Justice and Remembrance: Introducing the Spirituality of Imam Ali

by Reza Shah-Kazemi

The Imam came across an old, blind beggar and inquired about him. He was told that the beggar was a Christian. He told those around him, ‘You have employed him to the point where he is old and infirm, and now you refuse to help him. Give him maintenance from the public funds (bayt al-māl).’77 In addition, this sentence expresses succinctly the Islamic principle of social welfare (maṣlaḥa), based on redistributive justice, and a policy of strict non-discrimination between Muslims and others. Social justice and religious equality flow forth from compassion conceived not as a sentiment, only, but as an intrinsic dimension of the Real, and therefore translates into a fundamental religious duty of all Muslims, rulers and citizens alike.