Contents

Common Human Values and their Role

in Enhancing Solidarity among Peoples

and Nations

Dr. Moncef Al Jazzar(*)

Man as an individual and as a group, and the system of values:

Biologically speaking, men belong to the species of higher mammals; however, given the nature of their activities, men differ from the other mammals. Such reality drives men to form the human world, thus transcending the narrow concept of the self towards the broader space of community, which is a necessity should we seek to preserve the “human species”, to use Ibn Khaldoun’s expression. These activities practiced by men within their community life undoubtedly involve interacting with many requirements; indeed, on the one hand, they are material activities that can be considered from an anthropological perspective; on the other hand, they remain governed by intellectual and spiritual systems basically determined by the cultural and religious perspectives. As a result of the interaction between the physical activities and the intellectual and spiritual components, there comes out a value system that fuses what is material with what is spiritual. This system also orients activities within the community in the light of the reality of this community, as specified by the spatiotemporal data and aspirations seeking advancement from reality to idealism.

Such meanings are genuinely rooted in the Arabic root “q,w,m”, which tells us that “qeemah” (value) is the value of a given object after its “taqweem” (evaluation) is performed; that the “qaa’im” (the one in charge of something) is the person that stands relentlessly and persistently on his duty; while the “qayyim” is anything that displays rectitude, and “qayyimah” describes the quality of what is moderate (1)…Therefore, the origin of the word “qeemah” (value) in Arabic resides in the criterion by means of which we assess the activity whose natural deviation we instinctively deem amendable. As a result, the notions of rectitude and stability are created, and these activities gain in aloofness breaking with secular life to match with the spiritual one. Therefore, the human situation shifts from the prevailing instinctive field to the spiritual and optimistic field of the communal life(2).

Yet, what is remarkable is that the meaning of these communal values reflects upon the individual, thus affecting significantly the life of the community. That is why communities have always paid a great attention to the issue of values which are organized into a fixed system according to a scale of values(3). These values have also combined among their components between what is static and what is dynamic, evolved through time and space and accepted evolution and change. It is possible that an element of the system shifts from the sphere of static values to enter the dynamic one and vice versa, according to the rules of the social dynamism which, given the available mechanisms and the aspirations held, might require activities that differ from one era to another.

It is by no means possible for us to draw a line between the set of values and the cultural spiritual dimension on the one hand, and the static and instigated social interactions, on the other. It is worth mentioning here that human communities do not live in hermetically closed spaces but do keep relations with other communities. In this respect, these communities have to build a scale of values that embraces some commonly held human values, which will pave the way for openness to the other along with material and cultural cooperation. It is important then to ask : what was the situation of the value system in Arab Islamic societies both in the past and in the present ?

Early Arab Islamic values :

According to Bishr Farès, the cornerstone of the value system in the pre-Islamic Arab community was the notion of “_ird” (honor).(4) As for the fundamentals of this system, they were liberty, dignity, lineage, in-law relation, number and pride. Intrinsically, such values mainly describe the social status, while the sense of honor, self-esteem, courage, revenge, fulfillment, generosity, protecting the neighbor and providing rescue, all these values are meant to uphold the political efficiency of the community.(5)

Adopting these values, the community managed to preserve itself and to strike a balance between the individual and the community on the one hand, and between the community and the physical, spiritual and religious environments, on the other hand.(6)

As for the Islamic era, the heart of the values shifts from the “honor” value to the “piety” value. Therefore, the sphere of the value system widened to involve new values, hence the change in the value system. Amazingly, the Arab pre-Islamic system of values was not abandoned for a new one; instead, some of the ancient values were kept while others were softened in the light of the significant change endured by the scale of values. Indeed, the new scale went beyond the narrow boundaries which used to govern the relations between communities during the pre-Islamic era. Instead of the vendetta and permanent or temporary coalition systems, the Muslim community opened to other communities. Indeed, many verses from the Koran stress the blessing dimension of Islam.(7)

As of early Islamic era, the Arab Islamic value system took firm roots in the field of human comprehensive values. Such a reality has driven this system of values in a short while out of the Arab peninsula to embrace both neighboring and far-flung spaces. Those fledgling values were embodied by the acknowledgement of the right to difference and distinction; tolerance in dealing both with monotheistic and atheistic communities; and upholding the requirements of succession on earth, in order that human activities combine between reality and idealism…The broad adherence to this new pattern of values revealed to be productive as it provided new possibilities to the advancement of knowledge and science in various fields. Such development was not an exclusively centralized activity since embracing the new values was common even in the remote areas. For instance, these value components were so common among the Andalusian society that cultural diversity, according to orientalist Levi Provencal, was a predominent feature. In this regard, he pointed out to the important role played by the Jews and Christians in the social, economic and political fields, enjoying a societal peace that European countries could not match until recently.

