Book excerpt: The Quran approaches the issue of "political thought" as part of a comprehensive discourse which establishes the general goals and frames of reference. It is then left to the human mind to complete these with what it has learned from experiences in history and what the scholars understood from the Text about how to deal with reality. This work is about the origins of political thought and a study of the philosophy of politics. It examines the actions of the state as the main power concerned with public affairs in society, and enquires into which public action is considered good or bad in relation to other value system endorsed by Islam. The work uses a unique methodology to argue that the major elements of the Quranic political thought are securely anchored in the Makkan verses of the Quran. Studying these verses it searches for the rules and principles that help identify the directions and major objectives towards which both human society and political action are guided prior to the rise of institutions and the regulation of relations.