Chinese Legalism and Islamic Views of Justice: A Comparison Based on the Political Thought of Han Fei and Ibn Khaldun

Abstract

This study addresses the lack of comparative research examining the political dimensions of justice as conceived by Han Fei, representing Legalist thought in ancient China, and Ibn Khaldun, a prominent Islamic scholar. The objective is to elucidate how these two realist thinkers, each writing in a period of political fragmentation, conceptualize justice within their respective frameworks. Methodologically, the research employs a comparative philosophy approach, centring on textual analysis of Han Feizi and Al-Muqaddimah, alongside secondary sources on Legalist and Islamic political traditions. The findings reveal that both Han Fei and Ibn Khaldun view the nature of humanity with scepticism and emphasize the necessity of strong governance to ensure social order. However, their interpretations of law diverge: Han Fei portrays it as an impersonal instrument designed to enforce compliance under a ruler’s absolute power, whereas Ibn Khaldun integrates law with divine authority, thereby constraining secular power through religious principles. An important implication of this contrast is that both frameworks can, under certain conditions, legitimize authoritarian rule: in Legalist thought, through an unwavering focus on the ruler’s will, and in Islamic contexts, when religious law is manipulated to serve despotic ends. Understanding these convergences and divergences deepens our appreciation of how different cultural and historical settings shape the pursuit—and the potential pitfalls—of achieving justice.

References

Abdullah, S. (2018). Ibn Khaldun’s theory of good governance in achieving civilization excellence. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 8(9), 1321-1333. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.6007/ijarbss/v8-i9/4699

Alagha, J. (2017). Ibn Khaldun: A sociology of history. International Sociology, 32(2), 180-188. https://doi.org/10.1177/0268580916687460

Alder, J. (1999). The Purposes of Constitutional Law. In Constitutional and Administrative Law (pp. 3-22). Macmillan Education UK. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-15077-9_1

Ani, K. J. (2024). Nigerian democratic behaviour and protest reportage in 2015 general elections. e-Bangi: journal of social sciences and humanities, 21(2). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.17576/ebangi.2024.2102.32

Berger, M. S. (2018). Understanding sharia in the West. Journal of Law, Religion and State, 6(2-3), 236-273. https://doi.org/ https://doi.org/10.1163/22124810-00602005

Boryslavska, O. (2021). Judicial Reforms in Eastern Europe: Ensuring the Right to a Fair Trial Or an Attack on the Independence of the Judiciary? Access to Just. E. Eur., 122. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.33327/ajee-18-4.1-a000049

Escoffier, G. (2024). Amoralism in the Hanfeizi. Philosophy Compass, 19(4), e12979. https://doi.org/ https://doi.org/10.1111/phc3.12979

Gao, S., & Walayat, A. J. (2020). The compatibility of confucianism and law. Pace L. Rev., 41, 234. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.58948/2331-3528.2028

Gule, L. (2014). Ibn Khaldun: Law and Justice in the Science of Civilisation. In Philosophy of Justice (pp. 119-138). Springer. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9175-5_8

HanFei. (2003). Han Feizi: basic writings (B. Watson, Trans.). Columbia University Press.

Harris, E. L. (2013). Han Fei on the Problem of Morality. In P. R. Goldin (Ed.), Dao Companion to the Philosophy of Han Fei (pp. 107-131). Springer Netherlands. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4318-2_6

He, P. (2011). The difference of Chinese legalism and western legalism. Frontiers of Law in China, 6(4), 645-669. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/ajes.12205

Kalpakian, J. (2008). Ibn Khaldun's influence on current international relations theory. The Journal of North African Studies, 13(3), 363-376. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1080/13629380701844698

Khadduri, M. (1986). The Islamic Conception of Justice. In Middle East Studies Association Bulletin (Vol. 20, pp. 305-308). Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA). http://www.jstor.org/stable/23058995

Khaldun, I. (2015). The Muqaddimah (F. Rosenthal, Trans.; N. Dawood, Ed. Abridged ed., Vol. 3). Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400866090

Lu, M. (2016). Implications of Han Fei’s philosophy for China’s legal and institutional reforms. Journal of Chinese Political Science, 21(3), 339-356. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9175-5_8

Lu, P., Zhang, Z., Onyebuchi, C. H., & Li, M. (2023). Human civilization dynamics: why we have different civilization patterns in history. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 10(1), 806. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-023-02246-0

Luban, D. (2015). Justice and Law. In J. D. Wright (Ed.), International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences (Second Edition) (pp. 932-936). Elsevier. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-097086-8.86043-2

MacQueen, B. (2009). Democracy promotion and Arab autocracies. Global Change, Peace & Security, 21(2), 165-178. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1080/14781150902872034

Mansour, I. (2018). Direct and inferred influences of the Silk Roads on the ‘golden age’ of the Abbasid Caliphate. Asian Journal of Comparative Politics, 3(3), 246-257. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1177/2057891117751865

Pines, Y. (2013). Submerged by Absolute Power: The Ruler’s Predicament in the Han Feizi. In P. R. Goldin (Ed.), Dao Companion to the Philosophy of Han Fei (pp. 67-86). Springer Netherlands. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4318-24

Ren, Y. H. (2008). Exploration into Chinese traditional confucian thoughts on responsibility. Acta Psychologica Sinica, 40(11), 1221. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.3724/sp.j.1041.2008.01221

Rosen, L. (2005). Theorizing from Within: Ibn Khaldun and His Political Culture. Contemporary Sociology, 34(6), 596-599. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1177/009430610503400604

Wong, D. B. (2011). Confucian Political Philosophy. In G. Klosko (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of the History of Political Philosophy. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199238804.003.0048

Zain, Z. M., Yusoff, M. A., & Hamdi, I. H. (2015). Civil Disobedience During Reformation Era. e-Bangi: journal of social sciences and humanities, 10(Special Issue 2 ), 10.

Zhang, X., Yao, T., Xu, W., & Zhai, Y. (2017). Crime and punishment in ancient China and its relevance today. American Journal of Economics and Sociology, 76(5), 1191-1218. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/ajes.12205