THALAB AL-IMARAT FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE HADITH

Abstract

The phenomenon of political ambition and the pursuit of public office without considering capabilities frequently triggers crises in governance and leadership. Prophetic traditions (hadiths) explicitly warn and prohibit individuals from seeking leadership positions (thalab al-imarah). This study aims to examine the legal status and interpretation of hadiths prohibiting the request for public office through matn analysis (tahlil al-matn), resolve the apparent contradiction (ta’arudh) between hadith texts and Quranic narratives (Surah Yusuf: 55), and synthesize these prophetic values into the discourse of modern management science. Employing a qualitative library research method, this study adopts textual-hermeneutical and socio-historical approaches. Primary data were retrieved from Al-Kutub al-Tis’ah (focusing on narrations by Abu Dharr al-Ghifari and Abd al-Rahman bin Samurah) and analyzed via takhrij, asbab al-wurud, and the harmonizing method of al-jam’u wa al-tawfiq. The findings demonstrate that the prohibition against seeking office is not absolute-dogmatic, but rather sociological-conditional. The restriction specifically applies to unqualified individuals (dha'if) to prevent the betrayal of public trust. Conversely, offering oneself for a position is permissible and even recommended if driven by moral integrity, intellectual capacity, and public interest, as exemplified by Prophet Joseph (Yusuf). This reinterpretation aligns seamlessly with executive criteria in modern leadership science, which emphasizes competence, integrity, and managerial objectivity.