Aayat number 282 of Surah Baqarah, is the longest verse in the Holy Quran, and consists of 21 sentences. “Aayat’ does not necessarily mean sentence; instead, one verse may consist of several sentences, as is the case with verse 282. Some verses of the Holy Quran contain only one sentence, whilst others have more than one.
Our focus here is the meanings conveyed to us by Allah Azza Wa Jall in verse 282 of Al-Baqarah. This aayat was revealed to teach Muslims how to conduct their business dealings and thus provide for greater harmony. There is no gainsaying that poor dealings lead to poor communication, and that in turn leads to break up of unity. Whilst it is clear that the causes of our failure to unite are not only found in bad business dealings, poor dealings can certainly be identified as at least one of the main causes for mutual discord.
To make it easy for readers, we will list hereunder the guidelines mentioned by Allah Ta’ala in verse 282, without going into the full translation of this aayat,
1. When doing a deal on credit, write it down. The word used in the aayat is dayn which means buying goods and paying for them later or paying for them in instalments.
2. If need be, solicit the help of a scribe or accountant to assist in recording the transaction.
3. The scribe or accountant should not refrain from fulfilling this responsibility when asked to do so. It has, thus, been made imperative upon him to record the deal between two parties if they request his assistance.
4. The scribe should write what is dictated and conveyed to him by the debtor (the one owing the money). But he (the debtor) should fear Allah and not cheat by dictating an amount less than what he actually owes.
5. If the debtor is ill or frail and cannot dictate, then he should appoint his representative to dictate the terms of the deal. The representative should be just in this matter.
6. Two witnesses should be present at this deal. Ideally the witnesses should be two adult (baaligh) males.. However, if two men are not available then one adult male and two adult females will suffice.
7. The witnesses must be people of integrity and reliability.
8. The witnesses should not refuse to witness a deal when asked to do so.
9. People should not be lethargic or complacent to write down even the smallest transaction.
10. If the deal is cash then there is no need to put it into writing.
11. However, we are encouraged to have witnesses for all transactions.
12. Witnesses and scribes are not to be intimidated or threatened in any way. This is an act of transgression.
13. Taqwa or God-fearing should be dominant when doing any deal. This will ensure honesty and fairness.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Better Business Dealings
Thursday, August 21, 2008
The Spiritual Harms of Insurance
The following question was sent in by a Muslim brother:
“My shop is situated in a high risk area. Burglaries are quite rife in this area. Am I allowed to insure my business?”
We will discuss the Islamic legal ruling on insurance in a separate article. Here we would like to focus on the spiritual aspect of the matter. We cannot ignore the fact that insurance of property is fraught with many spiritual dangers. Regardless of whether insurance is lawful or haraam, the harm this causes to the heart and soul of a Believer is serious enough to demand complete abstention from this act.
The Roohani Dangers of Insurance
1. TRUST
When property is insured the owner sees no need to place his trust in Allah. There is no urgency to do so because he is content in the knowledge that should the property suffer damage, he will be compensated. He thus feels satisfied that in the event of loss, he has compensation to fall back on. The loss is therefore no loss in reality.
On the other hand, one who has no monetary support to fall back on will be forced to rely solely on Allah Ta’ala. His support is Allah, and his insurance against loss is his trust in Allah. He depends entirely on Allah Ta’ala. This is the great quality of Tawakkul, which to a certain degree is Wajib (obligatory) on every Muslim. In many places in the Qur’aan-e-Kareem Allah Ta’ala speaks of Tawakkul and commands the Believers to adopt this important spiritual characteristic.
One who indulges in insurance is sadly deprived of this quality. Such a person will not have the faintest idea of what it means to repose trust in Allah.
2. DUA
The second harm that Muslims suffer through insurance is discontinuance of dua. When one is assured of compensation for loss, then he or she will not make dua to Allah Ta’ala for protection of the asset. One who has no insurance lives in constant fear of losing the asset without any compensation, so he is constrained to make regular dua to Allah Ta’ala for protection against loss. In other words, dua is his form of insurance against loss or theft.
