Al-Muqaddimah-Ibne Khaldon

Al-Muqaddimah
Ibn Khaldon-Franz Rosenthal Translation.

The ability to think enables human beings to cooperate (x).
Full cooperation results on a social process called urbanization (tamaddun from the Greek word town). Man is political in nature(x), but proper order in social organization can be kept only when they are justly governed (x)-civilization results.
Solidarity, group feeling and conscious (asbiyah) leads to higher civilization (xi). and greater one leads to dominance over one with less solidarity.
Dynasty (akin to state for Ibn Khaldun) can exist only in the context of civilization. State is biased towards luxury which carries with it seeds of decay.
Desire of the ruling group to gain exclusive control over all resources of power ( and assets) brings it into conflict with its supporters. They impose higher taxes for their luxuries (xi).
All dynastic history moves in cycles (xii)
Higher civilization is preserved by the new dynasty mutating the more civilized predecessor.
History makes us acquainted with the conditions of past nations, as they are reflected in their national character (11)
As long as there is continued succession of different races to government, change in customs and institutions will not cease to occur(26).
History is information of human social organization which is identical with civilization (35).
Savage-social group feeling, way one group acquires superiority over another.
Government, occupations, science and craft-institutions.
History distorted by
-partisanship
-reliance on transmitters
-unawareness of the significance of the event-unfounded assumptions/praise of high officials
-ignorance of conditions of civilization and nature of events (36).
Justice is a balance set up among mankind (40).
Humans distinguished by-
-capacity to think (42-43)
-need of restraint by a strong authority.
-To keep from aggression, government needed
-need to make a living
-civilization-living together-Bedouin, rural. urban

Human Civilization:
Man is political by nature(45) Can not get food alone, sowing reaping threshing, crushing, kneading baking-equipment made by different artisans need to cooperate.
Defense-animals stronger than man, man has mind and hands, needs cooperative effort to make weapons(Evolution of god-tribal, feudal, commercial, capitalist, Global systems)
Climate and Character:
(63) Negroes live in a hot zone- levity, excitability, emotionalism-dance all the time-stupefied-hear expands animal spirit.
Coastal region-hot and similar-Egyptians don’t care for tomorrow
Fez-Maghreb-Inland, cold-sad, gloomy and worried about the future.
Temperate zone-not all have abundance, some do
-Hejaz, Yemen, deserts of Maghreb-milk, meat, healthier than hill people who have plenty.
Abundance of food leads to obesity, pale-mind dulled-stupid, careless, intemperate, the same difference obtains between wild and domestic animals.
(this is opposite of British colonial view).
Desert people –frugal, more religions, need god, city people have plenty, no need to pray.
Fat people die more quickly, olive oil good (without the knowledge of physiological cause, very perceptive)
Reception of revelations led to unaccountable stress (70), so idolaters called the prophets possessed-pre prophecy, they were good people-they promoted prayers, charity, chastity and claimed infallibility-averse to sinful action, good name
Miracles-different from sorcery as prophet is good.
Creation/prophecy (74-75).
Explained according to revelations, and state of science at the time-minerals, herbs, palm, vine, shell fish…through stages-monkey to man-sagacity, reflection, thinking.
Spiritual-soul-body- -perception, above are angels.
-Physical Power-movement, vision, hearing
-Sensual-thinking-common sense, imagination-Brain ; back-memory, hostility, thinking ; front compassion, love, mid-brain reflection, intellect
Soul is of three kinds-weak, intellectual, angelic in prophets
Sooth saying (79)-supernatural perception
Dream-(80) soul frees itself from bodily matters and looks into future events.

Bedouins, Savages and Tribes: (90).

differences in people according ways of making a living

Agriculture,
-animal husbandry-not beyond bare subsistence
-living conditions-town houses, fine, poor
-sedentary people-crafts, commerce

