The Contribution of Zainal Abidin Ahmad in the Discourse on Fiqh Siyasah in Indonesia

Fisher Zulkarnain

Tata Septayuda Purnama

Ahmad Syaeful Rahman

Neng Nur Annisa

 

Abstract: The Islamic political thought (Fiqh Siyasah) of Zainal Abidin Ahmad (1911-1983) closely resembled the prevalent political thought in Indonesia during the New Order era (from the 1980s to the reformation period). This resemblance is due to the fact that his Fiqh Siyasah did not only address issues related to the normative-doctrinal aspects of Islamic theories, but also contemplated the analysis, response, and reflection on political events and problems that occurred in Indonesia. This article uncovers the development of Zainal Abidin Ahmad’s Islamic political thought from formalist (i.e., based on strict adherence to Islamic teachings) to substantivist (i.e., embedded in social realities), and examines the embodiment of his substantivist thought in the Indonesian society. The analysis in this article reveals that Zainal Abdin Ahmad’s Islamic political thought is primarily based on the political context at the time of the Prophet Muhammad and Khulafa al-Rashidun (the Rightly Guided Caliphs), but lives through the test of pluralist Indonesian society imagined in the Pancasila principles.