Islamic advice literature may include collections of stories or anecdotes such as legal opinion, interpretation of religious text,

legal theory Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning a ...

, guidance,

consultation Consultation may refer to: * Public consultation, a process by which the public's input on matters affecting them is sought * Consultation (Texas), the 1835 Texas meeting of colonists on a proposed rebellion against the Republic of Mexico * Consul ...

, or Islamic stories.

Overview

Islamic advice literature is usually printed on small leaflets and often involves advice from individuals or authorities. In contrast to

Fatwa A fatwā ( ; ar, فتوى; plural ''fatāwā'' ) is a legal ruling on a point of Islamic law (''sharia'') given by a qualified '' Faqih'' (Islamic jurist) in response to a question posed by a private individual, judge or government. A jurist i ...

Tafsir Tafsir ( ar, تفسير, tafsīr ) refers to exegesis, usually of the Quran. An author of a ''tafsir'' is a ' ( ar, مُفسّر; plural: ar, مفسّرون, mufassirūn). A Quranic ''tafsir'' attempts to provide elucidation, explanation, in ...

, and

Fiqh ''Fiqh'' (; ar, فقه ) is Islamic jurisprudence. Muhammad-> Companions-> Followers-> Fiqh. The commands and prohibitions chosen by God were revealed through the agency of the Prophet in both the Quran and the Sunnah (words, deeds, and ...

Nasîhat Nasîhatnâme ( ota, نصيحت نامه, ''Naṣīḥat-nāme'') were a type of guidance letter for Ottoman sultans, similar to mirrors for princes. They draw on a variety of historical and religious sources, and were influenced by the governance ...

and advice literature can come from secular sources, and are not required to be written by

Ulama In Islam, the ''ulama'' (; ar, علماء ', singular ', "scholar", literally "the learned ones", also spelled ''ulema''; feminine: ''alimah'' ingularand ''aalimath'' lural are the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious ...

(Islamic scholars). Unlike Fiqh, Tafsir, Fatwa, or Nasîhat based on them, advice can go beyond the realm of religious scripture and may take support of otherwise not easily admissible

Hadith Ḥadīth ( or ; ar, حديث, , , , , , , literally "talk" or "discourse") or Athar ( ar, أثر, , literally "remnant"/"effect") refers to what the majority of Muslims believe to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approval ...

or religious rulings in order to make normative pleas. Its reliance has been on traditional and self-renewing information about social, authoritative, or religious themes. According to

Gudrun Krämer Gudrun Krämer (born 1953) is a German scholar of Islamic history and co-editor of the third edition of the Encyclopaedia of Islam. Hence, according to Marzieh Bashirpour, social behavior of Muslims is deeply influenced by advice literature.

Means of providing advice

Means of providing Islamic advice includes traditional as well as modern technologies. In Egypt,

Al-Azhar University , image = جامعة_الأزهر_بالقاهرة.jpg , image_size = 250 , caption = Al-Azhar University portal , motto = , established = *970/972 first foundat ...

set up 'advice/fatwa kiosks' in subway stations, and introduced a phone-in advice service called "Dial-a-Sheikh". According to Jakob Guhl and Milo Comerford research, online Gen-Z Muslims take interests in taking life advice for things like, whether or not certain behaviours would be permissible within Islam, and how the relationship between everyday issues and Islamic teachings can be formed.

In the caliphates

The governments of the

caliphate A caliphate or khilāfah ( ar, خِلَافَة, ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; ar, خَلِيفَة , ), a person considered a political-religious successor to th ...

s heavily depended on non-Arab and non-Muslim civil officials, especially by the late

Umayyad The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE; , ; ar, ٱلْخِلَافَة ٱلْأُمَوِيَّة, al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawīyah) was the second of the four major caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. The caliphate was ruled by the ...

and early

Abbasid The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...

states. The situation started to change in the 8th century as Muslims began to compete for social and economic benefits by using religious leverage. By the 9th century, Islamic jurists began to oppose employment of non-Muslims with little influence, but major formal shift started coming by the 12th century, when independent advice literature campaigned for dismissal of non-Muslim civil officials. Jennifer A. London looks at then scholarly import and presentations of medieval fables as part of advice literature which spoke about political thoughts through characters employed in those literature as mirror for princes. According to Sami Helewa, prophetic anecdotes about

Joseph Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

and Soloman called "' Qisas' al-anbiya" by 9th century Persian Islamic scholar

Al-Tabari ( ar, أبو جعفر محمد بن جرير بن يزيد الطبري), more commonly known as al-Ṭabarī (), was a Muslim historian and scholar from Amol, Tabaristan. Among the most prominent figures of the Islamic Golden Age, al-Tabari ...

