Letters · Instructions for Malik al-Ashtar upon his appointment as the governor of Egypt

al-Sharif al-Radi (d. 406 AH) · Thaqalayn library edition, reproduced verbatim

2

Arabic text

وَاجْعلْ لِذَوِي الْحَاجَاتِ مِنْكَ قِسْماً تُفَرِّغُ لَهُمْ فِيهِ شَخْصَكَ، وَتَجْلِسُ لَهُمْ مَجْلِساً عَامّاً، فَتَتَوَاضَعُ فِيهِ لِلَّهِ الَّذِي خَلَقَكَ، وَتُقْعِدُ عَنْهُمْ جُنْدَكَ وَأَعْوَانَكَ مِنْ أَحْرَاسِكَ وَشُرَطِكَ، حَتَّى يُكَلِّمَكَ مُتَكَلِّمُهُمْ غَيْرَ مُتَتَعْتِعٍ، فَإِنِّي سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللهِ (صلى الله عليه وآله) يَقُولُ فِي غَيْرِ مَوْطِنٍ «لَنْ تُقَدَّسَ أُمَّةٌ لَا يُؤْخَذُ لِلضَّعِيفِ فِيهَا حَقُّهُ مِنَ الْقَوِيِّ غَيْرَ مُتَتَعْتِعٍ».

Original English translation

And fix a time for complainants wherein you make yourself free for them, and sit for them in common audience and feel humble therein for the sake of Allāh who created you. (On that occasion) you should keep away your army and your assistants such as the guards and the police so that anyone who like to speak may speak to you without fear, because I have heard the Messenger of Allāh (S) say in more than one place, “The people among whom the right of the weak is not secured from the strong without fear will never achieve purity.”

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