This thesis deals with the political philosophy of al-Ghazzali from an analytical point of view. It focuses its examination on his theory regarding the imamate and sultanate. This examination is based on four of his works, namely, Fad&dotbelow;a'ih&dotbelow; al-Bat&dotbelow;iniyah wa-fad&dotbelow;a'il al-Mustaz&dotbelow;hiriyah, al-Iqtis&dotbelow;ad fi'l-i'tiqad, Ih&dotbelow;ya' 'ulum al-din and Nas&dotbelow;ih&dotbelow;at al-muluk . It begins with an account of past scholarship on al-Ghazzali's political thought. Until recently scholars have focused on al-Ghazzali's theories without giving due consideration to the circumstances that led him to develop them. This thesis shows how they were shaped by his encounter with the 'Abbasid court and the Seljuq sultanate, and how his own theological and juridical concerns coloured his interpretations. The practical necessity of justifying his concept of the imamate was forced upon him by the challenge posed by the Fat&dotbelow;imid caliph in Egypt, and by the reality of power politics in Baghdad, where the caliph exercised only nominal control. Throughout his writings he demonstrates an overriding concern for a stable society in which Islam can be practiced in full, even at the cost of living under an oppressive system.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.28058 |
| Date | January 1997 |
| Creators | Kamarudin, Russli. |
| Contributors | Lawson, Todd (advisor) |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Master of Arts (Institute of Islamic Studies.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 001610867, proquestno: MQ43890, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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