Though lack of dua is not deliberate, it is a necessary result of insurance. Naturally one who has secured assets through insurance will feel no need or urgency to ask Allah Ta’ala for its protection. Only the one who fears will turn to Allah in dua. Neglect of dua in turn leads to diminished communication with Allah Ta’ala. For a Mumin (Believer) this is unbearable.
3. SABR
The third spiritual loss in insurance is deprivation from sabr. Since the loss is not really a loss, one will never experience true sabr for this is only experienced on the occasion of a loss. Hence one who sustains loss or damage to an insured asset will not feel the loss because of the knowledge that such loss will be compensated for through insurance. When this is the case, there is no question of sabr. The need for sabr is only perceived when one has suffered total loss of property.
Consequently, such a person remains deprived of the tremendous reward of sabr that has been promised for losses in this world.
4. ABSTINENCE
Rasoolullah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam said: “Abstinence in this world is that you do not have more trust in what you possess than in that which is in the Possession of Allah.” (Ibn Majah, Tirmizhi) Zuhd is an important spiritual quality which was very prominent in the life of Rasoolullah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam. It thus becomes a sunnah to adopt this characteristic. This hadith speaks of abstinence or zuhd in worldly possessions. A person who has insurance can never achieve the true feeling of abstinence, for he has placed more trust in his insurance than in the Possessions of Allah.
5. LOSS OF BARAKAAT
Payment of premiums in the hope of gaining compensation when a loss occurs is akin to gambling. The punter pays a sum of money in the hope that he will realize a larger sum of money in return. Insurance is thus a refined form of gambling. There is, therefore, no barkaat in money spent or earned in such a manner.
It is time Muslims focused only on Allah Ta’ala in all their financial dealings. Develop conviction that Allah is the Sole Provider, Protector, and Compensator. To achieve this, the Auliyaa advise that one should meditate a lot on the Power and Might of Allah Azza Wa Jall.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Our Hedge Against Economic Recession
RECENT MEDIA REPORTS have painted a grim and gloomy picture of this country’s economic future. Speculation of an economic downslide is being fuelled almost daily by further hikes in petrol prices and other basic food stuffs. To make matters worse, a few months ago the country was caught in the grip of xenophobic violence that perpetuated our financial woes even further on the international scene.
RAY OF HOPE
Amidst all this economic mayhem, we Muslims still have, not only a ray of hope, but a bright guiding light instead; something that augurs well for our future. This light is our ability to turn to Allah and call upon him in moments of need. And surely, this is one such moment. This article is ntended to explain the connection between pleasing Allah Ta’ala, and hedging against rising prices and inflation.
Every Muslim should understand an elementary Islamic teaching, one that has been articulated in the Holy Quran time and again. We quote the verses where this basic belief is mentioned and urge our brothers and sisters to read and ponder its meanings:
~ Surah Zhaariyaat (Chapter 51), verse 22: “And in the heavens is your rizq and whatever you are promised.”
~ Surah Zhaariyaat, verses 56 to 58: “And I have not created Jinn and Man but for the purpose of worshipping Me. I do not want rizq (sustenance) from them, nor do I desire that they feed Me. Surely it is Allah Who is The Supreme Sustainer, The Powerful, The Mighty.”
~ Surah Taa-Haa (Chapter 20), verse 132: “And command your family to offer salaah, and be steadfast on it yourself; We do not ask you for rizq, instead We will provide for you;”
~ Surah Hãd (Chapter 11) verse 6: “And there is not a creature on earth but its rizq is the responsibility of Allah;”
~ Surah Faatir (Chapter 35) verse 3: “O Mankind! Remember the favours of Allah upon you. Is there any (other) creator besides Allah who gives you sustenance from the heavens and the earth? There is no god besides Him! ”
~ Surah Naml (chapter 27), verse 64: “Is That Being not greater Who starts the creation and then reproduces it, and Who grants you rizq from the heavens and the earth? Is there another god with Allah?