and 11th century scholar

Al-Tha'labi Al-Tha''ʿ''labi (''Abū Isḥāḳ Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Ibrāhīm al-Nīsābūrī al-Thaʿlabī'' ; died November 1035) was an eleventh-century Islamic scholar of Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically ...

served as advice literature to medieval Islamic rulers." target="_blank" class="mw-redirect" title="Thesis Title:Title: The advisory function of the Tales of the Prophets (Qiṣaṣal-anbiyāʾ)">Thesis Title:Title: The advisory function of the Tales of the Prophets (Qiṣaṣal-anbiyāʾ)
The University of Edinburgh March, 2012; Retrieved 2020 May 27 Helewa Sami S.J.'s] A 10th-century anonymous Arabic manuscript is seen giving advice to rulers using rhymes with a religious undertone. At times, advice goes beyond religious and suggests administrative policies. Kara-Khanid Khanate, Karakhanid writer Yūsuf Balasaghuni wrote Islamic advice literature in ''

Kutadgu Bilig The ''Kutadgu Bilig'' or ''Qutadğu Bilig'' (; Middle Turkic: ), is an 11th century work written by Yūsuf Balasaguni for the prince of Kashgar. The text reflects the author's and his society's beliefs, feelings and practices with regard to quite ...

'' (The Wisdom of Felicity), the only known work written in Turkic from the Karakhanid period. Ebrahim Moosa and Nicholas Roberts, in "Expressions of Political Quietism in Islamic History" in ''Political Quietism in Islam: Sunni and Shi’i Practice and Thought'' (Saud al-Sarhan, ed.), state that in medieval times, despite the backdrop of power of Muslim empires in which

political quietism In the political aspects of Islam, political quietism in Islam is the religiously-motivated withdrawal from political affairs or skepticism that mere mortals can establish a true Islamic government. It is the opposite of political Islam, which ...

became a virtue of ideal citizens, the genre of Nasîhat and advice literature started thriving. According to Moosa and Roberts, the goal of advice literature then in those times was to help preserve political authority as part of pragmatic quiet activity. al-Sarhan further states that while ''Siyasat nama'' by

Nizam al-Mulk Abu Ali Hasan ibn Ali Tusi (April 10, 1018 – October 14, 1092), better known by his honorific title of Nizam al-Mulk ( fa, , , Order of the Realm) was a Persian scholar, jurist, political philosopher and Vizier of the Seljuk Empire. Rising fro ...

, ''Nasihat al-Muluk'' by

al-Ghazali Al-Ghazali ( – 19 December 1111; ), full name (), and known in Persian-speaking countries as Imam Muhammad-i Ghazali (Persian: امام محمد غزالی) or in Medieval Europe by the Latinized as Algazelus or Algazel, was a Persian polymat ...

, and ''al-siyasa al-shar'iyya'' by

ibn Taymiyya Ibn Taymiyyah (January 22, 1263 – September 26, 1328; ar, ابن تيمية), birth name Taqī ad-Dīn ʾAḥmad ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥalīm ibn ʿAbd al-Salām al-Numayrī al-Ḥarrānī ( ar, تقي الدين أحمد بن عبد الحليم � ...

while epitomizing political activism on one hand very much gave in to the divinely sanctioned absolutism of the caliphs on other hand. The strategy of advice literature was subtle expression of political activism calling for equitable and sound governance within the four corners of religious diktats, while continuing pragmatic obedience to the authority in power. But much of advice literature explores beyond religion, for example, political theorist of the 11th century

al-Mawardi Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAlī Ibn Muḥammad al-Māwardī (), known in Latin as Alboacen (972–1058 CE), was an Islamic jurist of the Shafi'i school most remembered for his works on religion, government, the caliphate, and public and constitutional law ...

attributes a pre-Islamic 6th-century quote of al-Afwah al-Awdi: "There is no benefit in leaderless people when disorder reigns, and they will never have a leader if the ignorant amongst them leads." Moosa and Roberts say that first half of quote conforms to political quietism as labeled by modern scholars, while the second half matches with expectations of the obedient, religious Muslim citizen of a just and sharia compliant rule. Using the example of

Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religions, Iranian religion and one of the world's History of religion, oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian peoples, Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a Dualism in cosmology, du ...

becoming invisible from

Persian literature Persian literature ( fa, ادبیات فارسی, Adabiyâte fârsi, ) comprises oral compositions and written texts in the Persian language and is one of the world's oldest literatures. It spans over two-and-a-half millennia. Its sources h ...

after the 8th century, Ali Pirzadeh says that Islamic literature and Islamic advice literature wipes out most traces of local culture and heritage by giving exclusive prominence to Arabic narratives. He maintains that the Iranian empires encouraged the writing of advice literature to hide their incompetence caused by hereditary succession, and to retain servitude of vested interests.

