This excerpt from Ṭabarī’s chronicle quotes a statement made by Ṭāhir to his son ʿAbd Allāh emphasizing the crucial role of judgeship (qaḍāʾ)in maintaining the affairs of this world. He refers to judgeship as “God’s balance, by which circumstances maintain their balance in the world.” In her analysis of Islamic mirrors-for-princes literature on judging in Justice and Leadership in Early Islamic Courts, Louise Marlow uses this source to demonstrate the importance of judicial appointments by rulers.
This source is part of the Online Companion to the book Justice and Leadership in Early Islamic Courts, ed. Intisar A. Rabb and Abigail Krasner Balbale(ILSP/HUP 2017)—a collection of primary sources and other material used in and related to the book.