Download 1.2 RIGHTS TO WEALTH 1.2.1 Rights to Wealth from the Islamic

1.2
RIGHTS TO WEALTH
Every rational human being requires some wealth. The honest man requires
some wealth at least to have security and peace of mind. It is only the irrational
man who requires some wealth in order to have more wealth.
In a capitalistic economy, wealth is almost anything of monetary value that one
accumulates in sufficient quantity. Rights to wealth determine the relative power
and rank of a person. As a result, primary concepts are actually the generic
concepts with philosophical themes, either based on laissezz faire (capitalism),
socialism or Islam, as described in Figure 1. When these primary concepts are
stratified, it will help to develop a particular overview of wealth management as a
whole. It can be translated into wealth planning in every stage of creation,
accumulation, protection, distribution and purification of wealth.
Figure 1. Primary Concepts of Wealth From Various Perspectives.
Concept
Wealth /Resources
Ownership
Capitalism
Islam
Socialism
Scarcity of
resources
Bounties of God
and no scarcity
Scarcity of
resources
Individual
freedom
A Trust
The source for the
exploitation
of labour
Lifestyle goals
Personal
Satisfaction
(needs and
wants)
Al-Falah
(Prosperity)
Equal welfare
among the workers
People may have enduring but not endearing wealth. Islam however requires
Muslims to have both enduring and endearing wealth. Islam not only encourages
every Muslim to work and earn a legitimate income to sustain him and his family,
but also encourages every Muslim to work hard to achieve perfection and
excellence in his chosen profession.
1.2.1 Rights to Wealth from the Islamic Perspective
From the Islamic perspective, all wealth belongs to God and man is only a
trustee. The Quran says, “To Him (God) belongs that is in the heavens and all
that is on the earth, and all that is between them, and all that is under the soil.”
The Quran further says, “… and give them something out of the wealth that God
has bestowed upon you.” (Quran 24:33). This means that it is God who owns the
wealth and that wealth has been bestowed by Him. Since God is the absolute
owner, man is just a trustee and this is evidenced in the Quranic verse, “Lo! We
offered the trust unto the heavens and the earth and the hills, but they shrank
from bearing it and were afraid of it. And man assumed it. Lo! he hath proved a
tyrant and a fool.” (Quran 33:72) A contemporary scholar, Sheikh Yusuf AlQaradawi, interpreted the above verses thus, “It is a part of that great trust which
Allah offered to the heavens, the earth, and the mountains, which they declined
but which man accepted. This trust requires man to carry out the duties placed
on him by Allah as His vicegerent on earth and to assume accountability
concerning them. This responsibility is the basis on which the human individual
will be judged by Allah and given his reward or punishment. Because of this trust,
Allah gave man intellect, will power, and freedom of choice; because of this, He
sent His messenger and revealed His Books.”
Therefore, the first right to wealth is God Himself, but God does not need wealth
as we perceive it and He has prescribed conditions as to how to use the wealth
that he has bestowed on us. Muslims therefore, should follow the guidelines and
injunctions of God in their respective professions. As mentioned above, Islam
considers wealth as a trust and thus Muslims would be accountable for the
manner it has been created, how it has been amassed and how it has been
spent. On this point, Islam prescribes ways to carry out the trust. For example,
Islam provides guidelines on how Muslims should spend their wealth while they
are alive and how it should be distributed when they pass away. In that sense,
wealth would be blessed.
A blessed wealth in this context is wealth that brings benefits to oneself and
others. The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said “the upper hand is better than the
lower hand”. The upper hand is the hand that gives benefits to others whereas
the lower hand is the hand that receives. Thus, in Islam, wealth is vital to
enhance and to develop the economic system. With wealth, Muslims will able to
serve Allah through giving alms (one method of wealth purification). The Prophet
(pbuh) said: “Blessed is the wealth of a Muslim from which he gives to the poor,
the orphans and the needy traveler”. Islam has always emphasised the
significance of attaining Allah’s blessings (pleasures) by giving to others. This will
be further explained in the section 1.2.1.2.
1.2.1.1 Man’s Rights as a Trustee
Islam considers man as the best of God’s creation and treats him as such. God
has granted him certain rights and has prescribed certain responsibilities for him.
As mentioned in the previous section, from the Islamic viewpoint, ownership rests
with God. However, God has created everything in the universe for the use of
mankind. This is evident from the Quranic verse, “He it s 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.” (Quran 2:29) . The Quran further says,
“And hath made of service unto you whatsoever is in the heavens and
whatsoever is in the earth; it is all from Him. Lo! herein verily are portents for
people who reflect.” (Quran 45:13).
Therefore, He has delegated the proprietary rights to mankind under specified
terms i.e. trusteeship and man is therefore subject to the terms of that trust and
must not forget that the real owner is God and man’s ownership is granted by
Him. This Islamic concept of ownership is part of this general view of trusteeship
(amanah). In this respect, two kinds of productive assets have been reserved for
public ownership. The first is public utilities such as large streams, bridges, land
around town left for common use and the banks of a stream. The second are
natural resources entrusted to the society at large. Four such resources have
been mentioned by the Prophet (pbuh) - water, herbage, fire and salt. However,
Islamic jurists have long argued that these things should be considered symbolic.
