Note: Justice and human equality in Islamic sources possess a history as long as Islam itself; however, accepting it as a human right is considered a newly emerging phenomenon. This very factor has caused only a handful of books to be written regarding the jurisprudential dimensions of this right. Below is a report of the most important books that have explored the jurisprudential analysis of the right to justice or analyzed it from an Islamic perspective:

1. A Theory of Justice
John Rawls, translated by Afshin Khakbaz, Nashr-e Markaz, 2008.

This book consists of three parts, each containing several chapters. In this book, the author has attempted to present a modern, updated theory of justice formed on the basis of the tradition of social justice and Kantian philosophy. This book, which is one of the most important books on the theory of justice, is compiled in three parts.

Part One: Theory
In this part, fundamental concepts of the theory of justice are introduced; including “the original position,” “primary goods,” “veil of ignorance,” and two principles of justice. In this part, Rawls attempts to depict a hypothetical situation where individuals, without knowing their social position, talents, and personal characteristics, determine principles of justice fairly.

• Chapter 1: Justice as Fairness: Justice is introduced as a fair contract between individuals, and the method of analyzing the social contract taking into account fairness and impartiality is examined.

• Chapter 2: The Principles of Justice: Two main principles of justice are introduced: the principle of equal liberties and the difference principle, which addresses permitted inequalities under specific conditions.

• Chapter 3: The Original Position: The hypothetical position of choosing principles of justice without knowing personal characteristics and positions of individuals is examined.

Part Two: Institutions
Part two addresses social institutions and structures formed based on the theory of justice. In this part, topics such as intergenerational justice, civil disobedience, rights and duties of individuals in society, and the manner of distributing income and opportunities are raised.

• Chapter 1: Goodness as Rationality: The role of rationality in choosing elements of justice and attending to rational interests of individuals in social structures is articulated.

• Chapter 2: The Concept of Justice: The concept of justice is examined from social-psychological and philosophical perspectives, and the sense of justice in society is analyzed.

• Chapter 3: The Good of Justice: The impact of justice on general well-being and the collective good of society is explained, observing justice as a factor in enhancing quality of life.

Part Three: Ends
Part three is dedicated to the ends and stability of the theory of justice. In this part, Rawls addresses conditions for implementing the theory and how it conforms to human psychological characteristics, attempting to explain how the sense of justice is reinforced in individuals, prompting them to follow principles of justice.

• Chapter 1: The Stability of the Theory of Justice: Conditions under which the theory of justice causes individuals and institutions to follow principles of justice are analyzed.

• Chapter 2: Compatibility with Human Characteristics: How the theory of justice harmonizes with human psychological and moral characteristics and its impact on justice-seeking behavior is examined.

2. Equality and Partiality
Thomas Nagel, translated by Javad Heydari, Nashr-e Now, 2018.

The author states the main problem of the book as how to live with conflicting interests and values in the world. The book comprises two parts and 15 chapters, each addressing a fundamental topic regarding the conflict between equality and partiality and challenges of political philosophy.

Part One: Theoretical Conflict and Philosophical Foundations
In this part, the author examines the fundamental conflict between two types of outlooks on political issues:

• Impersonal Egalitarianism: An impartial, moral outlook demanding equality for all human beings and impartiality in values.

• Personal Partiality: A person-centered attitude giving priority to the interests and values of the individual or group.

In this part, concepts such as utopianism (conflict between objective and subjective perspectives), legitimacy of the political system, and the role of equality in political philosophy are discussed. Nagel also analyzes the perspectives of contemporary and classical philosophers regarding justice and legitimacy, examining human motivations facing this conflict.

