Constitution of Medina

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Constitution of Medina, also known as the Charter of Medina, was a constitution drafted in 622 in Medina by Muhammad. It concerns the rights and responsibilities of the Muslim, Jewish, and other communities of Medina during the war between that city and its neighbours. According to this document, the Jews form "one community with the believers," but on the other hand they "have their religion and the Muslims have theirs."[1] Legal Scholar L. Ali Khan says the Constitution of Medina was a social contract derived from a treaty and not from any fictional state of nature or from behind the Rawlsian veil of ignorance. The contract was built upon the concept of one community of diverse tribes living under the sovereignty of One God.See The Medina Constitution also instituted peaceful methods of dispute resolution among diverse groups living as one people but without assimilating into one religion, language, or culture.[2] It was not a treaty in the modern sense, but a unilateral proclamation by Muhammad.[3] Welch in Encyclopedia of Islam states: "The constitution reveals his Muhammad's great diplomatic skills, for it allows the ideal that he cherished of an umma (community) based clearly on a religious outlook to sink temporarily into the background and is shaped essentially by practical considerations." [4]

Contents

[edit] Important points

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

The most important points with respect to the geographically close Arab tribes, Muslim and Jewish, in the immediate area of Medina:

  1. The Jews will profess their religion, and the Muslims theirs.
  2. The Jews shall be responsible for their expenditure, and the Muslims for theirs.
  3. If attacked by a third party, each shall come to the assistance of the other.
  4. Each party shall hold counsel with the other. Mutual relation shall be founded on righteousness; sin is totally excluded.
  5. Neither shall commit sins to the prejudice of the other.
  6. The wronged party shall be aided.
  7. The Jews shall contribute to the cost of war so long as they are fighting alongside the believers.
  8. Medina shall remain sacred and inviolable for all that join this treaty. Should any disagreement arise between the signatories to this treaty, then Muhammad shall settle the dispute.
  9. The signatories to this treaty shall boycott Quraish commercially; they shall also abstain from extending any support to them.
  10. Each shall contribute to defending Medina, in case of a foreign attack, in its respective area.
  11. This treaty shall not hinder either party from seeking their lawful retaliation.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Jonathan Berkey, The Formation of Islam: Religion and Society in the Near East, 600-1800, Cambridge University Press, p.64
  2. ^ Ramadan, Hisham M. (2006). Understanding Islamic Law: From Classical to Contemporary. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. ISBN 0759109907.
  3. ^ Lewis, Bernard (2002). The Arabs in History. Oxford University Press, USA. ISBN 0192803107.
  4. ^ Welch, Encyclopedia of Islam, Muhammad article

[edit] See also

[edit] Further reading

[edit] External links

Preceded by
Hijra		 Life of Muhammad
Year: 623 CE		 Succeeded by
Battle of Badr
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../c/o/n/Constitution_of_Medina_75b9.html"
In other languages