Social Islamization

In early and medieval centuries,

Sufi literature Sufi literature consists of works in various languages that express and advocate the ideas of Sufism. Sufism had an important influence on medieval literature, especially poetry, that was written in Arabic, Persian, Turkic and Urdu. Sufi doctr ...

, including their advice literature, played a substantial role in spreading

Sufi Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...

Islamic values among the Muslim masses. In early Turkish classical advice literature,

Yunus Emre Yunus Emre () also known as Derviş Yunus (Yunus the Dervish) (1238–1328) (Old Anatolian Turkish: يونس امره) was a Turkish folk poet and Islamic Sufi mystic who greatly influenced Turkish culture. His name, ''Yunus'', is the Muslim ...

a (probable) 13th century poet's Risâletü'n-Nushiyye, Feridüddin Attar's Pend-nâme, Sa'dî's Bostan and Gulistan, and Mesnevi of Mevlana, Ahmed Fakih's Çarh-nâme (794–798) played a substantial role among Turkish Muslim culture and masses. According to Agnès Nilüfer Kefeli, borders between high and popular Islam were often blurred; since Arabic was not easily accessible to commoners, folk tales were used as a popular method of Islamic instruction that included Sufi books.

Activism

The emergence of advice (''nasiha'') literature is regarded as a quietist form of activism by scholars such as

and

Ibn Taymiyya Ibn Taymiyyah (January 22, 1263 – September 26, 1328; ar, ابن تيمية), birth name Taqī ad-Dīn ʾAḥmad ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥalīm ibn ʿAbd al-Salām al-Numayrī al-Ḥarrānī ( ar, تقي الدين أحمد بن عبد الحليم � ...

Gender

Ashraf Ali Thanwi Ashraf Ali Thanwi (often referred as Hakim al-Ummat and Mujaddid e Millet; 19 September 1863 – 20 July 1943) was a late-nineteenth and twentieth-century Sunni Islam, Sunni scholar, jurist, thinker, Mujaddid, reformist and the revival of classic ...

's ''Bihishti Zevar'', published in 1905, influenced the continuation of traditional patriarchal gendered role narratives among

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...

n Muslims. Marzieh Bashirpour theorizes that

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

adab politeness in interaction molded class differentiation between the literate and non illiterate, thereby validating discrimination toward the lower classes. Late 19th century and early 20th century revival reformists promoted women's education, but their advice literature centered on making women better equipped for household management.

Modern times

According to Jakob Guhl and Milo Comerford research, the main objective of content through modern online media is to provide brief and straightforward life advice to Muslims, certain preachers attempt to integrate such advice into their larger narratives. In their search for the one authentic interpretation of Islamic scripture, .. followers ultimately look for comprehensive guidance political and spiritual queries, as well as a sense of belonging. Notably, the desire for unambiguous answers extends to seemingly mundane aspects of everyday life as well, for example like participating in certain recreational activities like playing games, picking one’s eyebrows, attending public swimming pools is permissible or not for Muslims . Guhl and Comerford (2021) says that while most of regular life advice literature is mundane, at times significant part of it also can suddenly move on the verge of toxic hate speech. The short time it takes for some of the preachers to shift from public swimming pools to mass violence and the end times suggests that the preachers seek to present small transgressions against their religious advice as a precursor to more serious infringements.

Bibliography

* Sarkar Nilanjan (2006), ‘The Voice of Mahmūd’: The Hero in Ziyā Baranī's Fatāwā-i Jahāndārī * * Azam Hina (2009)
The Ḥijāb at Cross-Purposes: Conflicting Models of the Erotic in Popular Islamic Advice Literature
doi: 10.1558/cis.v5i1.131 Comparative Islamic Studies (online) ISSN 1743-1638. * Azam Hina (2013)
Sex, Marriage and Eroticism in Contemporary Islamic Advice Literature
Journal of Middle East Women's Studies (JMEWS), v.9, n.1 (Wint 2013), 54-80, 2013 * HAQUE, ZEYAUL. “Advice Literature in the Time of Akbar: A Sixteenth-Century Mathnawī as a Book of Advice for the Emperor of Mughal India.” ''Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society'', vol. 32, no. 3, July 2022, pp. 535–56. ''EBSCOhost'', https://doi.org/10.1017/S1356186321000614.

References

{{Reflist Islamic literature Advice columns Wisdom literature