~ Surah Mulk (Chapter 67), verse 21: “Who else is there to provide (rizq) for you if He withholds his sustenance?”
REAL CAUSE OF RIZQ
In the above verses Allah Ta’~la commands, asks rhetoric questions, compares His Power to the rest, and provokes our thinking minds all in an effort to make us understand the concept of rizq: The Sole and Supreme Provider is Allah Azza Wa Jall. The real cause of rizq is not our jobs, profession, skills, or craftsmanship. All these worldly causes are temporary and perfunctory, whereas the Main Cause is Allah The Almighty Allah. It is for this reason that we find hundreds of thousands of Allah’s creation who enjoy His bounties without a profession or a job. We find unskilled people earning more than those who possess skills and craftsmanship. There are ordinary business people who rake in thousands more than professionals, and there are ignorant people who enjoy far more than the learned. Peasants from villages and settlements have moved into the high-income bracket, while elite have to make do with far less. Rasolullah r predicted that before Qiyaamat ‘shepherds, naked and bare-footed will vie with each other in tall buildings’, a reference to how unpredictable is the wealth of this world. Indeed, distribution of rizq by Allah does not conform to the law of the world but is rather subject to the Decree and Will of Allah.
It is not uncommon to find people who had not even passed grade three in school are today multi-millionaires. Had it been man’s skill and learning, or artisanship and ability that brought rizq then we would not witness such widespread disparity in wealth distribution. Almighty Allah explains the reason for this in Surah Israa (Chapter 17) verse 30: “Verily Allah grants lavish rizq for whom He wishes, and He restricts (rizq for whom He wishes);
“This is the Bounty of Allah which He grants to whomever He wishes’ (Surah Jumu’ah)
The Quran thus proves that rizq or sustenance comes from Allah and He grants it according to His Desire. Allah is the Controller of rizq. It is He who creates supply and demand. He holds sole monopoly over the resources of this world, not any nation or army. The hadith provides us with further proof of this fact.
FIXING PRICES
Hazrat Anas (radhiyallahu anhu) reports that once people complained to the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam about high prices and requested him to fix the price of grain. Rasoolullah r replied: “The fixer of prices is Allah! He withholds rizq, He grants abundant rizq. He is the Sole Provider.” (Narrated by Imam Ahmad and Tirmizhi) Subsequently the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam declined the request to fix prices, in spite of this being in the interests of the public. Some Jurists have ruled that a Muslim state is allowed to fix the price of basic and staple foods if prices rise so exorbitantly that poor people suffer. Though Nabi-e-Kareem sallallahu alaihi wa sallam refused to fix the price of wheat, on another occasion he prohibited the monopolization of food stuffs, since this causes harm to people, especially the poor. (Raddul-Muhtaar)
We learn from the above that even the rising of prices is from Allah Ta’ala. In a verse mentioned earlier, it was stated that Allah Ta’ala expands and restricts rizq. One way that He does this is to increase or decrease the cash flow of a person. Another way is to increase the supply of goods, thus bringing prices down and allowing even poor to have more. The rizq of people thus expands. At times Allah Ta’ala shortens the supply of certain goods, thus causing prices to rise and restricting its availability. Economists will confirm that one of the reasons for high prices is short supply and high demand of a commodity. These economics are actually controlled by Allah Ta’ala, not man. When Allah Ta’ala causes prices to rise, the resultant inability to purchase goods leads to restriction of rizq.
Having understood this, we now realize that alleviation of our financial difficulties is achieved by turning to Allah Ta’ala. For expansion in rizq we need to establish a continuous link with Our Creator. The primary purpose of the verses quoted above is to instil into man the realisation that there is no alternative but to seek sustenance from the Creator and not from the creation.