We believe that the developed stage reached in the field of material and cultural activities would not have been possible without espousing the existing Arab Islamic value system, on the one side and without acknowledging the other communities’ value system on the other.

However, the dilemma started to develop and grow continuously as a result of the stagnation in social dynamism during the medieval Islamic era. The precursor indicators of such a dilemma started as of the end of the fourth century of the Hegira and during the following centuries. The cultural practice during this period revealed such ineptitude to deal with the legacy of previous generations, failing to consider such a heritage, in its historical and scientific context, as an intellectual effort of the early Muslim generations. As a result, the rational approach and critical mind waned when dealing with early Islamic centuries’ legacy. Tradition took on an important role and religion became an institution; science was no longer the result of tradition and reason. In addition, an imitative cultural tradition saw the day, banning creativity in all the fields of knowledge and advocating the necessity to duplicate knowledge. Therefore, as of the fifth century in particular, Islamic heritage kept reproducing former Islamic works, while material and intellectual activity fell into stagnation, passivity and lethargy; fantasy submerged all the fields via tradition and ignorance; preaching and illusion books gained in influence, along with the increasing authority of storytellers in mosques and gathering areas, hence the emergence of a mindset negating the present and considering the ancestors as the only source of knowledge. The intellectual legacy of the early generation of ancestors started to be considered as sacred. Moreover, knowledge interacted with the naïve activities and expectations of learners who were turned to the past instead of the present, becoming introspective and adopting the wait and see approach…In the light of such atmosphere, common human values declined until the shock of contact with the other occurred in the early nineteenth century.

The Arab Islamic values of the modern era

The Napoleon campaign on Egypt which took place shortly after the French Revolution was less a military achievement than an outstanding civilisational event, given the shock it caused within the Arab Islamic area. In fact, the event pushed the Arab Islamic elite to reconsider the reasons which allowed the other to achieve civilisational progress while Muslims withdrew from the material and spiritual achievements accomplished during early Islamic centuries.(8) In the light of this awakening, the fundamentals of Islam were reconsidered and more attention was driven towards the basic Arab Islamic values which had previously thrust our civilization into stages of development that allowed to transfer knowledge and experiences to the other, in the north of the Mediterranean Sea, particularly via Sicily and Spain…In this regard, the statement of Ahmed Ibn Abû Ad-Dayyâf in his book “Al-Itha’af” is illuminating. The author’s comments on some phases of a trip by Ahmed Pacha Bey to France in 1846 betray the dimension of the shock of contact between two diametrically opposed value systems. After witnessing the development aspects in Paris, Ibn Abu Ad-Dayyaf addressed the following words to the Tunisian Bey: “The people here are miles ahead of us into civilization, to the point it has become part of their behavior and their nature; the gap between us is too wide. God knows what the destiny we are heading to is.”

This gap between the two worlds is due to the cultural and value system which, in our case, has focused centuries along on the rights of the Creator; such a concept subjugated the intellect and affected the behavior, leading people to believe for a lengthy period of time that addition “Aljam’a” is better than multiplication “Attada’eef”, to quote Al Halabi in As-Sirah.

On the other hand, the European model of development was human-centered. Such conception was made possible following intellectual struggles and a continuous social dynamism. Suffice it to refer to the leading role of Nietzshe in identifying the meaning of European values and including them among human action.(9) Equally important was the role of the French Revolution, based on the fundamental rights of the people, as embodied by the trilogy: Equality, Fraternity and Liberty.

Such fundamental difference between the two systems in terms of culture and values foreshadowed at an early stage that drawing from the other as a means to bridge the gap would not achieve the expected results. No wonder, then, that this data explains to a great extent the shortcomings of the renaissance discourse in Arab countries throughout the nineteenth century and the first half of the twentieth.