Part Two: Challenges and Operational Applications in Real and Political Issues
The title of the second part, resulting from the theoretical conflict in part one, is a mechanism for combining and converging egalitarian and partial perspectives in social and political structures. Examining massive social and economic inequalities and society’s sensitivity or indifference toward them, analyzing the concept of rights, priority of social values, individual and social responsibilities, and conflict among values, alongside examining practical limitations and challenges of realizing ideals of equality in society and global politics—including the necessity of tolerance and encountering various goods—constitute the content of this part. Thomas Nagel, using a philosophical and analytical approach in this book, demonstrates how shared human living can be made possible in a world where conflict of interests and values exists, observing morality and value diversity while establishing a balance between egalitarian politics and partial politics. The chapters of this part are as follows:

• Chapter 1: Examines the main problem of the book, which is the conflict of interests and values in the world. The central question is how we can live in a shared world under moral criteria.

• Chapter 2: Introduces two objective (impersonal) and subjective (personal) perspectives humans hold toward the world.

• Chapter 3: Analyzes utopianism, meaning the divergence between personal and impersonal viewpoints and its complexities.

• Chapter 4: Examines the topic of political system legitimacy, meaning maintaining a system approved and supported by the majority, while avoiding utopianism and abdication of moral responsibility.

• Chapter 5: Emphasizes that the political system must be strongly egalitarian and approved by the majority.

• Chapter 6: Expresses the viewpoints of classical philosophers such as Hobbes, Hume, and Rousseau regarding politics and justice.

• Chapter 7: Addresses society’s lesser sensitivity toward massive socio-economic inequalities.

• Chapter 8: Examines the possibility of creating convergence between partial personal viewpoints and impersonal egalitarian viewpoints.

• Chapter 9: Analyzes structures bringing together various perspectives.

• Chapter 10: Discusses motivational transformations necessary for realizing ideals of equality.

• Chapter 11: Examines limitations of egalitarianism in certain spheres of life where impartiality is not applied yet impacts inequality.

• Chapter 12: Examines the challenge of egalitarianism in dealing with diverse goods.

• Chapter 13: Addresses four important discussions regarding rights, values, priorities, and responsibilities.

• Chapter 14: Addresses crisis and conflict of values and its consequences.

• Chapter 15: Addresses challenges of global politics and the possibility of shared living at a global level.

Nagel distinguishes between two types of politics: one is egalitarian politics seeking to reduce pain and suffering and considered moral; the other is partial politics, which is more realistic and self-interested. Nagel’s concern is whether these two politics can be combined in a reasonable and moral manner or not. The book maintains a comprehensive and philosophical approach to these discussions and is highly influential.

3. A Brief History of Equality
Thomas Piketty, translated by Arash Mousavi, Ketabestan Barkhat Publications, 2023.

The author places special focus on the twentieth-century period, where welfare states, broader voting rights, and compulsory education brought about a significant reduction in inequalities. Nevertheless, the author also addresses challenges of the post-1980s era and neoliberalism, which caused certain gains of equality to be restricted, yet remains hopeful that with appropriate policies such as progressive taxation and welfare state measures, the trend toward equality will continue. He also refers to the impacts of slavery, colonialism, and imperialism in shaping complex historical inequalities and presents solutions for confronting today’s inequalities. He believes that the history of equality is a political and ideological process requiring continuous struggle and mobilization. Overall, this book, in simple language and with a comprehensive approach, outlines the history of human struggles for equality and invites the reader to hope and strive for a more equal future.

The book is organized in four parts:

Part One: The Movement Toward Equality
This part addresses early signs and primary developments moving toward equality.

• Chapter 1: Examines primary advancements in reducing social and economic inequalities; the author examines in this chapter how early societies gradually created relative equality.

• Chapter 2: Decentralization of Power and Ownership: Analyzes how severe concentration of assets and power in a minority was reduced.

• Chapter 3: The Heritage of Slavery and Colonialism: The long-term impact of slavery and colonial systems on existing inequalities is discussed in this chapter.

Part Two: Challenges of Inequality and Historical Trends
This part examines periods in history where inequalities intensified or decreased.

• Chapter 1: The Issue of Gender Inequality: The author explores gender gaps and discrimination throughout history and its transformations in this chapter.

• Chapter 2: Wars and Revolutions: The role of wars and revolutions as turning points in changing asset and power distribution is examined in this chapter.

