The duties of the halaqah
The ‘Azzabah council has precise duties for which it is
responsible on account of it being a formal body. These duties are as follows:
1)
Supervision of education
and the preparation of facilities for such purposes; facilitating some sort of
education for all children, so that they memorize a part of the Qur’an and
acquire sufficient knowledge of their religion. This is the least that can be
granted to a child. If the child’s family is too poor to avail itself of such
modest efforts, or if it does not have the means to support him for classes, it
is their duty to assist him financially.
2)
Watching over the social
affairs of people, facilitating life for the poor and the weak, providing
employment for all by demanding from the rich and well-to-do to employ the poor
for tasks in return for payment, in most cases agreed by members of the ‘Azzabah.
3)
Solving problems that arise
between people, arbitrating in these matters, issuing rulings with regard to
disputes and guaranteeing the rights of individuals in such cases.
4)
Managing the endowments of
the mosque, the funds of the halaqah, recording import and export, making sure all expenditure is
legitimate, promoting the development and maintenance of endowments, and using it
properly.
5)
Supervising markets and
protecting them from illegal transactions and dubious or suspicious money.
6)
Providing national
protection for people’s property, such as farmland and livestock so that it is
not stolen, seized or damaged.
7)
Judgment and punishment of
sinners and criminals, the declaration of dissociation from them, and the
severing of relations with them until they repent and return to God.
8)
Conducting and organizing
foreign relations, whether they be for war or peace.
These are some of the
tasks incumbent upon the ‘Azzabah council on account of it being an
official body responsible for society before God and before people. It is also
the council’s duty to assign tasks among its members according to the ability and
capacity of each: the Shaykh performs this duty after the halaqah has
given its agreement.
Where is halaqat al -‘azzabah established?
The ‘Azzabah can be set up in any country or town: its
members are the ones who supervise the private affairs of the country or the
town. If an important matter arises or an event that concerns more than the
town or country, it is presented before the High Council of the ‘Azzabah,
headed by the Grand Shaykh or the Mountain District Ruler, as was the case in Jabal
Nufusa. Such a matter may be something like the establishment of borders or
what concerns national security or other matters too complicated to be dealt
with at local level. The High or General Council of the ‘Azzabah is the
one headed by the Grand Shaykh, who necessarily heads an ‘Azzabah in his
own town and stands in for the imam during the concealment phase. The members
of the ‘Azzabah alongside him are the Advisers, who are also the Shaykhs
of ‘Azzabahs in their own districts: their headquarters are the centre
or capital of a country, and they hold regular meetings with the Shaykh, once
every three months, or whenever the need arises. The rulings of this council
have legal force in all districts and all halaqahs are financially or morally
obliged to this council, which represents the real authority over Ibadi
society. The other halaqahs are auxiliary to it and put its rulings into
effect. The Grand Shaykh is obliged to have his offices in the centre of the
country. If he chooses to reside elsewhere, then he has to rule from the place
of government and not his residence, as was the case with Abu Harun Musa b.
Harun, Abu ‘Abd Allah b. Jaldasan al-Laluti and Abu Yahya al-Arjani, and others.
The Shaykh of the ‘Azzabah
in Ibadi society has the authority of a just imam. He carries out all his
duties, every one of them, within the limits permitted by the conditions of
life at the time. He is tied to the State Council without whose agreement he
cannot issue any decision, except in specific matters in Islamic
religion. He is permitted to seek the assistance of another, who acts as a mufti
to him. The purpose of this mufti is the precise formulation of the content of
the rulings taken from the noble law and the giving of preference to one opinion
in controversial matters where legal views diverge. The purpose of the mufti is
not to inform the Shaykh of rulings which he does not know, since, the Shaykh
of the ‘Azzabah has to be one of the most, if not the most, knowledgeable of all the
elders.
At the regular
meetings, held every three or six months, representatives from
each of the different halaqat al-‘azzabah participate and put forward
their problems, and collectively examine the status of the society. They take
the necessary decisions in this capacity and make plans for the future. Each halaqah,
however, has the right to contact the High Council individually and to convene
a meeting if there is justified cause; it also has the right to consult the Grand Shaykh over
its particular problems and seek his advice and opinion.
