This was an alright read. If I'm honest I forced myself to stick with it and get to the end. Not that there was anything wrong with the formatting, translation or anything like that but it lacked a bit of a narrative and flow. That said it's always a pleasure to get a feel for the mind and thinking of Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani and this book was no different. Some of the key takeaways for me were (1) the discussion of whether politics is a means to a higher purpose or whether politics itself is the actual purpose of religion, (2) the discussion of whether the Quran and Sunnah have drawn up a detailed plan of exactly what an Islamic government should look like or whether the shape of an Islamic government is flexible as long as it adheres to the base rules and principles of the Shariah, and (3) an increased appreciation of Surah 22, Verse 41: "Those who, if We give them power in the land, establish the prayer, pay Zakat, enjoin goodness, and forbid evil; and with Allah rests the end of all matters."
Below are some quotes from the book:
"Politics and Jihad are not ends in themselves, but are means to achieve the end of religiosity. That is why all the Prophets (peace be upon them) were given all sorts of injunctions about worship, but not all received injunctions about politics and Jihad."
"... the promotion of goodness and the prevention of evil are among the foremost government objectives of the Khilafah system... the purpose of a government is not simply to make people happy..."
"... the satisfaction of the ruling class or the rich is not meant to be among the aims of government. Rather, its purpose is to put Allah's commandments into practice and try to improve the lot of the poor masses..."
"... love for wealth tends to corrupt people and lead them to commit evil acts. Zakat is an excellent means of keeping this love under control and to foster the spirit of selflessness instead of selfishness..."
"Islam has forbidden people to demand positions of political leadership, and it has imposed the principle of consultation; but rather than setting out in detail how these principles are to be put into practice, Islam is flexible enough to allow the intelligentsia of each age to determine the details."
"Islam is very flexible regarding the details of political organisation... although the Holy Quran and the Sunnah do not contain any explicit permission to appoint a Caliph only for a certain period of time, there is also nothing to be found that forbids doing so."
"There is no possible benefit in a movement that attempts to establish Islam by breaking the laws of Islam."
