The Ethical Significance of Ziauddin Barni’s Fatwa-E Jahandari and its Contemporary Relevance

Ziauddin Barni was the first Muslim to write the history of India. His close association with the ruling circles of Delhi enabled him to observe the administrative activities of the kings. Based on his experiences, he has documented the historical data in his works. His Fatwa-e Jahandari is a monumental work, which is a record of not only the historical facts but also a detailed account of the qualities of an ideal ruler. It enumerates and illustrates twenty four political ideals that should be part and parcel of a good ruler. This research paper focuses on ten values advocated by Barni, which could be viewed as an essential part of the ethical values. It showcases the significance of ethical leadership and offers an analysis of ten select values in the light of ethics. Subsequently, it depicts how the ethical values recommended by Barni are pertinent to the contemporary society.


Introduction
Ziauddin Barni is said to be the greatest historian of early medieval India. He was born in 1286 at Baran in the reign of Sultan Balban. Bulandshahr is the present name of the For instance, Chanakya, who is traditionally known as Kautilya or Vishnugupta, is renowned for his Arthashastra, in which he says, "An ideal king is one who has the highest qualities of leadership, intellect, energy and personal attributes" (Prasoon 97). According to him, the qualities of leadership are "birth in a noble family; good fortune, intellect and prowess; association with elders; being righteous, truthful, resolute, enthusiastic and disciplined; not breaking his promises; showing gratitude; having lofty aims; not being dilatory; being stronger than neighbouring kings; and having ministers of high quality" (Coxall 257). The quality of being righteous and truthful, which is one of the primary The second advice put forth by Barni, in his Fatwa-e Jahandari, is on the 'effects of the good faith of the king,' and it has an ethical relevance. Barni affirms that a king should have strong faith in God: "If the king's faith in religion of the Prophet is firm and unshakable, then there is no harm…" (Begum 2) and the real test of his faith lies in "…how he keeps the inhabitants of his kingdom on the path of Religious law (Shari'at)" (3). Barni adds that a faith-protecting king is the one, who is the cause of "good deeds, virtues and devotions" (3).
It implies that when a king has a strong faith in God, he will follow the moral principles set forth by God, and will ensure righteous government for his people.
2.2. Advice III: 'On the Blessings of Consultation and Advice': the Need for Humility The third instruction offered by Barni to the rulers calls for the humility of kings to seek the advice of the wise and experienced men, who are the well-wishers of the government and the chosen people of the kingdom. He considers the Prophets of God "the best and the greatest of all created beings" (8), and he declares that God Himself gave the following order: "And consult them in your affairs" (qtd. in Begum 8; The Quran, Sura III, verse 159).
Experience, it is said, is "the mother of wisdom" (Manser 82 Thus, it is obvious from the discussion above, that kings, according to Barni, should have the moral responsibility of consulting the wise and experienced people for discharging their duties in a right and effective way.

Advice IV: On Correct Determination
Correct determination, according to Barni, is another prerequisite of a good king. It is unquestionably a moral attribute because it signifies the ability to choose the right from the evil and the good policies, enterprises and the like. Barni regards correct determination as "the robe of kingship and the garb of royalty" (13). People will easily discern the political plans and schemes of a king, who has the quality of 'correct determination,' which will, consequently, lead to his immense reputation and the public confidence in him. A king's indulgence in defective and evil determinations is a mark of his tyranny and despotism.
Correct determination, on the contrary, is a characteristic feature of a morally good king. In Barni's view, a king, before venturing into any enterprise or evolving and executing a policy among people, should first carefully examine the pros and cons of such enterprise or policy, reflect on all its aspects, and only then, make a determination so that it may generate a constructive and positive impact on the state, the religion and the people. In this regard, Barni says, "The kings of Islam in determining upon enterprises and managing their affairs should look to the 'determinations' and 'resolutions' of the Prophet and the Pious Caliphs" (14).
Thus, it is quite essential for a king to acquire the quality of correct determination for making his regime highly successful and morally good, and for gaining the confidence and appreciation of his subjects. Ziauddin Barni strongly believes that justice is the hallmark of a good society, characterized by good governance of a good ruler. Insisting on the fundamental need for justice in a kingdom or society, he claims that "…justice is the balance in which the actions of people, good or bad, are weighted. The distinction between righteous and wrongful claims is clarified by justice. Justice exposes cruelty, oppression, forceful misappropriation and plunder" (16). Barni, in his Fatwa-i Jahandari, considers justice an essential quality of an ideal ruler, and regards it as "a base of social organization and civil rights" (qtd. in "Judicial System"). In this regard, Parvin E'tesami's words, addressed to a king of Sasanian dynasty, in her poem, "Nama be Naushervaan" (Letter to Naushervaan)," are very much relevant: "If you step on a wrong path, then you will not find the right path ever,/ and if the people find you committing mistakes, they will do hundreds of sin" (233).
Parvin E'tesami's words showcase the prominence of the moral qualities of a king.
That is, unless a king is morally righteous, he cannot ensure justice for his people. Observing that both ancient and modern intellectuals regarded 'religion' and 'justice' as twins, Barni says, "No religion, which is founded on Divine Commandments (ahkam), can do without justice" (Begum 16). He contends that the attribute of justice enables the king not only to protect the people from the evil forces of "tyranny and oppression" but also to safeguard "the money, property, women and children of the weak, the obedient, the helpless, the young, the submissive, and the friendless" (16). Therefore, Barni wants every ruler to possess the moral value of justice as his innate quality and to enforce this priceless quality among people.

