The history of the emergence of the Islamic state is inextricably linked with the religion of the same name. This religious trend appeared due to the activity of the Prophet Muhammad.
The origins
Islam arose in the 6-7th century. He proclaimed and approved the moral standards of society, equality among all Muslims, forbade bloodshed and violence between people. All power, according to this religious trend, was given into the hands of the Prophet.
Over time, the followers of Islam became more and more. They began to include the bulk of the inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula. In this regard, the problem of ordering relations and universal control over adherents of this religious direction arose. The Prophet Muhammad quickly dealt with the solution of this task. He became the one leader who led the faithful along the bright path of Allah.
After the death of Muhammad, the caliphs became his successors. These are adherents of Islam who have taken the place of a prophet. Their duties included the exercise of authority over all Muslims.
Aggressive intentions
After the death of Muhammad, the idea of waging a “holy war” began to gain strength. And this is despite the fact that jihad was initially used only for defensive purposes. Only later did it gradually transform into an instrument of submission and capture of infidels. The long bloody construction of the Caliph began. The state-forming factor in this process was Islam.
Caliphate
United Arabia, the majority of whose population adhered to the Muslim faith, since the first half of the 7th century. began to wage war. Arabs captured Egypt and Syria, Palestine and Iran. They spread their power in North Africa, in the southern regions of Spain, in Central Asia and in the Caucasus. As a result of aggressive wars, a huge Islamic state was formed, which is known as the Arab Caliphate. The capital of this great power was the city of Baghdad. A large number of Arabians settled on the occupied lands.
This Islamic state, in its political system, retained the features of slaveholding, but at the same time, it began to rapidly degenerate into feudalism. Large territories of conquered lands were state property. Peasants who worked on their lands were forced to pay taxes, equating them to hereditary tenants.
Government structure
In the Caliphate there was a centralized form of the monarchy. The state had a secular and spiritual head. He was the caliph. An important feature of the existing monarchy was the combination of spiritual and secular power in one person. That is why the Islamic state of the Caliphate can be attributed to the feudal theocratic. The main role among senior government officials was assigned to the vizier. Of great importance in the Caliphate were educated sofas.
The heads of state regions were emirs. They were appointed by the caliph. After the emergence of feudal fragmentation, many emirs became independent rulers.
At the initial stage of development of such a state as the Caliphate, religion and law merged into one. The Koran was considered the main source of law. Its author is the prophet Muhammad. Muslim law was called "Sharia", which means "direct path." It included not only religious dogmas. The Islamic Caliphate drew in this writing the norms of civil, criminal, and also procedural law.
There were collections of legends about Muhammad’s court decisions, as well as works including interpretations of Muslim lawmakers. These letters complemented the Qur'an. They are used at present with gaps in the existing law.
The Islamic Caliphate possessed another characteristic. There were no divisions between religious, legal and ethical norms. They constituted a single complex.
The Islamic Caliphate has long retained state ownership of all land. However, developing feudal relations changed this device. Private property began to appear.
Which state can be considered Islamic?
Islam has not lost its strength in many countries. What is an Islamic state today? This country, the basis of which is Islam. This religious direction is a dogma for the whole society. Sharia is the main scripture that guides the Islamic state. This is a document containing elements of civil and constitutional, administrative and criminal, procedural and family law.
The Islamic concept of building a state has differences from the western form. First of all, it is based on the laws drawn up by the prophet Muhammad. In addition, it is worth noting that in Islam it is very difficult to classify the forms of government.
The classical theory of Islam put forward its dogmas. She believed that adherents of the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad should not be divided among nations. According to this religion, Muslims are inextricable ummah. The federations available on the political map of the world, for example, Malaysia or the United Arab Emirates, according to Islam, are associations of not nations, but states. This also lies the fundamental difference between these countries from how the federation is understood in Western Europe.
Types of Islamic States
This concept is close to the western legal regime. Islamic countries can be sultanates and emirates, caliphates and imams. All these types of Muslim states are characterized by their own means and methods of government. So, the countries of the sultanates are those in which power belongs to the sultan dynasty. Such a rule has developed historically. The sultanates of the world on the modern political map are Oman, which is located in Arabia, as well as Brunei, located in southeast Asia.
A very ancient Islamic state is the Sultanate of Oman. It was created in the third century, and the middle of the seventh became part of the Arab Caliphate. The territory of Oman is located in the eastern part of the Arabian Peninsula. This state is bordered by Saudi Arabia, the Republic of Yemen and the United Arab Emirates. In 1970, Sultan Qaboos bin Said became the head of Oman.
The Sultanate of Brunei is a tiny Islamic state. A map of Southeast Asia will show us its location. Brunei is located in the northern region of the island of Borneo. This state was formed in the sixth century. In the old days, it was considered the center of Muslim culture. Today, this state is one of the richest in the world, and its sultan is on the list of the richest people on Earth.
There are small Islamic countries in which power belongs to the emir dynasty or to the chosen leader. They are called emirates. A feature of such states is their small size. They are considered a kind of steps that serve to revive the Caliphate.
Since September 1919, the North Caucasus Emirate existed in the territory of Western Dagestan and Chechnya. Since March 1920, this Islamic state became part of the RSFSR.
But the UAE is ruled by the president. But at the same time, the
United Arab Emirates is a federation comprising seven emirates. They are ruled by the emirs.
