلِ وَ اَلْمَوَازِينِ تَغْيِيراً لِلْبَخْسِ وَ اَلنَّهْيَ عَنْ شُرْبِ اَلْخَمْرِ تَنْزِيهاً عَنِ اَلرِّجْسِ وَ اِجْتِنَابَ اَلْقَذْفِ حِجَاباً عَنِ اَللَّعْنَةِ وَ تَرْكَ اَلسَّرِقَةِ إِيجَاباً لِلْعِفَّةِ وَ حَرَّمَ اَللَّهُ اَلشِّرْكَ إِخْلاَصاً لَهُ بِالرُّبُوبِيَّةِ فَاِتَّقُوا اَللّٰهَ حَقَّ تُقٰاتِهِ وَ لاٰ تَمُوتُنَّ إِلاّٰ وَ أَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ – وَ أَطِيعُوا اَللَّهَ فِيمَا أَمَرَكُمْ بِهِ وَ نَهَاكُمْ عَنْهُ فَإِنَّهُ إِنَّمٰا يَخْشَى اَللّٰهَ مِنْ عِبٰادِهِ اَلْعُلَمٰاءُ
God ordained Faith (Iman) as a purification for you from polytheism (Shirk); Prayer (Salat) as a cleansing from arrogance; Alms-giving (Zakat) as a purification of the soul and a growth in sustenance; Fasting (Sawm) as a confirmation of sincerity; The Pilgrimage (Hajj) as a reinforcement of the religion; Justice as an arrangement for the hearts; Obedience to us (the Ahl al-Bayt) as an order for the nation; Our Leadership (Imamah) as a safeguard against discord; Striving (Jihad) as a glory for Islam; Patience (Sabr) as an aid to earning reward; Enjoining good (Al-Amr bil Ma’ruf) as a benefit for the general public; Kindness to parents as a shield against [God’s] wrath; Maintaining kinship ties as a delay in life (and a growth for justice); Retaliation (Qisas) as a preservation of lives; Fulfilling vows as an exposure to forgiveness; Giving full measure and weight as a means of preventing deficiency; The prohibition of drinking wine as a purification from defilement; Abstaining from slander as a veil against the curse; and Abandoning theft as a necessity for chastity. And God forbade Shirk to establish sincerity for Him in Lordship. So, fear God as is His due, and do not die except as Muslims, and obey God in what He has commanded and forbidden you, for indeed, those who fear God among His servants are the knowledgeable.
The Fadakiyya Sermon is an important chapter in the philosophy of religious rulings
The enlightening sermon of Hazrat Fatima Zahra (PBUH), known as the Fatimid Sermon or the Fadakiyya Sermon, was delivered to the ruler of the time and his companions in light of the events that occurred after the death of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). Although this sermon was delivered to assert its own rights, it is a comprehensive and wise sermon. This sermon, Philosophy of religious rulings. This chapter is generally neglected in religious curricula. Philosophy of rulings is the chapter in which the goals and objectives of rulings and their wisdom are explained.
The religion that God sent to guide mankind has various chapters, one of the most important of which is the chapter on rulings and regulations. This sermon explains what the purpose and end of these rulings are. In the field of religious sciences, as well as in the field of ijtihad and inference, this issue is generally ignored. For example, in our ijtihad system, our religious scholars, while inferring from the Sharia evidence, never state the goals and objectives of the rulings, That is, they do not subordinate the scope of the rulings to their purpose and end, while on the one hand, all scholars are unanimous that the rulings were enacted for expediency and goals.
The Subordination of Religious Rulings to Expediency and Corruption
There was a time when the debate between the Ash’arites and the Adliyyah was very intense as to whether these religious rulings were based on expediency or corruption. That is, if God has declared something forbidden, it is forbidden because of the corruption contained in it, or God has forbidden it by His will, even if there is no corruption in this forbidden thing, but even if there is some benefit in it, God has not taken it into account and has declared it forbidden. Similarly, was there any benefit in what God has made obligatory on the basis of which it became obligatory? According to the Ash’arites, there is no need for a corrupt or beneficial thing to be forbidden or obligatory. On the other hand, the Mu’tazilite and Imamiyya scholars believed that it is not possible for something to have no corrupt or beneficial thing and for God Almighty to make it forbidden or obligatory. Rather, all these rulings are based on the interests and corruptions present in the subjects, actions and objects.
In fact, this is the correct basis and the Imamiyyah have remained until today on the basis that all rulings are subject to interests and corruptions. But unfortunately, when the jurists enter the stage of ijtihad and inference, They ignore this basis and do not issue fatwas by considering the benefits and harms of things when deducing religious rulings.
