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This timespan allows us to discern the development of the meaning of the Qur’anic “ulū’l-amr” and how interpretation of the ulū’l-amr passage has shaped, and has been shaped by, the concept and practice of leadership in Sunni and Shi‘i Islam. Due to the centrality of these Qur’anic passages in informing early Sunni and Shi‘i conceptions of leadership, this article focuses on exegetical works ( tafsīr) of the first 600 years of Islamic history, covering the Umayyad and ‘Abbāsid periods. This article discusses exegetical responses to the above questions by examining how Q 4:59 and 83 have been interpreted by successive generations of Muslims. Thus, the question arises: Who are those in authority? What is the nature of their authority and how is it constructed? Why is obedience to them obligatory? If it were not for God’s bounty and mercy towards you, you would almost all have followed Satan” (Q 4:83). The second occurrence of the term, found in the same chapter ( sūrat al-Nisā’), addresses the practical dimension of referring certain questions to the Prophet and ulū’l-amr: “Whenever news of any matter comes to them, whether concerning peace or war, they spread it about if they refer to the Messenger and those in authority among them, those seeking its meaning would have found it out from them. If you are in dispute over any matter, refer it to God and the Messenger, if you truly believe in God and the Last Day: that is better and fairer in the end” (Q 4:59 ). In the first appearance of this term, obedience to ulū’l-amr follows the dual charge to obey both God and the Prophet: “You who believe, obey God and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. The Qur’anic locus classicus for considering the question of leadership is Q 4:59 and 83 in which the term “ulū’l-amr” (those charged with authority) occurs.
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It can be asked, moreover, whether and to what extent such a political contestation has had implications for Muslim interpretation of Qur’anic verses dealing with questions of leadership. Although the debate relates to succession, as Patricia Crone has rightly noted, it also has political implications, because choosing leaders is tantamount to choosing a path to salvation ( Crone 2004, p. Two issues formed the primary concern at the time: (1) Who should be appointed as leader of the Muslim community? (2) How should he be elected? While one group of Muslims believed that leaders must be appointed from the Family of the Prophet and chosen on the basis of either Muḥammad’s God’s decree, others contended that leadership was open to any qualified individual elected through a general consensus. Soon after the death of the Prophet Muḥammad, the question of succession quickly arose: who has the right to lead the nascent Muslim community? The Muslim sources include a reasonably detailed account of the heated debate over the question of succession, which ultimately “divid the community between those who favored allegiance to successors from the Family of the Prophet, particularly ‘Alī, and those who looked back to the political leaders of the pre-Islamic era as the more worthy candidates (the clan of Banū ‘Abd al-Shām, from whom ‘Uthmān and Umayyad dynasty came) ( El-Hibri 2010, p. Leadership is one of the most contested issues in the early development of Islam. While Sunni exegetes seem to engage with one another internally, Shi‘i commentators tend to polemicize Sunni exegesis to uphold their version of ulū’l-amr as infallible imams (leaders). The diversity of Muslim interpretations and the different trajectories of Sunni and Shi‘i exegesis, as well as the process of exegetical systematization, are highlighted.
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It will be argued that it is chiefly in the tafsīr tradition that the meaning and identity of ulū’l-amr is negotiated, promoted, and contested. The main point of this article is to trace the early development of the meaning of ulū’l-amr in the exegetical works ( tafsīr) of both Sunni and Shi‘i Qur’an commentators during the first 600 years of Islamic history. This article carefully examines early Muslim exegesis of the Qur’anic ulū’l-amr and how the two verses have become the locus classicus of intra-Muslim polemics. The term appears twice in the Qur’an, namely in verses 59 and 83 of chapter 4 (sūrat al-Nisā’), which serve as the cornerstone and starting point of the entire religious, social, and political structure of Islam. The term ulū’l-amr (those in authority) is central to the Muslim understanding of leadership, although it has been understood differently by different scholars.