• Chapter 3: The Welfare State: Addresses the issue of the welfare state as a response to inequalities arising from capitalism.

Part Three: The Contemporary Era and Egalitarian Policies
Examining how policies and the status of inequality changed in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries constitutes the subject of this part.

• Chapter 1: Increasing access to education and social services; how states played a role in reducing economic gaps;

• Chapter 2: Critique of contemporary capitalism and analysis of new inequalities in a globalized world;

• Chapter 3: Proposed solutions and policies for equality in the future, such as progressive taxation and guaranteed employment.

Part Four: Future Programs and the Outlook of Equality
This part focuses on practical solutions and plans for confronting inequality in future societies.

• Chapter 1: Power Sharing and Better Resource Management: Proposals for more democratic management of corporations and assets;

• Chapter 2: Legislation and Fair Globalization: How to establish global laws to reduce class divides;

• Chapter 3: Collective Responsibility and the Role of Citizens: The importance of public mobilization and popular institutions in preserving equality.

4. Social Justice from the Perspective of Islamic Human Rights
Zahra Ta’at, Hoorin Publications, 2025.

Social justice is among the most essential principles in Islamic teachings, impacting all dimensions of individual and social life. The book Social Justice from the Perspective of Islamic Human Rights examines the concept of justice in Islam and compares it with contemporary legal systems. This book looks at principles, structures, and challenges of social justice from an Islamic perspective and presents solutions for its realization in today’s societies.

The book consists of 6 chapters:

• Chapter 1: Social Justice in Islam: Examines the concept of social justice in the sense of equitable distribution of resources, opportunities, and rights among individuals and groups. Social justice in Islam possesses individual, social, and economic dimensions, each described separately.

• Chapter 2: Principles and Foundations of Social Justice in Islam: Addresses moral, human, and religious foundations of social justice in Islam. Principles such as equality of rights, respect for human dignity, equitable distribution of wealth, support for the underprivileged, piety, and rule of law are discussed in this chapter.

• Chapter 3: Structures of Social Justice in Islam: Analyzes various structures of social justice from an Islamic perspective, including the family’s role as a base for social cultivation and the Islamic economic system built upon justice and equity.

• Chapter 4: Rights and Social Justice: Addresses the connection and impact of social justice on individual and group rights, introducing support for minorities and the underprivileged as primary foundations of social justice in Islam.

• Chapter 5: The Role of Sovereignty in Realizing Social Justice: Explains the duties of the Islamic state as responsible for realizing social justice in the fields of equitable policy-making, combating corruption, and transparency of rulers.

• Chapter 6: Challenges and Opportunities in Realizing Social Justice: Examines challenges such as globalization, poverty, inequality, and socio-economic problems, while discussing the role of modern technologies, media, and civil institutions as opportunities for advancing social justice.

5. Social Justice and Contemporary Islamic Thought
Ahmad Vaezi, Research Institute for Islamic Culture and Thought Publications, 2024.

This book is the product of lectures delivered by Professor Ahmad Vaezi on this topic, illustrating which types of discussions have been the focus of effort in justice studies and which necessary areas of social justice discussions received no attention. Allocating the first eight discourses of this book to the domain of justice studies and social justice discussions alongside justice theories of Western thinkers, together with supplementary discourses on contemporary theories of justice, provides valuable information and analysis in the domain of justice and contemporary Islamic thought. Professor Ahmad Vaezi, who has focused on justice studies for nearly a decade, authored this book as an introduction to justice studies from an Islamic perspective, striving in his other books to articulate his theory and critique competing theories. Each discourse in this book represents a detailed and independent discussion in the domain of justice studies and theories of justice.

The book is organized across 14 discourses:

• Discourse 1: The Scope of Justice Studies: Meticulously examines the concept of justice, articulates meta-ethical discussions of justice and justice in ethics, and analyzes various theological approaches to justice.

• Discourse 2: Literature of Jurisprudential Justice Studies: Addresses the jurisprudential approach to justice. Status-assessment studies of justice, describing and articulating the sense of justice and injustice, and theorizing about social justice are among matters discussed in this discourse.