Honesty
In his sixth advice, Barni instructs the rulers to be fair in making the gradation of officers and notables in their kingdoms. He feels that it is the moral responsibility of the rulers to "confer rewards in recognition of every merit" (19 create general grades and ranks of merit based on "good birth, piety, nobility, wisdom, skill and morality" (20). It follows from Barni's views that rulers should be fair and honest in the creation of the grades and ranks, and in recognizing and rewarding the persons of merit. He is of the opinion that good kings, after creating general ranks and grades of the notables, share "a portion of that dignity and power, which God has bestowed upon [them], to every notable according to his birth and merits" (19), and they discharge "their obligations to every merit through the resources of their governments" (20). While discharging their obligations, the good kings always look at "everyone with the same eye" (20). It implies that the good kings are so morally righteous and just that they are impartial and unprejudiced, and treat their subjects and the notables in a fair way.
In this context, Barni cites the holy Prophet, who says: 'Give to every true claimant his due.' A king of wisdom, after putting his subjects into defined ranks and grades, deals with both the common people and the notables in a correct and appropriate way. The rightful claimants are always duly rewarded by him. To substantiate his argument, Barni quotes the words of Ardshir Babakan, who says, "He alone can be considered a righteous king who in his dealings with the people has regard for their ranks and grades, so that all his subjects become his loyal well-wishers" (19). In this sense, recognizing and rewarding the right persons for their rights acts at the right time could be viewed as a moral value that is required in a good ruler because it enables the ruler to be honest in his actions. The people will have tremendous affection for the king, who endorses lower price of the requirements of the people's livelihood. The low-priced requisites of the army and the necessities of the people's livelihood give birth to several religious and worldly benefits, which will, ultimately, contribute to the welfare of both the kings and their subjects (36).
Barni is confident of the fact that only the king, who never permits the "mishandling of the helpless, the poor, the infirm, the distressed, the young and the ignorant by knaves, rogues, shop-keepers and shameless and God-less people," can be called "the shadow of God or a legitimate ruler" (36). It unveils the idea that it is the moral responsibility of the king not only to safeguard the common people particularly the poor and the needy from the evils of exploitation, abuse, deceit, violence and maltreatment, but also to make it feasible for the common people to get their required things at lower price. wise men (hakims), who proclaim that the following twenty qualities distinguish a ruler, who is gifted with an inherent sense of justice: (1) Kinship with the oppressed, desire to protect the weak, hatred of the unjust and enmity of the oppressors is written in his heart.
(2) He has no feeling of retaliation or revenge, even when he is giving judgment against his own enemies.
(3) He is incapable of making compromises or tolerating wrongs or exceeding proper limits where justice is concerned.
(4) His heart trembles lest the innocent be punished.
(5) No one can influence him where the administration of justice is concerned.
(6) He cares neither for the criticism nor the approval of men when he is passing judicial judgments.
(7) No consideration of any harm to himself or to his government can prevent him from enforcing justice.
(8) He is incapable of self-deception and does not make his principles flexible.
(9) Though stern in enforcing the just claims of others, yet he prefers to be forgiving where he is personally concerned.
(10) He finds no peace in his heart till he has exacted the claims of the weak from the strong.
(11) He avoids putting himself under the obligations of others from fear that these obligations may influence his mind (as a judge).
(12) Though he seeks justice, yet his heart is kind and affectionate.
(13) His just anger is for the sake of God only and no animal passions of hostility are excited in him. (14) In his heart he hates his power as the supreme commander because it entails Barni contends that a ruler, in addition to possession of the above-mentioned qualities, which mark his innate sense of justice, should also have the ability to enforce special and universal equality. Frances Wright writes, "Equality is the soul of liberty; there is, in fact, no liberty without it" (Sanders 52). In this sense, there cannot be justice without equality.
According to Barni, justice, for early and later kings, meant "putting all litigants on a par and enforcing equality between them" (Begum 53). But early religious scholars of the correct Faith categorized justice into two types namely 'special equality' (masawat-i khas) and 'universal equality' (masawat-i 'am). Accordingly, special equality implies "the equality of litigants before the ruler, because justice is no respector of persons," whereas universal equality designates "the equality of the ruler and the ruled" or "the equality of the ruler (with his subjects)" (53).
Barni identifies a significant distinction between 'special equality' and 'universal equality.' According to him, 'special equality' is "confined to the equality of the litigants only," and is associated with the situation wherein the caliph or king or anyone who is assigned with the power of making decision "enforces equality between the accuser and the accused," and "treats them equally during the trial with reference to their speeches and actions, and (the privilege of) sitting and standing before him, and does not give preference to either party for any cause." Furthermore, in his task of administration of justice, the ruler always "looks with same eye at relations and strangers, the distinguished and the ignoble, the employed and the unemployed, officers and citizens, rich and poor, nobles and commons, supporters and opponents, friends and foes," and he never receives any "gifts, bribes, presents or souvenirs, valuable or cheap, from either party" (53).
'Universal equality,' in Barni's view, is "a consequence of the perfection of piety and an exclusive feature of the four Pious Caliphs of the Prophet's Faith" and it "has ended with Abu Bakr, 'Umar-i Khattab, 'Usman and 'Ali Murtaza" (53). However, Barni recognizes that "the radiance of 'universal equality' has also shone on the reign of 'Umar bin Abdul Aziz" (54). Admiring the greatness and the noble qualities of the Caliph, he writes: The Caliph, who wields the powers of a Jamshed or a Khusrau over realms subordinate to his orders, not only discharges the obligations of 'special equality' between litigants but lives in the same way as the faqirs and the poor people of the community. In spite of his great authority and status he prefers a life of poverty. He passes his days in indebtedness, in distress and in lack of material means; his food and dress is the same as of the poorest people. He does not take from the Public Treasury IJELLH Vol. 6, Issue 10, October 2018 www.ijellh.com ISSN:2321-7065 135 more than he requires for the minimum needs of his life and he eats and dresses in the same way as his slaves. And this achievement, which appears to be the harmonisation of two opposites-kingship and poverty-has been considered a miracle of the Prophet and a wonderful achievement of the Pious Caliphs. (54) Barni is cognizant of the fact that 'universal equality' is "beyond the attainment of Muslim kings." However, he insists those kings to "strive for 'special equality'" and he instructs them in particular to "be personally accessible to the victims of oppression." Thus, Barni wants the rulers to realize the fact that "God maintains the earth and the heavens (samawat) through justice" (54). Justice is an important component of ethical values, and it should be practised not only by the rulers but also by every human person.

