The Approach of NahjulBalagha to Political Hypocrisy and Cruelty as Two Anti-values

Islam is a value-constructing religion. It fights with values which are against or contrary to human dignity and sets a system of spiritual and humanistic values. Imam Ali (A) is acknowledged as the best interpreter of religion and the sublime Qur’an whose life and manners were interwoven with Qur’anic teachings. Concedingthat Alavi teachings are the most distinguished, unwavering and evident example of religion and life instructions—chiefly reported in the accredited book of NahjulBalagha—we seek to analyze political anti-values in NahjulBalagha in the present study. First, politics from the viewpoint of Imam Ali (A) will be investigated and political hypocrisy and cruelty as two frequently cited anti-values will be discussed. Inclusion of all anti-values is rather infeasible; however, we try to elaborate on the main relevant issues which recur in the statements of Imam Ali (A) and make a mention of other sub-issues.