SALIENT FEATURES
Every economic system has its own peculiar features, which form its foundation and from which it can be distinguished and recognised. Modern capitalism, which has emerged due to rapid industrialisation facilitated by unprecedented human advancement in science and technology, is based on free market economy, non-intervention or very limited intervention of state in economic affairs, interest and banking. Socialism, which has emerged as a reaction to capitalism, believes in complete control of state on economy and full ownership of means of production by the state or community. Feudalism stands for ownership of land by few persons or families and makes majority of people tenants or serfs who work on lands either as servants of the landlords or for meagre share in the produce of land.
Islam, on the other hand, believes in justice and fairness in the economic field. According to it, the man is God’s viceroy or deputy in overall divine scheme and he has been given limited rights of ownership of means of production. It recognises intervention of state in the economic activity for the purpose of ensuring welfare of its citizens. Abolition of interest, institution of sadaqat and Zakat, concept of lawful and unlawful, equitable distribution of wealth, prohibition of hoarding and stress on circulation of wealth, concern for well being of the poor are the distinctive features of the Islamic economic system. We will elaborate and discuss some features of Islamic economy in this chapter as follows:
- 1- Allah is the Sustainer
One of the major features of Islamic economic system is the concept that Allah, the Almighty God of universe, is the sustainer and provider. Allah provides livelihood and subsistence to all of His creatures in the universe. It is Allah who has created all means and resources through which man earns his livelihood. Allah, in fact, has committed to feed, sustain and nourish all creatures including human beings. It is Allah who expands or curtails rizq (sustenance).
To explain and elaborate this concept further, let us reproduce the relevant verses of the Holy Qur’an and Ahadith of the Prophet of Islam.
Verses of the Qur’an:
1. And there is not a beast in the earth but the sustenance thereof dependeth on Allah. He knoweth its habitation and its repository. All is in a clear record. - (11: 6)
2. Lo! Thy lord enlargeth the provision for whom He will, and straiteneth it (for whom He will). Lo, He was ever Knower, Seer of His slaves. - (17: 30)
3. And how many an animal there is that beareth not its own provision! Allah provideth for it and for you. He is the Hearer, the Knower. - (29: 60)
4. Allah maketh the provision wide for whom He will of His bondmen, and straiteneth it for whom (He will) Lo! Allah is Aware of all things. - (29: 62)
5. O’ mankind! Remember Allah’s grace towards you! Is there any creator other than Allah Who provideth for you from the sky and the earth?……. - (35: 3)
6. Have ye seen that which ye cultivate? Is it ye who foster it, or are We the fosterer? - (56: 63-64)
7. Or who is he that will provide for you if He should withhold His providence?……. - (67: 21)
- 2- God is Real Owner of Everything and Man is merely a Trustee
The heavens and the earth and everything in the universe belongs to Allah. God is the real owner of everything, al-though He has given some rights to man for use of things required by the latter for his existence on the earth. However, the rights given to man are very limited, the real position of man being that of a trustee and a beneficiary. Some of the relevant verses of the Qur’an which highlight this concept are given as under:
1. Unto Allah belongeth whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is in the earth; and unto Allah all things are returned. - (3: 109)
2. Unto Allah belongeth whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is in the earth. Allah ever surroundeth all things. - (4: 126)
3. He it is Who hath placed you as viceroys of the earth and hath exalted some of you in rank above others, that He may try you by (the test of) that which He hath given you. Lo! Thy Lord is swift in prosecution, and lo! He is Forgiving, Merciful. - (6: 165)
4. Believe in Allah and His messenger, and spend of that whereof He hath made you trustees; and such of you as believe and spend (aright), theirs will be a great reward. - (57: 7)
This limited ownership or trusteeship bestowed on man by Allah in respect of the wealth which is given to him is not without significance. The divine wisdom underlying this principle of trusteeship is that man should not hoard his wealth treating it as his absolute ownership and deprive others from its use. Rather the surplus wealth of man must go to his fellow beings who are in want. This principle has been made more clear when the Qur’an says: “……. and bestow upon them of the wealth of Allah which He has bestowed upon you……” (24: 33). Thus the whole scheme of circulation of wealth through charity and Zakat and distribution of wealth through other equitable means envisaged by Islam is based on man’s limited rights as a trustee of wealth which has been bestowed on him by His Lord.
