Introduction:
Abul Hasan Ali bin Muhammad bin Habib-al-Mawardi is the first writer on political theory in the history of Islam. Except Ibn-e-Khaldoon, all the jurists, thrologists and political philosophers who have followed him, down to our own days, have hardly made any improvement upon his thoughts. He was born in 974 AD and died in 1058 AD. Al-Mawardi was regarded as one of the versatile and most learned jurists of his age, and his opinions laid emphasis in the world of law and jurisprudence. He belonged to the orthodox Shafi’te school of jurisprudence and still we find traces of the pure rationalism. Like other Muslims he received the traditional education, and he wrote on many topics besides law, like, a Commentary on the Quran, a treatise on prophecy and several works on Ethics. As far his legal writings, it is noteworthy that “Government and administration, at all levels, were his principal concerns.”
Al-Mawardi started his career as a professor of law and jurisprudence at Basra and Baghdad, and later on he was appointed as Qazi-ul-Quzat of Baghdad by a-Qaim, Abbasid Caliph and he was also conferred an honorific title of Aqdal-Quat or the Supreme Justice. But he declined to accept this offer of appointment because he said there were far abler people who deserved the title much more than himself. It is related that he did not publish any of his works in his lifetime. When a friend asked why he kept his books back he replied that it was because he felt that his motives in writing them were not as pure as he should have wished and that he did not know whether Allah the Almighty had accepted these literary offerings or not.
Al-Mawardi has left a great and valuable treasure of knowledge and philosophy. His books are the following:
1. Al-Ahkam at-Sultaniyah (Ordinances of Government)
2. Nasihat-ul-Muluk (Advice to Kings)
3.