Fatima Zahra (sa) and the Philosophy of Justice
Despite the difficult and turbulent times she was going through, Hazrat Fatima Zahra (PBUH) paid attention to this issue and did not forget this important chapter in the study of religion. The topic of our discussion in these gatherings is the same topic that Mr. Sayyidah Kunin mentioned in his sermon with these words:
فَجَعَلَ اَللَّهُ اَلْإِيمَانَ تَطْهِيراً لَكُمْ مِنَ اَلشِّرْكِ… وَ اَلْعَدْلَ تَنْسِيقاً لِلْقُلُوبِ
God has made faith a purification for you from idolatry… and justice a harmony of hearts.
The discussion in previous years’ meetings had reached the point that God has made justice a means of uniting hearts.
This sermon has two historical narrations, according to one, the word “tansiq” is pronounced with “q” and in the other narration, it is pronounced with “k” meaning “tansiq”. The meanings of both narrations will be explained.
Meaning of Tansiq and Tansik
What is the philosophy of justice? What is the purpose of establishing justice in human society? Hazrat Zahra (sa) says that the purpose of establishing justice is to create order and order in hearts. Tansiq means to arrange and arrange something. But if it is called “Tansik”, it means a smooth path. The rituals of Hajj are derived from this word. It means to make something that is not arranged smooth and even. And justice is forgetful of the hearts, meaning that God Almighty has placed justice in human society so that hearts may be made smooth through justice.
According to the teachings of the Imamiyya Shia, justice is included in the principles of religion, but in other schools, justice is not included in the principles of religion. Monotheism, prophecy, and resurrection are among the principles of their religion, but among them, in the branches of religion, both the issue of Imamate and justice are discussed.
The Place of Justice in the Divine System
Justice has a fundamental place in the system that the Lord of the Universe has created for the guidance of mankind. The divine and Quranic system is built on the basis of justice. The Quran has declared the purpose of sending the prophets to be justice. Similarly, the purpose of sending the heavenly books is to establish justice and fairness in human society. That is, the purpose of sending the prophets and the heavenly books is to establish justice and fairness; so that people may act justly… In this sense, the fundamental position of justice is clear from the perspective of the Quran and from the perspective of reason, justice has a fundamental position in the human system. Even in the present era, when man-made systems are generally dominant, The slogan of justice and fairness has a fundamental place. However, they did not derive this principle from the Quran, because they do not believe in the Quran or the prophets. Therefore, the fact that justice and fairness have a fundamental place even in a system built with non-divine standards is evidence that human reason demands justice and fairness.
Justice is a necessity for human society
Therefore, it is a fact that justice and fairness are a necessity for humans. There is no need for argument or proof for this. But even though justice is a necessity for humans from a religious and intellectual perspective, the biggest crisis in today’s era is the crisis of justice and fairness. The world is divided into three parts: the developed world, the developing world and the underdeveloped world. If we observe the developed world, we can see the severe crisis of justice there too. There is certainly progress every day, but not according to the standards of justice. The other developing and underdeveloped worlds seem very far from justice.
So where is the problem? Both reason and religion agree on the necessity of justice. Every human being in the world loves justice, so why is man unsuccessful in establishing justice? One of the reasons for this is the confusion and concern created by scholars and scientists about the meaning and concept of justice.
Definition of Justice and Disagreements among Scholars
The foremost scholars in history, on whose knowledge the structure of human sciences today is based, are Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Al-Farabi and Ibn Sina. Socrates, Plato and Aristotle are among the scholars before the birth of Jesus (as) on whose knowledge the foundations of Eastern and Western sciences were built. If we refer to these scholars, We see that there is disagreement in the definition of justice. Then, the second-rate scholars who have benefited from their scientific reserves and built their scientific foundations on them also have disagreements in their interpretation of justice. There will certainly be disagreements among the scientists who came after them, because when there are disagreements among the scientists at whose table of knowledge all of humanity sits, it is obvious that there will also be disagreements among the rest. Those who discuss justice academically begin their discussion with the same disagreement that this or that scientist said this or that about it. And by putting together the contradictory statements of scientists, they complicate justice to such an extent that the human mind is unable to understand it.
Quranic Meaning of Justice
In the Quranic style, justice is not a complicated thing. The Quran has adopted a very simple method, because the Quran claims to have been revealed in clear and unambiguous language. There is no ambiguity in it and it is very easy and understandable for everyone. And God has revealed the Quran, meaning not from the sky to the earth, but from divine knowledge to the human mind so that humans can access it and ordinary people can understand it easily. Since the Quran is a guide for humans, it has come to guide ordinary people. Revealing the Quran for ordinary people and keeping it above the understanding of ordinary people, It is contrary to divine wisdom. The justice that Hazrat Fatima Zahra (PBUH) referred to in the sentence “God has established justice for the reconciliation of hearts” is what is meant by Quranic justice.
The use of this word among the Arabs
What was the word “justice” first used for among the Arabs?