- 3- Everything Created for Service and Use of Man
It is God who has created everything in this universe. Many of the things created by God in the earth are of benefit to man directly or indirectly. Animals, plants, minerals, metals, water, air, fire, land, river, mountains, sea, and even sun, moon, stars, day and night, etc. are all for service to man. Many economic benefits have been placed by God in these things for man. The Qur’an brings this fact to light in its following verses:
1. He it is Who created for you all that is in the earth. Then turned He to the heaven, and fashioned it as seven heavens. And He is Knower of all things. -----2:Al-Baqarah:29
2. And He it is Who hath set for you the stars that ye may guide your course by them amid the darkness of the land and the sea. We have detailed our revelations for a people Who have Knowledge. -----6:Al-An’am:97
3. He it is Who sendeth down water from the sky, whence ye have drink, and whence are trees on which ye send your beasts to pasture. Therewith He causeth crops to grow for you, and the olive and the date-palm and grapes and all kinds of fruit. Lo! herein is indeed a portent for people who reflect. And He hath constrained the night and the day and the sun and the moon to be of service unto you, and the stars are made subservient by His command. Lo! herein indeed are portents for people who have sense. And whatsoever He hath created for you in the earth of diverse hues, lo! therein is indeed a portent for people who take heed. And He it is Who hath constrained the sea to be of service that ye eat fresh meat from thence, and thou seest the ships ploughing it that ye (mankind) may seek of His bounty, and that haply ye may give thanks. And He hath cast into the earth firm hills that it quake not with you, and streams and roads that ye may find a way. And landmarks (too), and by the star they find a way. -----16:An-Nahl:10-16
4. And Allah hath given you in your houses an abode, and hath given you (also), of the hides of cattle, tent-houses which ye find light (to carry) on the day of migration and on the day of pitching camp; and of their wool and their fur and their hair, caparison and comfort for a while. And Allah hath given you, of that which He hath created, shelter from the sun; and hath given you places of refuge in the mountains, and have given you coats to ward off the heat from you, and coats (of armour) to save you from your own foolhardiness. Thus doth He perfect His favours unto you, in order that ye may surrender (unto Him). -----16:An-Nahl:80-81
5. See ye not how Allah hath made serviceable unto you whatsoever is in heavens and whatsoever is in the earth and hath loaded you with His favours both without and within? Yet of mankind is he who disputeth concerning Allah without knowledge or guidance or a Scripture giving light. -----31:Luqman:20
- 4- Concept of Halal and Haram
Islam has introduced concept of Halal (lawful) and Haram (unlawful) in its economic system. In fact the foundations of the Islamic economy have been laid on this concept. This concept reigns supreme in the realm of production as well as consumption. Certain means of earning livelihood and wealth have been declared unlawful such as interest, bribery, gambling and games of chance, speculation, short weighing and short measuring, business malpractices, etc. Unlawful means of earning are strictly forbidden and a follower of Islam is permitted to earn through lawful and fair means. Similarly in the field of consumption certain items of food are unlawful such as dead animals, blood, swine flesh and animals slaughtered in the name other than that of Allah. Even expenses on certain items such as drinks, narcotics, debauchery, prostitution, pornography, things that promote obscenity and vulgarity, lotteries and gambling are strictly inadmissible.
Now let us glance through relevant verses of the Quran and Ahadith of Muhammad (PBUH), the Prophet of Islam, to highlight in brief the concept of halal and haram.
Verses of the Quran:
1. O mankind! Eat of that which is lawful and wholesome in the earth, and follow not the footsteps of the devil. Lo! he is an open enemy for you. (2:168)
2. O ye who believe! Eat of the good things wherewith We have provided you, and render thanks to Allah if it is (indeed) He Whom ye worship. He hath forbidden you only carrion, and blood, and swine flesh, and that which hath been immolated to (the name of) any other than Allah. But he who is driven by necessity, neither craving nor transgressing, it is no sin for him. Lo! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful. (2:172-173)
3. And eat not up your property among yourselves in vanity, nor seek by it to gain the hearing of the judges that ye may knowingly devour a portion of the property of others wrongfully. (2:188)
- 5- System of Sadaqat and Zakat
Islamic economic order has introduced a comprehensive system of sadaqat which comprises: compulsory contributions like Zakah, sadaqatul Fitr, monetary atonements; and voluntary contributions such as alms-giving, spending in the way of Allah on the poor, donations to charitable cause, waqf, etc. Charity and alms giving is sometimes called by the Qur’an a goodly loan to God Who Himself would compensate the giver manifold and also reward him in the Hereafter. Islam has declared that the poor and destitute have due share in the wealth of the rich and the rich are bound to return the share of the poor without stint.
- 6- Prohibition of Interest
Interest, which forms the foundation of capitalistic system of economy and which has not been eliminated even in the socialist system, has been completely abolished by Islam. Charging of interest is a major sin and the usurers have been given the notice of war from God and His messenger. Following are some of the verses of the Qur’an and Ahadith of Muhammad (PBUH) dealing with interest.
- 7- Ban on Hoarding of Wealth
Hoarding of wealth has been condemned by Islam in very clear terms, and those who hoard wealth and do not spend it for good cause have been threatened with painful doom. Hoarding of wealth is a great evil as it tantamounts to obstruction of flow of God-given wealth from the rich to the poor who are in genuine need of it. Therefore, Islam discourages hoarding of wealth and instead encourages circulation of wealth among all the sections of society. Following verses of the Qur’an and Ahadith of the Prophet of Islam throw light on this subject.
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These articles have been written by Dr. Muhammad Syarif Chaudhry MA, LLB, PhD
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