The following is a translated article from Arabic that appeared in al-Waie Magazine
Politics means taking care of affairs, and therefore every person is a politician, as every person takes care of their own affairs or the affairs of those under their care. However, the mind does not turn to this reality when the word “politician” is used. This is because a person who takes care of his own affairs only has no influence beyond his own affairs, and his thoughts do not extend beyond his needs. Rather, when the word “politician” is used, the mind turns to those who take care of the affairs of their nation, state, or more. These politicians’ influence extends to their nation, state, or more.
Politics has been described as the art of the possible. This description is true in one respect and false in another. If the meaning of the possible is considered the opposite of the impossible or the necessary, then this description is correct, as the politician does not deal with the impossible. However, if the description means that the politician deals with reality and starts from the possible as reality, i.e., that he is realistic, then this description is false. In fact, this type of politician is dangerous to their nations if they take over their leadership. Their policies draw from reality, and their view does not go beyond the existing reality. If the reality existing in these nations is created by their enemies, then they will not be able to escape the cage in which their enemies confined them. If this reality is created by them, then they will not be able to advance it or preserve its goodness, but will rather go back on their heels. The politicians who elevated their nations crossed the threshold of the reality in which their nations live. They drew a reality that their nations would advance, made it a goal, and formulated policies that led them to it. God has drawn for us an image of that politician who looks after the affairs of his nation and does not remain in the protection of corrupt reality. He is the bearer of the call, so He (swt) said:
And is one who was dead and We gave him life and made for him light by which to walk among the people like one who is in darkness, never to emerge therefrom? Thus it has been made pleasing to the disbelievers that which they were doing [Al-An’aam: 122]
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was the best example of this. When he was sent, he was sent to a people who had competed against each other in terms of their worldly power and weath and shed each other’s blood, but they were humiliated before the Persians and the Romans. The Messenger of Allah called them to emerge from the reality of humiliation and degradation to a reality in which they would sit on the throne of the world. An example of this is what happened when the leaders of Quraysh came to Abu Talib complaining to him about the Prophet of Allah. He asked him, and the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said to him: “Uncle, I want them to agree on one word, the Arabs will submit to them, and the non-Arabs will pay them the jizyah.” [Musnad Ahmad, 2008] The politician who seeks to look after the affairs of his nation and state, and more than that, must be able to formulate policies in order to move from the crucible of theoretical understanding to practical influence. In order to be able to formulate policies, he must have a political understanding of events and a political understanding of international relations. He must have a special vision through which he looks at the world, and build policies on that basis.
Political understanding is as essential to those striving for renaissance as air is to humans. Those striving for renaissance in the Islamic nation must consider themselves in terms of what will come. They seek to establish a state for their nation that upholds a principle, striving to become a major power, then to sit on the throne of the world, becoming the foremost state in the world. The kingdom of this nation will then attain the extent of what God has entrusted to His Messenger on this earth.
For this to happen, a Muslim must strive to find the means to achieve it. These means must be coupled with his commitment to the legitimate path leading to the establishment of his state, and with his dedication to preparing himself and his community so that the state he establishes will be capable of competing with the great powers of this world, and then closing the gap like a page in history. This can only be achieved if the political understanding of the person working for renaissance is built on sound foundations, producing true results. Otherwise, the outcome will be an illusion and a fantasy that prevents him from emerging from the corner of his home and assuming leadership of the world.
The individual’s transition from working for renaissance to leading and ruling the world with Islam requires good policy formulation. This can only be achieved through sound political understanding, good goal selection, good action leading to these goals, and good linking of action to these goals, connecting cause to effect. Therefore, it has become imperative to establish important foundations that open horizons for anyone who finds within themselves the ability to pursue this field. Understanding the necessary foundations for political understanding alone is not sufficient for mastering this field, as observation and practice are essential to achieving mastery. Learning does not happen overnight, but requires training, patience, determination, and willpower. Learning after the need for it is more likely to entrench knowledge in the mind and make it firmly rooted in the heart. It turns the learner into a worker and learner, unlike learning without purpose or need, which is like someone who spins and unwinds what he has spun, or plants but does not benefit from what he has sown until his crops turn yellow and are destroyed by pests.
These articles shed light on the reality of political understanding and analysis, the reality of political awareness and policymaking, and the political information required. Readers must realize that they will not become politicians simply by reading them. Rather, they will become politicians only if they learn from them what benefits them and engage in follow-up, understanding, awareness, and influence.
I place this work at the disposal of the Islamic Ummah, the best nation brought forth for mankind. I dedicate it specifically to the bearers of the call who are diligently striving for renaissance, especially the young people who are seeking the path of correct political understanding. I discourage anyone who reads these articles from using them to become merely a political analyst, as this will have no impact in this life, and those who ask about them do so only out of curiosity. Rather, I ask everyone who reads them to use them as a means to raise the level of thinking within the nation and to use them as a tool of guidance, through which they can understand the political reality correctly, view it from the perspective of Islamic doctrine, and manage the affairs of the people. Allah is the guide to the right path.
