Socio-Economic Justice and Poverty in Nahj Al-Balagha
This paper aims to present an account and discussion of Imam Ali’s view on poverty and socio-economic justice based on examining Nahj al-Balagha, a tenth century collection of sermons and letters of Imam Ali Ibn Abutalib. The concept of socio-economic justice is of utmost importance in Islamic teachings. In Imam Ali’s view, socially just outcomes can only be achieved through just means and procedures. Second, acute and visible inequalities and side-by-side co-existence of extreme wealth and poverty in a society point to the existence of socio-economic injustices.