To better understand security, it is necessary to know its literal and terminological definitions.
Definition of Security
As its name suggests, security refers to not being exposed to danger or being protected from it.
Security means that people do not have to leave their city and country.
In this section, we will discuss the literal and idiomatic definition of the word security:
Lexical definition of the word safe
The word “امن” (safe) is derived from the Arabic words ‘Amena, yamano, amana’ (related to the verbs Samea and yasmao) and ‘Amena, yomeno, tamina’ (related to the verb Tafeel). The first case means ‘to be safe and secure,’ and in the second case, it means “to assure, to guarantee security and comfort, to be immune from danger, to reduce people’s fear and worry, to ensure their peace of mind, to protect them from harm.”
Ibn Faris, a famous Arab lexicographer, writes about the word ‘امن’: ‘Hamzah, Mim, and Noon are two closely related principles; in one of which trust is the opposite of treason, and its meaning is ‘peace and tranquility of the heart,’ while the other relates to confirmation.
Allamah Zamakhshari, an authority on Balaghat and Ijaz, writes: ‘He is safe.’ This means that everyone considers him trustworthy and feels safe regarding their lives and property, free from his evil and sedition.
Terminological definition of the word safe (امن)
There are many definitions of the word ‘امن…safe,’ so it is not possible to mention all of them in this brief article, therefore, we will limit ourselves to stating a few comprehensive definitions.
The author of the book ‘Al-Ta’arif’ defines security as ‘the expectation of not being harmed in the future, grounded in self-assurance and the elimination of fear.
Allamah Jurjani, may Allah have mercy on him, also defined security in the book ” Al-Tarifat ” as follows: “Security is not expecting harm in the future.” But in order to know how others define security and what do they think about it? Below are two detailed definitions of security:
First Definition
“Safe” means ensuring the government’s health from external and internal risks that may be lost due to pressures, failures and internal chaos and cause the fall and destruction of the government.
However, this definition is not comprehensive; there are many types of security—such as individual, personal, social, and national security—that must also be preserved and protected from possible dangers. The previous definition is limited only to the government.
The Second Definition
Security is a set of actions and contrivances that the government or other organizations take to protect people from possible dangers that threaten them. It doesn’t matter if these dangers are internal or external, so that the nation can have a peaceful, honorable and confident life under its shadow.
This definition is a summary of all definitions and is more comprehensive and complete compared to the previous one.