Daaim al-Tamkin
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- Islamic University
Daaim al-Tamkin (دعائم التمكين للمملكة العربية السعودية على ضوء قوله تعالى: ﴿الَّذِينَ إِنْ مَكَّنَّاهُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ أَقَامُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَوُا الزَّكَاةَ وَأَمَرُوا بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَنَهَوْا عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَلِلَّهِ عَاقِبَةُ الْأُمُورِ﴾) is a treatise by the Saudi scholar Hamad bin Hamdi al-Saidi, an associate professor at the College of Sharia at the Islamic University of Madinah, examining the religious foundations and legitimacy of governance in Saudi Arabia through the lens of Quranic exegesis.
Context and Purpose
The work was composed in 1419 AH (1998/1999 CE) on the occasion of the centennial celebration marking the founding of the modern Saudi state, dated from King Abdulaziz Al Saud’s capture of Riyadh in 1319 AH (1902 CE). The author confines the historical scope of the study to the period between the entry of King Abdulaziz into Riyadh and the contemporary era under King Fahd bin Abdulaziz.
The stated objective of the work is to demonstrate how the state fulfilled the conditions of earthly empowerment (tamkin) outlined in Surah al-Hajj, verse 41: الَّذِينَ إِنْ مَكَّنَّاهُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ أَقَامُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَوُا الزَّكَاةَ وَأَمَرُوا بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَنَهَوْا عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَلِلَّهِ عَاقِبَةُ الْأُمُورِ ("Those who, if We give them authority in the land, establish prayer and give zakat and enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong. And to Allah belongs the outcome of [all] matters"). Al-Saidi frames the book as an act of reminding readers of divine blessings and emphasizing adherence to Islamic creed and Sharia governance.
Structure and Content
The book is arranged into an introduction, a terminological preface, and three main chapters:
- Introduction and Preface (المقدمة والتمهيد): Details the importance of the subject, the rationale for selecting the timeframe, and defines key terms in the title—namely da'a'im (pillars), tamkin (empowerment), and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
- Chapter 1 (الفصل الأول): Analyzes the Quranic verse, exploring the pre-Islamic condition of the Arabs, the verse's textual context and occasion of revelation (sabab al-nuzul), interpretations offered by classical exegetes, and the universal legal application of the verse to the duties of an Islamic government.
- Chapter 2 (الفصل الثاني): Elaborates on the nature, legal significance, and underlying wisdom of the four pillars named in the verse: establishing prayer (iqamat al-salat), giving obligatory charity (ita' al-zakat), and commanding right and forbidding wrong (al-amr bil-ma'ruf wal-nahy 'an al-munkar).
- Chapter 3 (الفصل الثالث): Traces the implementation of these four pillars by Saudi rulers, beginning with King Abdulaziz's establishment of the state upon the Salafi creed and institutional enforcement of prayer, followed by the governance of his sons, and concludes with an assessment of the societal outcomes of applying these religious obligations.
Publication
The work was published as an independent monograph and also featured as an academic study in the journal of the Islamic University of Madinah (Majallat al-Jami'ah al-Islamiyyah bil-Madinah al-Munawwarah) in issue 110, dated 1419 AH.
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