Other things having similar properties are also included by implication. In
general, it may be concluded that anything which does not involve much human
effort or cost to make it useful should belong to society at large. Similarly
properties, the private ownership of which may cause hardships for the general
public, should not be given to private ownership. Natural meadows, forests and
some minerals are examples of the first kind and rivers, embankments and public
paths of the second kind. Other than these two, Islam recognises private
ownership, athough it is held in trust for God.
Private ownership has two aspects:
i) formal ownership title, and
ii) exercise of ownership rights.
The first relates to the legal aspect, i.e., the one who holds the ownership title,
and the second refers to the authority of making decisions. As mentioned before,
Allah has bestowed the rights of legal ownership upon individuals in some cases
and upon society as a whole in others. Where the rights have been conferred
upon the individual, nobody can deprive him of that except in cases where
Shariah (and not the state) provides express sanctions for that. The purpose is to
fulfill the needs of the poor. Islam achieves this by an array of means and
through a graduated methodology to minimise the negative effects on
inducements and at the same time protect the individual’s rights.
When it comes to ownership rights, God has clearly laid down the terms of the
trust. If one violates these terms one is answerable. If the violation is serious, the
legal right of ownership is suspended. Within these limits, the owner is given a
high degree of freedom to make use of the object of ownership and to claim the
benefits resulting from its use. These rights are natural complements to legal
ownership. Without them, ownership becomes meaningless.
One of the terms of the trust is that man must use the wealth that is bestowed on
him prudently. In this respect, the Quran says that, “He it is Who produceth
gardens trellised and untrellised, and the date palm, and crops of divers flavour,
and the olive and the pomegranate, like and unlike. Eat ye of the fruit thereof
when it fruiteth, and pay the due thereof upon the harvest day, and be not
prodigal. Lo! Allah loveth not the prodigals.”(Quran 6:141). However, this does
not mean that one must be stingy in one’s consumption as the Quran also says,
“…And those who, when they spend, are neither extravagant nor stingy…”
(Quran 25:69). A mufassirin (interpreter of the Quran), by the name of Ibn Kathir
commented that, “They are not extravagant, spending more than they need, nor
are they miserly towards their families, not spending enough on their needs. But
they follow the best and fairest way. The best of matters are those which are
moderate, neither one extreme nor the other.”
1.2.1.2 Rights of Others in One’s Wealth
The rights of others in one’s wealth are highlighted both in the Quran and the
Sunnah. Others who have a right to one’s wealth include the poor, needy,
converts, wayfarers and others. In this respect, the Quran says, “The alms are
only for the poor and the needy, and those who collect them, and those whose
hearts are to be reconciled, and to free the captives and the debtors, and for the
cause of Allah, and (for) the wayfarers; a duty imposed by Allah. Allah is knower,
Wise.” (Quran 9:60).
The poor and the needy are mentioned first because they have more need than
the other categories of people. The Prophet (pbuh) is reported to have said that
the poor is the ill person, while the needy is physically fit (Ahmad, Abu Dawud,
At-Tirmidhi). In a sound tradition the Prophet (pbuh)described the needy person
as, “The one who does not have enough to satisfy his needs and whose
condition is not known to others, that others may give him something in charity,
and who does not beg of people.” (Bukhari, Muslim). Nowadays, the poor are
usually defined as those whose income is less than 50 per cent of their basic
needs whilst the needy are defined as those whose income is less than their
basic needs. Basic needs include food, clothing and shelter.
The alms collectors are also entitled to it as they are doing a job and every job
should be compensated for. Those whose hearts are to be reconciled are new
converts (reverts) to Islam. Others who have a right to our wealth include
genuine indebtedness and wayfarers. According to Ibn Kathir, there are several
types of indebted persons. They include those who incur expenses in solving
disputes between people, those who guarantee a loan that became due, thus
causing financial strain to them, and those whose funds do not sufficiently cover
their debts. It also includes those who indulged in sin but have repented from it.
Wayfarer (Son of the road in Arabic) is a term used for the needy traveller in a
land, where he does not have what helps him to continue his trip. This type of
person has a share in the alms for what suffices him to reach his destination,
even if he has money there. The same is true for whoever intends to travel from
his area but does not have enough money to spend.
Apart from the eight categories of recipients above, there are also others who as
the Quran says, “… And in their wealth the beggar the outcast had due share…”
(Quran 51:19). The Quran further says, “... And in whose wealth there is a right
acknowledged For the beggar and the destitute…” (Quran 70:24-25). Other’s
rights in one’s wealth are also indicated in another verse that says, “And let not
those who hoard up that which Allah hath bestowed upon them of His bounty
think that it is better for them. Nay, it is worse for them. That which they hoard will
be their collar on the Day of Resurrection. Allah’s is the heritage of the heavens
and the earth, and Allah is Informed of what ye do.” (Quran 3:180). This is further
enhanced by tradition of the Prophet (pbuh) who said, “Do not wish to be like
anyone except in two cases. A person, whom Allah has given wealth and he
spends it righteously; the one whom Allah has given wisdom (the Holy Quran)
and he acts according to it and teaches it to others”. In fact Islam condemns
nactivity and poverty. It is an obligation, a responsibility for every Muslim to be
actively involved in a community’s social and economic functions and to
contribute as much as possible to its physical and spiritual development and wellbeing. The Prophet (pbuh) in fact stated that: “Poverty is disbelief (in Allah)”. It is
proof that Islam does not view wealth negatively, but most importantly the
management of wealth must not be contrary to the teachings of the Quran and
the Sunnah of the Prophet (pbuh).