a witness. When I asked him to produce his evidence he replied, “I have no witness.” I therefore put him under oath, and I likewise administered an oath to Yahya ibn Khalid; by those oaths I settled the Magian’s grievance. I treated Yahya and the Magian exactly alike in my ruling, for the dignity of Islam forbids me ever to lean toward anyone or grant anyone special favor, lest God Most High call me to account for it.

That said, the leaders and notables must recognize the weight of their rank; they should never wrong their subordinates. They must magnify the cause of truth, obey the Sultan’s commands, and never defy him in any circumstance, so that they may act upon God’s word: “Obey Allah, obey the Messenger, and those in authority among you” (Qur’an 4:59).

Whoever is granted by God this honored station and exalted rank—such that obedience to him is coupled with obedience to God, exalted is His Name, and to His Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him—must be obeyed and held in reverent awe by the people. As for the Sultan, gratitude for that blessing obliges him to obey his Lord and to carry out what He has commanded of justice, kindness, and compassion toward the oppressed.

It has been said: beware the supplication of the wronged; fear to oppress one who has no champion against his oppressor save the tears in his eyes. Between the plea of the oppressed and God there is no veil, and his plea is answered—especially the prayer offered before dawn, the entreaty whispered in the hush of night to the All-Compelling. As the poet said:

Do not be quick to tyranny while power is in your hand;
Its end is sin and the dread of punishment.
You sleep, yet the one you wrong does not sleep;
His prayer is never turned away by any barrier.

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “I grieved over the death of four disbelievers: Khosrow Anushirwan for his justice, Hatim al-Ta’i for his generosity, Imru’ al-Qays for his poetry, and Abu Talib for his devotion.”