Political Analysis
Political analysis is essential for anyone who wants to understand and deal with political reality, and it is essential for policymakers. Therefore, political analysis is extremely important for the group working to advance the nation’s progress and for the state. Sound political analysis protects the group, the state, and the nation from the risks surrounding them and enables them to adopt policies that ward off harm, mitigate the deceit of their enemies, or help them achieve their goals.
Political analysis is the production of political opinions on emerging political events. It is based on political information and connections. Political analysis is achieved through an understanding of political reality, not simply by giving the mind free rein to draw every possible picture related to a piece of news or event. If this is given free rein, it shifts from the framework of political analysis to one of imagination, speculation, and logical investigation. This pattern does not lead to truthful results. Conversely, if understanding is linked to correct political concepts, it leads to truthful results. This is because politics is the actions of politicians, and it is built on the visions and orientations of their countries, and the natures that they have been imprinted with throughout their history. Accordingly, understanding the reality of politicians, the nature of the visions and orientations that their countries hold, the natures they hold, and the nature of the current event, and linking them correctly based on correct political concepts, is an understanding, not speculation or imagination, but rather drawing a complete picture by assembling its small component parts within a clear framework. Accordingly, if some of the small parts are missing, their nature can be explored by looking at the adjacent parts of the picture, thus drawing the complete picture in the mind. This is political analysis.
Political analysis requires three elements: political information, constant knowledge of political news, and careful selection of political news. Hizb ut-Tahrir discussed this topic in detail in a bulletin dated March 27, 1974, entitled “Politics and International Politics.” It stated that political information “is historical information, especially historical facts, information about events, actions, and individuals related to them from a political perspective, and information about political relationships, whether between individuals, states, or ideas. This information is what reveals the meaning of political thought, whether it be news, action, a principle of belief, or a ruling. Without this information, a person cannot understand political thought, no matter how intelligent or brilliant they are, because the issue is one of understanding, not reason. As for knowledge of current news, especially political news, this is because it is information and news of current events, and because it is the subject of understanding and research, it is therefore essential to know it. Since life events inevitably change, renew, differ, and contradict each other, it is essential to constantly follow them in order to remain aware of them. That is, so that he remains standing at the train station that the train is actually passing through, and does not remain standing at a station that the train is not passing through now, but rather one that was passing through an hour ago and then changed, and it is now passing through a different station. Therefore, it is necessary to constantly follow the news in a necessary and consecutive manner so that he does not miss a piece of news, whether it is important or trivial. Rather, he must endure the trouble of searching in a haystack for a grain of wheat, and he may not find it.
Because he doesn’t know when important news will arrive and when it won’t, he must continue to follow all the news, whether it concerns him or not. These are interconnected links; if a link is lost, the chain is broken, making it difficult to understand the situation. He may even misunderstand the situation and link reality to a piece of news or an idea that has ended and is no longer valid. Therefore, it is necessary to follow news sequentially in order to understand politics.
As for selecting news, this is achieved by taking it, not simply by hearing it. He only takes in important news. If he hears that the French Prime Minister has traveled to London, he listens to it and takes it in. But if he hears that the German Chancellor has traveled to Berlin, or gone to Washington, or met with the Secretary-General of the United Nations, he listens to it but does not take it in. He must distinguish between what he takes in and what he does not take in, even if he hears all the news. This is because taking in news that is beneficial to him, and not other news, even if it may constitute information. This is the pursuit of taking in, not merely hearing it. End quote.
News is obtained from reputable newspapers and respectable channels, as these newspapers and channels are keen to be trusted by the people, and especially by politicians. When obtaining their news and writing their articles, they are keen to communicate with those in charge of the events and those directly involved in them, and obtain information from reliable sources. However, it is not right to take the news as truthful, as the politicians in charge of events often intend to mislead in order to support their positions, conceal their objectives, or miss an opportunity for their enemies. Therefore, it remains incumbent upon the observer to trace the words and actions, and the occasions in which they were said, to identify the speaker and the doer, and link them to their preconceived notions. This will imprint on the mind the reality of the news, whether it is true or misleading.
News is also obtained from the mouths of politicians themselves, including leaders, foreign ministers, spokespersons for their countries, and those working in the field of national security. The observer must be concerned with tracking the realities of these individuals, or those sent by their countries to carry out relevant political, military, or intelligence missions. It is essential to know their biographies so as not to miss any element that constitutes the complete picture.
Although political analysis is important, it is not an end in itself, but rather a means to an end. Therefore, those working for the renaissance and those working within the state must use and familiarize themselves with political analysis, given its usefulness in their work. Every worker working for the renaissance of his nation must view his bloc as the leader of the change that will be global, and his nation as the one whose kingdom will achieve what God has concealed for His Messenger on earth, and his state as the state that will be the first in the world, and then the only one in the world.
To be continued…..