Each halaqah
is represented by its Shaykh and some of its advisers, except in
emergencies where he is not able to perform this task.
Choosing the members of the halaqah
When putting together the ‘Azzabah, it is important (in
addition to individuals meeting the necessary qualifications) that the
members represent all the tribes and districts of a country. However, it is not
absolutely necessary to have general equality: if in a particular tribe the qualifications for
individuals cannot be met, then appointment can be made from another tribe.
When the ‘Azzabah needs to supplement its halaqah with another
member, they can acquire him in one of two ways: either they demand
from the tribe from which the representative is sought to put forward a number
of candidates who fulfil the conditions for membership, have the desired qualifications, a
reputation for integrity, God-fearing, chastity, uprightness, benevolence, altruism,
self-sacrifice and working for the good of all. The Council then selects one of
these. Or, they demand from the Irwan organization (see below) to
provide a person for them to fill the vacancy.
When the candidate
becomes a member of the ‘Azzabah, he is summoned to its official
headquarters, where the Shaykh informs him of the conduct and comport that is
expected of him, and emphasizes to him that one of the most important duties
expected of him is that he practices Islamic conduct and adorns himself with
its noble manners, such as uprightness, integrity, chastity, devotion to
serving the community, regular attendance at the mosque, abstinence from the
pleasures of this world, except out of necessity, devoutness in worship, humility before
Muslims, severity towards sinners and criminals; that he sets an example for
people in his words and deeds; and that he seeks his livelihood with diligence, choosing farming as
a profession, since trade brings him into direct contact with people, where he
is more likely to get mixed up in evil. They sum up their position on this in a
well-known and often-repeated phrase:
‘that he be not in a
mosque, halaqah or house other than his’. When he is apprised of all the
duties and rights that apply to him, together with his tasks and responsibilities,
he is then asked to declare his acceptance or refusal. If he accepts, and this
is what actually happens, he is given practical tasks, such as teaching or
staffing the mosque, or participating in the supervision of a dead person’s affairs.
As far as I know, he is considered the most junior of the ‘Azzabah, even
if he happens to be older than some of them, and he is obliged to serve them.
He then asks his predecessor, that is, the member of the ‘Azzabah who
was the most junior before this new recruit, to accompany him for three days in
order to train him in the service of the ‘Azzabah, since he is
considered directly above him and when the ‘Azzabah convene, he has to
sit before him. The arrangement of the seating places of the ‘Azzabah is
important: the junior one cannot sit before the senior one. The member of the ‘Azzabah
is considered a chief wherever he goes, having the exclusive right of initiating
discourse in public sessions and concluding it, as well as directing the
discussion, etc. No student or member of the public can do any of this unless
he gives him permission.
The punishment of a member of the ‘Azzdbah
A member of the ‘Azzabah is expected to set an example of
integrity. For this reason, what is considered minor in the way of offences
committed by others is deemed grave when committed by him, and he should guard himself
against such offences and avoid them. This is the case even in matters
concerning manners, and the way he conducts himself with people. If fate
decrees that he commits error, the Council will consider his case: if the
matter is grave and concerns sin against God, and brings ill-repute to the ‘Azzabah,
or brings shame to the mosque, and disregards the law etc., they must sever
relations with him (bara’ah) with witnesses, as is done with other
people. Relations are not restored until he declares his repentance openly.
Even so, after that he can never return to the ‘Azzdbah Council, since
the person who is expelled from it by bara’ah cannot return to it again,
even if he repents and his repentance is sound. He becomes like all other
Muslims in respect of rights and obligations. If the offence is minor and does
not require repentance, a special rehabilitation session is convened for him in
secret, which may suspend him from the ‘Azzabah Council for a length of
time, depending on the nature of the offence committed. His offence is kept
secret from the public.
The reason for such action is that the
members of the ‘Azzabah most exemplify Islam and its manners, something
which has been summarized by one of the Shaykhs in the following elegant
statement, ‘the person in charge of people is like milk: it can be spoilt by
anything that falls into it’.
Reference:
Ibadhism
in History: The emergence of the ibadi school; by Ali Yahya Muammar; pg: 72-75
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