Bedouins
-desert people, engage in agriculture and animal husbandry-tents, wood houses, caverns, caves, simple food
-Agriculture-small communities-Berbers
-Animal husbandry ones don’t go deep into desert-Turks, Slavs
-Camel men move around in the desert, savages, Bedouin
-Bedouin pre-sedentary, develop into sedentary, simpler people, more good, courageous
-sedentary-indulge in luxury, evil, lower self restraint, hand over defense to others-ruler, militia, build walls, fortifications, they depend upon laws, rulers can be kind and just or brutal, fortitude and inertness increase.
-restraining influence among Bedouins comes from their Sheikhs and elders.
Leadership vested in people of the same descent.
Desert life (107)-bravery enables to achieve superiority, group feeling gives protection, mutual defense, eventually royal authority, leading to luxury and weakness and downfall of dynasties (109).
Royal authority is something natural to human beings (at a certain stage of social development (111). The vanquished always want to imitate the victor (116).
Religion united the Bedouin, and they captured vast territory.
Dynasties (123):
Royal authority…attained only through…a group feeling…great competition for it. Discord ensues…war and fighting result.
Once leadership firmly established…beginnings are forgotten…members of the family are clearly marked as leaders…as firmly established article of faith…all others subservient to them, they maintain their hold…with the help of…clients and followers…tribal groups of a different descent…something of the sort happened to Abbasids…the same happened to the Umayyad…in Spain.
(126) Religious propaganda…attribution to another power…does away with mutual jealousy and envy among people…this happened t Arabs at the beginning of Islam. (127) religious propaganda can not materialize without group feeling
Dynasties can extend only so far as their group can adequately cover. (132)…royal authority claims all the glory for itself.
Dynasties have a natural life span, like individuals(136)
Stages of dynasty (141)-success, overthrow all opposition…appropriate royal authority from preceding dynasty, complete control over people, leisure and tranquility, contentment and peace, waste and squander
Caliphate (155). Royal authority-causes people to act by purpose and desire, as required by rational insight to advance them to worldly interests, as required by religious insight, in later times, they were called Sultans…people forced to render allegiance to any body who seized power.
Imam: At the death of the prophet…oath of allegiance to Abu-Bakr and so on…
Religious law does not ensure royal authority…merely censures the evil resulting from it…(4-59(62) obey God and obey the apostle and the people in authority above you (158).
Imam to have knowledge, probity, competence, no physical/mental handicap, of Quraish descent
(160) M censured royal authority…waste. Deviation from the path of God…does not censure it for gaining superiority through truth. (166) Later Abbasid caliphs lost its identity…royal authority came to exist alone.
(166) Bayah-oath of allegiance was a contract, the term derived from baa, to sell-buy.
Succession recognized as part of religious law through consensus of Muslim nation. No consensus after Ali-Muaviya made an agreement with Hasan. Ibne Ali.
Commander and head of the state:
(183) In the Muslim community holy war is a religious duty…convert every one to Islam…by persuasion or force.
In other religions, holy war was not religious duty…save for defense, so person in charge of religious affairs…? with power politics…
…Israelites after Moses…unconcerned with royal authority for 400 years…the person in charge of religion was called Cohen…condition for him to be a descendent of Aaron…selected 70 elders…entrusted with general legal authority…fought with Philistines, Canaanites, Moabites etc. Saul first king-David-After Solomon tribes divided into two dynasties, one was ten tribes in Samaria, and the other descendents of Judea and Benjamin.
Nebuchadnezzar (Babylon) defeated them, destroyed their temple, deported them to Iraq/Isphahan in Persia. Achaemenid, one of the Persian rulers brought them back after 70 years. They rebuilt the temple, then came under the Greeks-Alexander. Romans defeated them, exiled Jews to Rome-Great exile.
Jesus brought his religion, had twelve apostles, sent some as messengers. Jewish king Herod wrote to Caesar Augustus. The roman Emperor gave them permission to kill him.
Peter went to Rome (1).they wrote the bible in four recensions according to their tradition. Mathew wrote his Gospel in Jerusalem in Hebrew (2) translated later by John into Latin (3) Luke wrote in Latin (4) Peter wrote in Latin ascribed to his pupil, Mark.
Constantine adopted it as official religion. Religious head called Patriarch-bishop.
(187) Peter the chief apostle, killed by Nero Arius succeeded him.
Assembly at Nicacea sponsored by Constantine in 318 Bishops agreed upon a creed/doctrine. Bishop called father, the Patriarch-Pope-father of the father-the title arose in Egypt, according to Jirjis Al-Hind in his book History. It was later transferred to the most important see, the see of Rome.
Later they broke into Melchites (Pope), Jacobites (Egyptian) and Nestorians.

The ranks of royal and authority:
(188) Caliph-wazir (help) door keeper (chief of the staff of US president),
Diwan-finance, officer of correspondence and access (secretary), police (Hakim in Africa, town chief in Spain, Wali-governor in Egypt. Police initially created by Abbasids. Admiralty created in Africa and Maghreb.
(216) first Muslim to use throne was Muaviya. (222) Mehrab and Friday prayer leadership exclusive to Muslim rulers.
(263) Countries and cities:
Dynasties are prior to towns and cities…united effort and much cooperation is needed for them. in the time of Al-Mamun, the number of public baths reached 65,000.
(270) There are a few cities in Africa and Maghreb. All their civilization was Bedouin.
(279)…great amount of labor available brings wealth in the region that have abundant civilization.
(181) Amirs and rulers become jealous of capitalists…need a protective force…
(285) Sedentary culture is the goal of civilization.
(297) Profit is the value realized from human labor…will be capital accumulation…if greater than his needs
(298) Capital a person… acquires, if resulting from a craft…is acquired capital.
(299) making a living-Agriculture, craft, commerce, hunting (animal, fish) animal husbandry.
(305) happiness and profit…by people who are obsequious and use flattery.
(309) commerce…attempt to make profit by increasing capital…buying goods at low price and …selling at high price.
(314) Craft requires teachers…are perfected only if there exist a large…civilization..
Crafts- agriculture, architecture, carpentry, weaving, tailoring, midwifery, medicine, calligraphy, book production, singing, music, writing, calculation
(333) Man’s ability to think distinguishes human beings from animals…obtain livelihood, to cooperate, scientific instructions, laws, dialectics, speculation, theology.
(358) Sufism, divine worship… devotion to God, aversion to false splendor, abstinence from pleasure, property, position, retirement from the world…came to represent ascetism.
Novice to higher stages till gnosis (irfan)-self scrutiny, peculiar behavior, linguistics-musical exertion, retirement, spiritual exercises.
(371) Sciences
Logic, elements, metaphysics, measurements, geometry, arithmetics, music, calculation, algebra, business, optics, astronomy, physics, medicine, Agriculture. Grammar, lexicography, literary criticism, literature, prose, poetry.
(428) Most Muslim scholars have been non-Arabs.