The next type of Islamic state is the imam. Here the leader is the spiritual religious leader. They call him imam. This type of political and social structure is characterized by following Shiite doctrines. At the same time, state power is given a global character (by analogy with the Caliphate).
On the political map of the world from 1829 to 1859 there was a state of Imamat Shamil. It was located on the territory of present Chechnya and Dagestan. This Islamic state was abolished by the Russian Empire. The country reached its greatest prosperity during the reign of Imam Shamil, which lasted from 1834 to 1859.
In the 19th century there was another similar Islamic state. The map of Yemen from 1918 to 1962 indicated the Kingdom of Yemen, Mutavakkiliya, located on its territory. This country ceased to exist after the anti-monarchist revolution.
What is the Islamic state of the Caliphate? According to the legal doctrine of Islam, it is a single country. In the past, the core of the Caliphate was an Arab-Muslim country created by Muhammad in the 7th century. After it became a huge state, located on the territory of the countries conquered by the Arabs. The rulers were caliphs.
Islamic republics
There is a separate form of theocratic system, which is common in the Middle East. This is an Islamic republic. Here the main role in governance is given to the Muslim clergy.
The Islamic Republic is a kind of compromise. It exists between the European principles of building statehood and the dogmas of the traditional Muslim monarchy.
The list of Islamic republics includes Afghanistan and Mauritania, Pakistan and Iraq. Laws in these states are created taking into account Shariah dogma.
Basic concept
The Qur'an does not prescribe any particular form of government. Islamic law does not have its own constitutional theory. However, the basic concept of any type of Islamic state is compliance with the requirements of Muslim teachings. This allows us to say with confidence that Islam is endowed with a “supranational” property. In addition, this teaching consolidates the very foundations of the entire existing system. Moreover, it is Islam that plays the leading role in the activities and principles of the organization of the state mechanism.
A striking example of the embodiment of the basic concept of the Islamic state is the society that the Prophet Muhammad created. He secured in his hands the judicial, executive and supervisory powers. Moreover, the prophet made final decisions only after consulting with reputable Muslims. Muhammad in his teachings argued that Allah himself sent the idea of creating such a state to him.
Islamic law gradually developed. The basic concept of the state was also changing. It acquired an increasingly secular appearance and came into conflict with traditional Islamic teachings, which claimed the immutability of divine dogmas. A continuous process of legislative reform has taken place. As a result, those relations that were previously regulated only by Islamic law, began to be regulated by other regulatory sources of European origin.
This process began in the middle of the 19th century. First of all, he touched upon those areas in which the conflict with classical Islam was not particularly acute. As a result, individual Islamic states were recognized as an alternative to a single caliphate.
Concept features
The Islamic state has its own characteristics. The main feature is the submission of all its activities to the prevailing principles of Islam. It also implies control of the people over the activities of state bodies. This is prescribed by Islamic law. Thus, the state is responsible to its citizens.
Features of the concept of building an Islamic society lie in the need to create a number of institutions. The Muslim principle of “consultation” is respected in those countries where the advisory body is headed. An example of this is Qatar. In this state there is a Consultative Council, which is appointed by the emir. What are its main functions? He gives advice to the ruler of the state. Laws in Qatar are adopted only after consultation with this body.
The basic constitutional concept of Muslim countries is the recognition of Islam as a state religion, which is preached in almost forty countries. This principle is a clear reflection of the influence of the dogmas contained in the Quran on legislative law. These provisions are reflected in the constitutions of the UAE, Jordan, Pakistan, etc.
The basic concept of many Islamic states is to secure the highest legal force for the Quran. Here, in addition to the rules prescribing secular law, Muslim law is simultaneously operating. At the same time, they both have an extensive scope, affecting not only personal relationships, but also those that are within the framework of administrative, criminal, and civil status. This concept is typical for countries located on the Arabian Peninsula, as well as for Pakistan.
It is worth saying that, despite the secular path of development, Muslim states do not abandon Islamic law as the most important factor shaping legal consciousness, the mentality of the people, and the behavior of Muslims.
Core doctrines
The caliphate emerged as a theocratic state. From the very beginning of its existence, its main principle was the unity of secular and spiritual power. All control was concentrated in the hands of the caliph.
The regulatory requirements given in the Qur'an do not indicate the need to use a specific form when building a state. They do not indicate the principles of power mechanisms. However, some admirers of the Qur'an interpreted the scripture in their own way. They created works in which the Islamic concept of the state was reflected. The idea on which they relied is available in the Qur'an. It says that Allah is the only source of power. Muhammad was only his messenger, to whom was assigned the function of controlling the will of the deity.
The Islamic concept of the state began to develop in the 10-11 centuries. This was the period when the Abbasid dynasty ruled the Caliphate and the country fell into decay.
For a long time, the construction of an Islamic state was based on two approaches. The position of the first of them was based on the principle of the unity of religion and law. In contrast to this, there was an opinion that Muslims should not preserve a single caliphate. However, both of them saw the decisive role of Islam in regulating all aspects of society.
Today, in Muslim countries, the right to create any kind of power system is recognized. The main thing is that they comply with the conditions of the country.
Already at the beginning of the 20th century. most Islamic states have switched to a secular model of society. However, in the second half of the same century there was a tendency leading to an increase in the role of Islam in the life of these countries. This was especially pronounced in Iran, Pakistan, Sudan.