The Arabs were the first to use the word “justice” for their beloved camel. The camel is the ship of the desert for the Arabs. It can easily walk on sand and in sandstorms. Since its feet do not get stuck in the sand and dust cannot enter its eyes, Its eyes have an extra layer of mucus under the eyelids that protects its eyes from sand and dust. When there is a shortage of water in the deserts, the camel has the ability to store water. Many of these features are present in the camel, which is why God told the Arabs
أَفَلَا يَنظُرُونَ إِلَى ٱلْإِبِلِ كَيْفَ خُلِقَتْ
Have you not thought about the creation of the camel and the characteristics that God has bestowed upon it?
There are many signs of God in it. The camel is mostly used for carrying loads and the camel can carry much more weight than the horse and mule, but the weight is placed easily on the back of the horse and mule, but it cannot be placed easily on the back of the camel because its back is like a hump. Therefore, the load hangs on both sides of its back. But this load must be equal on both sides. We want to know where the Arabs used the word adl and in what sense God used the same word again in the Quran. Sometimes the goods loaded on the camel were not so heavy that they were divided into two parts and loaded equally on both sides of the camel, because if there was weight on one side and not on the other, it would fall off the camel’s back and the camel would not be able to lift it. Therefore, what was placed on the other side of the goods and was equivalent to this weight, Which the Arabs called ‘adl. The function of ‘adl was to maintain the balance of what was placed against it. The word ‘adl is also derived from ‘adl and both have the same meaning. The difference is that ‘adl refers to something itself that is used to equalize the weight with something else, but in justice there is a generality that is said to be something that is proportionate to any thing or work. Such as exchange. For example, a wage that is given in proportion to the amount of work a person has done is called justice. From here, the meaning of justice, equality, and equity is derived, although equality is a prerequisite for justice. In fact, justice is the alternative through which balance and equilibrium are established.
Basing human society on justice
The word justice was then used frequently in the daily affairs of humans. We do two kinds of work every day in our lives, one is what we do of our own free will and for ourselves, and the other is what we do at the behest of another. What we do for ourselves has no compensation or reward, But the work we do on the orders of others has the right to receive reward and salary. In return for this work, the reward and salary that is given to me is called justice. So that everyone gets rewarded according to their merit and hard work. Everyone, whatever their position, receives a reward commensurate with their position. This is justice. Human society is built on justice. If justice is removed from human society, the balance of society will be destroyed, just as today’s society suffers from the same problem.
Today’s society is unbalanced society. One person has accumulated more wealth than you think, and the person living next door doesn’t have enough money to meet their basic needs. This is not justice. Some received more than they deserved, and some received much less than they deserved. Justice is the name of collective and social balance.
The criterion for measuring justice
God Almighty has placed within all human beings certain qualifications and abilities. Everyone has the right to receive a reward in proportion to their abilities and talents. A person works according to their own abilities, and their reward is proportional to their efforts. The more one tries, the more one is rewarded. In an unbalanced society, the one who tries less gets more rewards, and the one who searches and tries more gets less.
The measure of justice in society is that we look at a person’s skills, abilities, and qualifications alongside their hard work and effort, and then compare that with what they are given in return for those skills and efforts. If there is a balance between effort and qualifications, justice is in place, but if not, injustice is present.
The use of justice in the Quran
The Quran uses justice in the same sense that everyone understands, even a Bedouin Arab of the pre-Islamic era whose occupation was to herd camels. If you ask this Bedouin what justice is, he will say that no matter how much load is on one side of the camel, there should be an equal amount on the other side, this is justice. God’s command for human society is the same, that you also do the same in your life. A person’s reward should be equal to his labor. If this is done in a human society, no one will remain backward and poor.
Reasons for Injustice in Society
If everyone in society does not get their due, it means that there are groups in the middle who upset this balance and do not allow each person to receive what they deserve in return for their efforts. A small example will help us understand this issue well. For example, potatoes are currently being sold in the market at Rs 200 per kg. The farmer who cultivated the potatoes must have bought them from him at Rs 10 per kg. Where did the Rs 190 go? The farmer who cultivated the potatoes with great effort in his land, He has watered them, prepared them, taken them out of the field and packed them in bags, and he gets only Rs. 10, when he was entitled to Rs. 190. The remaining Rs. 10 should go to those who bring the potatoes from the farm to the market, but generally the opposite happens. This is injustice.
Similarly, look at other aspects of society. There is a student who has worked hard in universities and higher education institutions to get a degree and has developed the ability to do something, but when the time comes for employment, he does not find a job, while the job is given to someone who is a member of the party. It is possible, even if he is not qualified for that job. This creates a crisis in society.
God has established the system of existence on the basis of justice, but He has left human society in the hands of humans to establish justice among themselves.
Justice as an attribute of God and the disagreement among scholars
One of the attributes of God Almighty is justice. Since ancient times, there has been a debate about God’s justice. In this regard, two main groups emerged among Islamic scholars. On one side wer