In fact, the renaissance discourse was partially emancipated only after Arab and Islamic countries recovered their independence. At that time, new societal structures started to emerge thanks to social dynamism, especially after the maturity of the role of the middle class in social action and the appearance of labor movements. The intellectual elite started to play its full role in mobilizing the community. In addition, a new political class took shape; it advocates freedom, called for enhancing women’s status and supported the educational system. Therefore, there emerged a new generation calling for the necessity to reconsider the relation with the self and the other alike. As a result, there have been early experiences of new social institutions and systems drawing from the aims of the Islamic Law, from the one hand, and considering that the values system requires that men and women alike perform their duty as a means to affirm such system’s components; the aim being to form a new family nucleus, whose constituents will be fostered by the educational system. It is not fortuitous, then, that Tunisia witnessed in that period the appearance of the civil status code.(10) The aim was to reorganize the family from inside, within the frame of a dialogue with the self aiming at restraining the traditional structure and dealing with the fundamentals to lay the grounds for the modernizing approach.

While we admit that modern Arab renaissance failed to meet its objectives, consisting mainly in catching up with the urbanization process that took place in Europe, the renaissance discourse achieved many important improvements, which proved so influential during the second half of the twentieth century in most Arab and Islamic countries. Indeed, time is no longer considered with the same perspective in our region; the present no longer draws on the past to look for solutions to contemporary problems. Instead, the present has become the source of our solutions, constantly scrutinized to pinpoint the development action and the most efficient elements to achieve progress and change, whether in material or spiritual activities. Indeed, since that period, future perspectives have started to be considered in the light of present data and the requirements of development. The perception of patterns has equally changed; indeed, the dominant feature in our region used to be the combination of Sharia and the divine rights. Instead, the rising pattern has become horizontal and is based on human rights, which is an inspiration from the Islamic values seen from an objective-centred perspective. Such a change is also an obvious influence by the pattern adopted by the other cultures which are miles away ahead of us. However, the most important change might be the knowledge system which no longer admits the single truth; instead it was amended to adhere to the concept of relative truth, opening the door to difference, diligence “al-ijtihad” and interpretation. Therefore, there emerged the dialectical approach which dramatically improved the minds and influenced peoples’ behaviour. (11)

For the last two decades, we have been living in a new era with perceptible characteristics, mainly from four dimensions: apparent dimension, virtual dimension, mutative dimension and the trans-national dimension… Surprisingly, man goes through all these dimensions in one single day. Indeed, buying one’s food is an act of apparent dimension, using one’s credit card requires the virtual dimension, while standing at the stock exchange is an act of the third dimension and sitting in front of the TV or the computer to benefit from the various services requires the trans- national dimension…(12)

In view of this accelerating pace, the question emerged once again as to whether we have to withdraw from this global pattern which bears a new value system and which is based on a hierarchical scale that determines the fields of intervention, or to join this new pattern of activities and knowledge. How can we combine between these new data and our cultural and value system, especially that our model is a complete set of principles that constitutes a specific approach to life, thanks to which the Arab cultural identity acquired its particular idiosyncrasies. However, the rising global pattern started to advocate cultural stereotyping and standardization of values, and to take as a reference a country which has turned during the last two decades into the world’s major superpower. (13)

It is worth mentioning that such accelerating global trend in disseminating information can by no means be ignored. Instead, one should identify oneself with the spirit of this new era and benefit by its material and cultural advantages. However, one should ask how can we preserve the constituents of the Arab Islamic identity?

At this point, the reform and modernization project has started to emerge, under the pressing needs of the current reality of the Arab Islamic environment. Most researchers agree that governments alone cannot conceive and carry out such a project; instead, the institutions of the civil society have to be involved in order to contribute to successfully dealing with the particularity of this era. Such situation also requires to reconsider the educational system in order to support the enlightened mind in setting the objectives; it also calls for going beyond the traditional structures that promote imitation and praise the forefathers instead of the successors, in addition to the necessity to eliminate the remnants of illiteracy.

As for the educational dimension, it is necessary to stick to our Islamic roots in view of their underlying ethics of clemency, tolerance, affection as well as the values of cooperation and peace; such concepts are deeply rooted in our religion though they regressed in our value system during medieval Islamic era.

