Worldly or material wealth!

Islam approaches the issue of worldly / material wealth in a holistic manner which is very striking in every regard!

We go through some of the important teachings of Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him), The Last & Final Messenger of Allah, with regards to worldly or material wealth:

“Blind love for worldly pleasures is the main cause of all evil”

When one develops a passionate love for someone or something, they tend to be prepared to do anything and everything to show and express that love or merely to cling on to that person or that thing.

Here we are being taught not to allow our love for worldly matters to enslave us in such a way that we overlook justice and give up our sound values and morals.

Striving to fulfil our passions and desires at any cost, especially those which are unlawful, will surely lead us to some wrong doing – at times even open injustice or oppression. T

his will be cause for severe shortcomings and painful consequences in the long run.

Love for wealth, status, power, social acceptance, etc. if not controlled, will result in the engagement of all forms of evil.

This is because one will do anything and everything they think of in order to achieve their goal — without even looking into whether it is lawful or not, or whether it infringes the rights of others or not, etc . . .

However, if one has the ability to recognise the evil, shun it and control their lawful desires, then they will succeed in striking the correct balance between the limits of love and justice, together with the appropriate values and morals.

It is rather obvious, as we look around communities across the globe, that almost all evil is committed due the lack of control of one’s own passions and engagement in unlawful desires.

Violations of others rights, oppression and injustice, have all become too prevalent due to these uncontrolled passions and desires.

In fact, in many instances even severe penalties set by law enforcement agencies, do not seem to deter the perpetrators in this regard. It is only by developing sound belief in and love for God Almighty, the Supreme Sovereign, that one will be saved from this most detested behaviour.

“Cursed is the worshipper of wealth”

Since we do require material wealth do meet our daily needs and related requirements for ourselves and our dependants (family members), earning a pure livelihood is incumbent upon each person. However, this must be done in the correct, upright and lawful manner with the full sense of consciousness that it is The Almighty who grants blessings and enlarges provisions for those who are faithful and sincere.

Indeed, there is no limit to the amount of wealth a person can earn and have, but it is absolutely unacceptable to gain it by unethical means or at the expense of others, by deceiving or cheating, stealing, bribery, kidnapping, hijacking or to enrich oneself by abusing the resources and skills of others (disadvantaging them and making them poor).

It is vital that we realise the importance of purity in our earnings. The tendency of attaining wealth through any and every means, be they acceptable or not, is dangerous. We should stay away from practices that deprive others their right to wealth and earning. Similarly, engaging in that which is forbidden by The Almighty, in order to earn some money is also prohibited.

The one who does this has been termed as a “worshipper of wealth”, who puts money and material wealth before everyone and everything (i.e. his love for wealth is too intense whereby he almost seems to worship and glorify it) and thus he has been cursed.

We should develop contentment within ourselves, for whatever material possessions we have and in our pursuit to increase it we must maintain God consciousness at all times. Together with that, we should be sensitive to the situation of others and develop a genuine feeling for their well being too.

This obviously requires each person to be most thoughtful of others and love for others what they love for themselves. In this manner we will save ourselves and others in society from all unethical dealings and practices as well as the various prohibited actions.

“Earning a lawful income / sustenance is an obligation which follows other obligations”

Indeed, we all have been created by The Almighty and have been brought into this world by Him with the primary purpose of serving Him.

Whilst we do exist in a physical body and we do have physical/material needs, our main purpose of existence is to ensure due diligence in our service to The Almighty at all times and in all aspects of our earthly stay. Through this service, we will achieve His pleasure and approval thus earning blessings in this world and our ranks when we return to Him — our Creator.

However, whilst we are in this world, in order to fulfil our obligations to The Almighty, and in order to meet the basic needs and requirements of life, we are obliged to earn a livelihood.

This earning must be in accordance with His commands and dictates — thus it must be in a lawful and pure manner, free from all forms of cheating, deception or oppression. It is strictly forbidden to earn by exploiting others, taking undue or unlawful advantage of them, causing loss to them, etc.

Similarly, hoarding, overcharging or underpaying are all unacceptable means of dealing and earning.

When the element of godlessness creeps into an individual, community or nation, the greed for material wealth will be unleashed and this will in turn lead to unethical and possibly even immoral practices in trade and business dealings.

All such practices not only earn us the displeasure and wrath of The Almighty, they also deprive us of peace, happiness and contentment in our lives and cordial relations with fellow humans.

Trade, business, employment or hire should be undertaken with the highest morals and ethics and by mutual agreement through which all parties will benefit.

In this manner, all members of society will gain in a lawful way and dealing with one another will become pleasant and indeed blessed in every way.

For further information on Islam please contact:

Majlisul Ulama Zimbabwe, Council of Islamic Scholars Publications DepartmentP.O. Box W93, Waterfalls, HarareTel: 024-2614078 / 024-2614004    e mail: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>