Islamic Democratic Discourse

Abstract

M. A. Muqtedar Khan’s (ed.) Islamic Democratic Discourse: Theory, Debates, and Philosophical Perspectives examines how Muslim thinkers have and are trying to formulate systems for good and ethical self-governance and the necessity, therein, for political discourse. The debates in these essays, which span a wide range of subjects and periods, are held together by a common principle: political discourse has a long standing in the Muslim world. Given that the Muslim world’s conventional image is one in which autocratic regimes prevail, the significance of this argument, presented here from its theological, legal, and regional perspectives, is of great importance. For political discourse to be meaningful – that is, for it to be an exercise in the clarification and exchange of ideas and to lead, in some instances, to action – requires that it take place both in the public and private sphere. The public sphere may be more readily recognized as the proper space for political discourse. However, the slippage of political discourse over to the private sphere is also of great value in that it indicates two things: first, political ideas are recognized as important to both a person’s collective and individual sensibilities and, second, while political discourse is expounded in the public sphere, its ideas are often first worked out and subsequently reflected upon in the private sphere ...