The Quran time and again emphasizes the fact that Allah the Almighty Alone is the Provider of all worldly needs, and exhorts the Believers to seek the fulfilment of rizq from Allah. In this injunction there is an underlying wisdom which highlights the Love Almighty Allah shows towards His servants. The Quran declares: “Undoubtedly, those whom you worship besides Allah do not possess (the ability to provide) your rizq, so seek rizq by Allah, and worship Him and make shukr. Unto Him shall you return.” Surah Ankaboot (29), verse 17).
In this aayat we are clearly commanded to seek rizq from Allah. There are three commandments issued to us by Our Creator: a) Seek rizq by Allah; b) Worship Him; c) Offer shukr (thanksgiving) unto Allah. In asking, nay commanding His servants to seek their rizq by Him, Allah Ta’ala has in fact created an excuse for His servants to communicate with him. Besides actually asking Allah for our rizq, we are also instructed to offer continuous worship and thanks to Him. So we have dua, ibaadat, and shuk, and amazingly, all three are such actions that take one closer to Allah. For the excuse of rizq Allah Ta’ala has created a channel of communication. If this is not Absolute Mercy for His creation, then what else can one call it? In the course of seeking mundane sustenance, Almighty Allah has paved the way for man to accumulate the riches of spiritual sustenance and nearness to Him. Closeness to Allah is the ultimate aim and objective of every Believer, as alluded to a hadith of Bukhari.
TURNING TO ALLAH
We have also discovered the method of turning to Allah for rizq. Firstly, we make dua and beg Him for His Bounties, secondly, we continue worshipping Him and improving the state of our worship, and thirdly, we thank Him profusely for His Favours. In another verse He has promised to increase His favours upon those who make shukr. (Surah 14, verse 7)
In addition to the above, it is imperative that we cut out sin from our lives, for sin is the chief cause of diminishing rizq. One major sin is the breaking of family ties. Maintaining family ties is the cause of long life and abundant, halaal, rizq. (Saheehul-Bukhari). It is ironical that a Muslim will severe ties with his brother, sister, and even parents, over money, yet the poor soul fails to realize that the severance of family ties will prevent the very rizq that he hankers after, and over which he had broken ties.
Lets us revisit the hadith regarding price-fixing mentioned earlier. In another version of this hadith narrated by Hazrat Au Sa’eed Khudri t, he states that once the Muslims in Madina were going through a diffcult phase of hunger and soaring prices. This forced them to approach the Messenger of Allah r seeking his help in lowering prices. In response to this, Rasoolullah r mounted the mimbar (after salaah) and delivered a sermon. In this sermon he brought up the issue of price fixing, and then said: “I shall not meet Allah with the stigma of having taken the wealth of someone against his wishes (by setting a price that he is not happy). Sale is a mutual act (and should not be restricted). However, there are certain (evil) traits in your dealings, which I shall now mention: Do not bear hatred, jealousy, or malice for each other! If one person is busy negotiating a deal, the other should not interfere (until the former has concluded or cancelled the deal). Let not the farmer sell his goods to a middle-man (thus allowing the latter to set high prices). And live together as brothers!” (Narrated by Imam Ibni Hibban in his Saheeh)
SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS
This hadith warns of six important factors that form the nucleus of successful business.
Businessmen should never bear malice of hatred for each other.
They should not be jealous of each other, regardless of how successful others become.
One party should not interfere in a business deal between two parties whilst negotiations are in progress. Often we find a third person coming along and quoting a higher price for an item whilst the buyer and seller are busy negotiating their deal. This is wholly unjust and callous. In such a case it will be immoral for the seller to suddenly cancel the deal with the prospective buyer and accept the higher offer from the third party. It is such practices that have expelled the blessings (barakaat) from our businesses and generated animosity among Muslims. Note that selling goods on an auction is excluded from this and is totally permissible. In an auction there is no private deal between two parties. Instead, the matter is open to any prospective buyer. The auction procedure is mentioned in the hadith.
Businessmen should not create a cartel or a monopoly over goods, especially basic necessities, for this causes severe strain on the finances of the poor and lower income groups. One hadith states that the one who supplies goods freely to a community is blessed by Allah, whilst the one who monopolizes goods is cursed.