Advice XIII: On the King's Mercy and Punishments
Forgiveness is a difficult and noble quality, which finds a remarkable place in the realm of ethics. It is to be remembered that "justice without mercy is tyranny" (qtd. in Cohen 193). Barni looks at the ethical values of forgiveness and mercy in the light of Quranic commandments. That is why, in his advice on 'king's mercy and punishment,' he convincingly reveals that since "God is the forgiver of sins, the acceptor of repentance and strict in His punishments" (The Quran, Sura XL, verse 3), the king must behave in accordance with this Quranic verse, and must be merciful and have the forgiving heart so that he might have happiness during his life-time, and his reputation might remain alive even after his death. He adds that God-fearing kings have strongly believed that "Kingship cannot be properly established without forgiveness and punishments," and therefore, a far-sighted king always "knows well the correct occasions for forgiveness and punishment" (56). He fittingly recalls to his mind the instruction of Sultan Mahmud that a king should be well aware of the fact that "the forgiving, overlooking, disregarding and veiling of faults is one of the duties and obligations of kingship" (55), which will pave the way for a peaceful life and happiness. Jahandari was written in the 14 th century A.D. specifically for Muslim kings, it crosses the barriers of ages, languages, nations, religions and other such differences, and has immense relevance to contemporary society. It is a wonderful archive of the essential morals that are required in every ruler, and therefore, it is reliable and more relevant to the rulers and the people of the present times.
Here, in order to present the gist of Barni's ethical advices given in Fatwa-e-Jahandari, it is quite fitting to cite two verses of the 20 th century renowned poetess, Parvin E'tesami, from her poem, "Nama be Naushervaan" (Letter to Naushervan), wherein she narrates dialogue between King Naushervan and his minister Bozorgmehr: "Bozorgmehr wrote to Naushirvan that the people demand their safety and welfare from a king./ If the king tries for instauration of his country, there will be no need for the establishment of any formal court" (233). It is quite evident from the analysis of the ethical values posited by Barni in Fatwa-e Jahandari that when a ruler parctises the ethical values in his or her life, his or her country will be filled with the blessings of security, peace, prosperity and the welfare and happiness of people.