The last years have witnessed a revolution in scientific knowledge and new technologies; the world has become an electronic village to which everyone can adhere to achieve progress. However, this does not require us to abandon our moral and spiritual values, though we admit that our value system needs to be amended as a result of the growing social dynamism, in addition to the progress in the fields of modern sciences. Such reforms require a comprehensive approach based both on the Islamic legacy and the aims of our Sharia and sensible to the new human activities. In this respect, we suggest the creation of a regional observatory to be jointly supervised by the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organisation (ALECSO) and the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO). The observatory should hold conferences and meetings to introduce the originality of the Islamic legacy, and should endeavour to preserve the Islamic identity in order to curtail the dangers entailed by the cultural and value dimension of the globalisation discourse.(14) The observatory is also meant to be a mechanism to carry out the provisions of the Comprehensive Plan for Arab Culture concerning the value system. According to the Plan, “The Arab Islamic value system is a complete set of principles which form a specific approach to life; it is this approach that gives to Arab culture its distinctive features… Today, it has taken the form of patterns, systems and institutions which operate inside Arab Islamic society, yet its efficiency has waned to its lowest level for many reasons. Social dynamism does not start with finding this value system; it rather starts when it becomes a driving force for this system, providing it with concepts that grasp contemporary issues in order to transform them into stable social institutions”. (15)

Certainly, there is no doubt as to the importance of such ambition. Therefore, it is necessary to set up an institution to watch on the accomplishment of this goal from all its perspectives, so that Muslims today might find the sought balance between the requirements of modern life and the extended Arab Islamic value system. This plan requires an action strategy capable of examining the collective self, freeing it from the burdens of the past, and exploring the sources of genuine human values in order to match with the reality of today’s human rights.

In addition, we need to devise regional plans in order to transcend the culture of consuming what is common and recurrent. We also need to uphold the culture of initiative as a proof of our consciousness of the challenges ahead and of our attempts to stand them by enriching the universal human value system. In this respect, tribute should be paid to the initiative of H.E President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali concerning the creation of a World Solidarity Fund.

The General Assembly agreed on 19 February, 2004 to endorse the initiative of creating this Fund with a view to fighting poverty and serving as an internationally efficient mechanism. Indeed, the General Assembly confirmed “the outstanding contribution of the World Solidarity Fund in meeting the Millennium Development Goals, mainly reducing the proportion of people living on less than a dollar a day and the proportion of people who suffer from hunger…”

Today, it is necessary to endeavour to set a new challenge in order to go past the stage of catching up with the other; it was a legitimate ambition during the 19th century renaissance discourse. Today, the challenge consists in establishing partnership with the other; for with the advent of the third millennium, we entered into a new cycle of civilisation where many of the former boundaries collapsed. However, local and regional value and cultural systems can be updated and reformed in the light of current changes. Thus we can live in our era while still preserving our identity. This civilisational and cultural ambition cannot be achieved in Arab Islamic countries unless there is a firm will and continuous efforts are made; only then can we reconcile with ourselves and push the others to change their view about us so that we adhere to the dynamics of the new era with consciousness, responsibility and determination.

(*) Director of the Higher Institute for Language Studies.

(1) See Ibn Mandour’s “Lissan Al Arab”, entry; see in particular “According to the Hadith al Sharif: that is the righteous religion, that no deviation or declination from right can taint; and Allah’s words “Therein upright books”; that is, straight books that spot right from falsehood with proof.

(2) See in particular Emile Durkheim’s words when he says:

“If men conceive ideals, if they cannot refrain from conceiving ideals and attach to them, then this means that man is a sociable creature. It is society that pushes men to surpass themselves, and it is society which gives them the means to achieve this goal. Thus, only through this does society develop consciousness of itself, elevate people beyond themselves and have them live a superior life…”

Émile Durkheim, Value Judgements and Judgements of Reality. Revue de Métaphysique et de Morale du 3 juillet 1911. Electronic edition: Classics of social sciences.