• Discourse 3: What Is Meant by Social Justice and Its Relationship with Distributive Justice: Discusses that social justice is not identical to distributive justice, articulating various non-distributive and distributive aspects of social justice; likewise, equitable distribution and its connection with satisfaction are explained.

• Discourse 4: Plurality and Diversity in the Subject of Social State Theories: Examines the subject of social justice in the thought of Western thinkers such as Rawls, Kant, and Nozick, introducing the audiences of justice theories.

• Discourse 5: Audiences of the Theory of Justice and Components of Contemporary Western Theories: Examines essential features of a theory of justice, including secular nature and socio-political components of justice theory.

• Discourse 6: Characteristics of Western Theories of Justice: Explains the shift from moral conception to socio-political conception of justice and content diversity in justice theories.

• Discourse 7: Specific Instances of Content Plurality in Theories of Justice: Addresses content and foundational plurality of egalitarian theories.

• Discourse 8: Impersonal and Human Nature of Western Theories of Justice: Disputes the features of impartiality and observing the principle of human nature in justice theories.

• Discourse 9: Contemporary Islamic Philosophical Thought and the Issue of Justice: Examines the status of justice studies in contemporary Islamic thought.

• Discourse 10: Evaluating Allamah Tabataba’i’s Perspective: Contains detailed analyses regarding Allamah Tabataba’i’s perspective on practical reason’s conventionalities (i’tibarāt-e ‘aql-e ‘amali), justice, and actual societal bliss, alongside Shahid Mutahhari’s critique and the official position of the ‘Adliyyah.

• Discourse 11: Endeavors of Contemporary Islamic Philosophers in Conceptual Discussions of Justice: Explores contemporary philosophical reflections on the concept of justice, homonymy or univocity, epistemology of justice, and application of justice in human relations.

• Discourse 12: Contemporary Islamic Philosophers’ Conception of Social Justice: Includes examining the viewpoints of Shahid Mutahhari and Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi, alongside summarizing observations pertaining to justice.

• Discourse 13: Examining Justice in Contemporary Jurisprudential Thought: Examines two macro-approaches to justice in contemporary jurisprudence and the viewpoints of Shahid Mutahhari, Ayatollah Sanei, and other thinkers.

• Discourse 14: Contemporary Jurisprudential Thought and the Social Pillar of Justice: Examines the role of justice in the process of jurisprudential deduction (istinbat), challenges, and the role of justice in regulating relations of Islamic society from the perspective of Shahid Sadr and the authors of Al-Hayat.

6. An Introduction to the Theory of Justice in Islam
Abdollah Jafari, Al-Mustafa Publications, 2014.

Justice is introduced as the goal of the mission of divine prophets, and its establishment is heavily emphasized in religious teachings of Muslims. The fundamental question is: Can a systematic and comprehensive theory be derived from the entirety of Islamic sources? What is Islam’s perspective on the equitable distribution of power, wealth, and social goods? What is the criterion of justice? By what path can justice be known? This work has attempted, utilizing the philosophical, theological, and foundational (usuli) heritage left behind by Muslim thinkers, to describe, analyze, and articulate the theory of Islamic justice, explaining its essential components such as foundations, nature, criterion, path of knowledge, and most importantly, the relationship between justice and Sharia.

This book consists of 4 parts, each containing several chapters, detailed below:

Part One: Generalities and Foundations of Justice
Expresses key concepts and primary vocabulary related to justice, explaining the philosophical and theological background of justice.

• Chapter 1: Literal and Terminological Meaning of Justice: Includes defining justice in Islamic sources, types of divine and human justice, and Quranic foundations of justice.

• Chapter 2: Importance and Standing of Justice: Includes the standing of justice in Islamic teachings and the philosophy of prophetic missions.

Part Two: Criterion and Assessment of Justice
This part addresses criteria for determining justice and its instances in individual and social behavior, analyzing Islam’s outlook on behavioral and structural justice.