(3) Scheler points out to a five-level value scale corresponding to the five levels of the human experience; saying:

“The value hierarchy consists of five levels corresponding to the levels of the human experience. What are we looking for in life? Like any other creature, we attach importance to what gives us pleasure, (the agreeable), to what meets our needs, (the necessary), to what instils us with life (the vital), to whata makes us more human (the beautiful, the just, the real…) and to what allows us to transcend the limits of the human status (the divine).

(4) See Bisher Fares’ thesis “Honour among the Arabs before Islam”, an outstanding and comprehensive reference book, in spite of its early date of publication (1932). Bishr Fares says about the importance of the notion of dignity in Pre-Islamic society:

“This common moral ideal, that is unanimously accepted, otherwise always respected in practice, allows them to found their social links and human relationships, both within and outside the tribal community, on the basis of a remarkably displayed solidarity, loyalty and generosity.”

Honour among the Arabs before Islam, (1932). Paris, pp. 72-75

(5) We adopted Dr Mohamed Abdessalam’s classification, as enunciated in his thesis. For further details, read:

Mohamed Abdessalam, the theme of death in Arab poetry from its origins to the end of III/IXth century, (1977). Publications of the University of Tunis, pp. 37-40.

(6) Read the discussion of Bishr Fares’ thesis by Mohamed Abdessalam, especially the issue of the position of pre-Islamic religions in determining the value scale, pp. 72-73.

(7) See, in particular, Surat Al Anbiyya’ verse 107 {We sent thee not, but as a mercy for all creatures.} 21/107. See especially Al Razi’s interpretation of this verse, as he says : “He was a blessing for all humankind, if they pondered on the verses of Allah and His messenger; those who chose to respond with disregard and arrogance indeed suffered wretchedness as a result of their choice”.

Al Razi, Mafateeh Alghaib (The Clues of the Unknown), (1415 A.H/1995 A.D.) Volume 11, chapter 22, p. 232, Dar Al Fikr.

(8) See Khair Eddine Tounsi, “Aqwam Al Massaalik fi ma’arifati Ahwaali LMamaalik”, the Introduction.

(9) See Encyclopédie de l’Agora: valeur

According to Allan Bloom, it was Nietzsche’s philosophy which was “behind values relativism”. Yet, the meaning of the word relativism needs to be specified. Certainly, Nietzsche said it once and twice that man is the creator of values, but he soon added that only the most virtuous ones… and the most solitary individual can create values. This power that he withdraws from God, Nietzsche offers it to a superman that he strives to make similar to God.

(10) The Civil Status Code was issued by a supreme decree dated on Muharram 6, 1376 A.H/1956 A.D; the code was put into force on January 1, 1957 initially for Muslims, then, by virtue of the law of September 27, was generalized, after the elimination of the Jewish Court, to be applicable to Tunisian Jews, then to all Tunisians regardless of their religious beliefs as of October 1, 1957.

(11) Paul Ricour insists that progress is subsequent to some conditions among which he identifies accepting difference, the possibility for the self to be wrong and that the truth may be detained by the others…no wonder that Kant has an important impact on the evolution of mentalities towards admitting the importance of dialectic at the methodological level, in aorder to attain truths, which after all remain relative…

(12) For further details, read Moustapha Al Masmoudi, Magazine “Majallat Al Massar”, N° 57, June 2002.

(13) Newt Gingrich, the leader of the Republican majority at the American House of Representatives: “There are many reasons why America is the only power fit to lead the world, for our system, built on parliamentary democracy, individual liberties and free trade, has managed over 300 years to ensure the most extraordinary economic progress in the world. This system is being currently imitated everywhere in the world. Our technology has revolutionized man’s mode of living. Indeed, it was the driving force in leading this world to appear like a global village. Our military forces are deployed everywhere in the world on invitation by host countries. Which other civilisation can boost such a global presence without oppression ?

(14) This observatory might be set up after the pattern of the Observatory for Globalisation, which was created in 1996 and strives to counter the drawbacks of globalisation. Its founders describe it as:

“A non-profit making association which aims at analysing the phenomenon of financial and economic globalisation and fighting against this evolution which […] is not fatal, leads to a regression of humanity and discards international solidarity.

” For further details, refer to the website :

http:/terresacree.org/obsmondi.htm

(15) The Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization : The Comprehensive Plan for Arab Culture; a publication of the Arab League.

Publications of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

-ISESCO- 1428H/2007 A.D