• Chapter 1: Criteria of Justice in Islam: Introduces criteria for identifying and assessing justice and universal instances.

• Chapter 2: Behavioral and Social Indicators of Justice: Examines behavioral indicators of individual and social justice relying on religious text and reason.

Part Three: Paths to Knowing Justice
The author in this part explains paths for discovering and realizing justice through reason and revelation, articulating religious understanding of justice.

• Chapter 1: Knowing Justice Through Reason and Revelation: Includes religious and philosophical methods for knowing justice and comparative analysis of paths of knowledge.

• Chapter 2: Requirements for Realizing Justice: Includes preliminaries, conditions, and components for realizing justice in an Islamic system.

Part Four: Relationship Between Justice and Sharia
In this part, the relationship and connection of justice as a macro-religious value with Sharia rulings and regulations are explored, explaining the relationship of justice with the domain of jurisprudence and law.

• Chapter 1: Relationship Between Justice and Sharia Rulings: Includes Islam’s legislative response to justice and various interpretations by theologians and jurists.

• Chapter 2: Impact of Justice on Islamic Law and Jurisprudence: Includes the presence of justice in deducing jurisprudential rulings (istinbat) and its impact on legal and social contexts of Islam.

In the following, we list other books authored on the subject of the right to equality and justice:

7. Spheres of Justice
Michael Walzer, translated by Saleh Najafi, Sales Publications, 2024.

8. In Search of Justice
Compiled by Mohammad-Amin Zandi, Farhang-e Mo’aser Publications, 1999.

9. Justice and Freedom
Fariborz Ra’is-Dana, Qoqnoos Publications, 2021.

10. Justice (Rah-Nameh Vol. 17)
Collection of Statements of the Supreme Leader, Rah-Nameh Publications, 2024.

11. Right-Centered Justice: Awareness, Welfare, Security
Ali-Asghar Pourezzat, Tehran University Press, 2019.

12. Justice and Its Dimensions
Mohammad Rana’i and Mahdi Taleb-Pour, Hatmi Publications, 2014.

13. Right and Justice
Morteza Mutahhari, Binesh-e Motahhar Publications, 2021.

14. Right, Justice, and Equality from the Perspective of Professor Mutahhari
Hossein Tavasoli, Bustan-e Ketab Publications, 2016.

15. Equality and Social Justice in the Quran and Nahj al-Balaghah
Mohammad-Jafar Sobhani, Nahj al-Balaghah Foundation Publications, 2016.

16. Equality and Social Justice in Iranian Law
Hasan Mortazavi, Institute for Political Studies and Research Publications, 2006.

17. Philosophy of Social Justice
Hasan Mortazavi, Digar Publications, 2004.

18. The Principle of Social Justice
Mostafa Delshad Tehrani, Delshad Tehrani Publications, 2001.

19. Freedom, Justice, and Democracy
Ali-Akbar Velayati, Office of Islamic Culture Publications, 2020.

20. Expectation of Justice and Justice in Organizations
Ali Reza’ian, SAMT Publications, 2024.

21. Social Justice (Vol. 30 of the Chalcheragh-e Hikmat Series)
Najmeh Keykha, Kannon-e Andisheh-ye Javan Publications, 2017.

22. Theories of Distributive Justice
Sayyid Hadi Arabi, Research Institute of Hawzah and University Publications, 2016.

23. Freedom and Equality
Amartya Sen, translated by Hasan Fesharaki, Shirazeh Publications, 2022.

24. Social Justice from the Perspective of Liberalism
Bahman Forqani, Donya-e Eqtesad Publications, 2023.

25. Justice in Islam
Ebrahim Amini, Bustan-e Ketab Publications, 2019.

26. Social Justice in Nahj al-Balaghah (Political, Economic, and Legal Dimensions)
Ali-Asghar Ahmadi, Bustan-e Ketab Publications, 2025.

27. Political Justice in the Holy Quran
Sayyid Kazem Sayyid-Baqeri, Research Institute for Islamic Culture and Thought Publications, 2021.