If you recall, I had written in the article published on the 18th April 2018 that all worldly resources available to man on earth are solely owned by God Almighty and given to man in trust.
The three divine revelations are filled with repeated reminding of man being a trustee to God’s belongings on earth. In other words, man does not own anything in this world but simply has been appointed to act as a trustee to God Almighty’s wealth and resources in this world.
So what about the list of billionaires we are thrust upon every year? Don’t feel bad that you are not appearing in the list. They are simply entrusted by God Almighty to handle that much wealth and, believe me, do not own a penny out of it. In fact, the richer they are, the tougher the examination of how they handled God’s wealth.
It all boils down to what has been stated by God Almighty in the Quran in Surah Al Zukhruf (Gold Adornment) (chapter 43 verse 32): “Is it they who would portion out the mercy of thy Lord? It is We Who portion out between them their livelihood in the life of this world: and We raise some of them above others in ranks, so that some may command work from others. But the mercy of thy Lord is better than the (wealth) which they amass.”
Contrary to the man-made principle of claiming the entire wealth created due to a person’s efforts, Islam guides that such wealth also has the share of others who have not contributed anything to earn it but are needy and hence are dependent on the wealth. Such a share is required to be channeled by the wealthy through two ways: obligatory charity named Zakat and the voluntary alms over and above the obligatory charity termed Sadaqat.
While there is a limit on the obligatory charity Zakat of 2.5% per annum on entire cash and quasi-cash (items which are easy to convert to cash) holdings, there is no such limit on the voluntary alms Sadaqat. However, the Sadaqat only starts once a person has exhausted the distribution of Zakat.
An important point to note here is that the Zakat is direct personal liability to God Almighty on every adult and sane Muslim man or woman whose wealth crosses the equivalent of 87.48 grams of gold in current market value. This financial capacity is called Nisab.
The Zakat must be honestly and accurately calculated and cautiously distributed, starting from one’s own relatives who are below the threshold of Nisab and hence are categorized in Shariah as needy. There are overall eight categories of people who are eligible to receive Zakat.
The calculation, as well as distribution, of Zakat is a man’s key performance indicator in the capacity as God’s trustee on earth; however, unfortunately, it has been observed that the majority of Muslims are not careful about this critical aspect and end up paying much less than the required amount on this count mainly due to the extreme love for money and wealth.
Imam Hasan Al-Basri, a renowned Islamic scholar who died in 694 AD, fittingly said: “Money is such a companion of yours that it does not benefit you unless it leaves you.” If man only knew the immense benefits he can acquire by letting the money go, life on this world would be so much better for the millions of the poor and needy.
After having established the fact that man is not the owner but merely a trustee of God’s wealth on earth, let us see how a man can pass this tough examination. First and foremost is how the wealth has been earned. Whether the man has adopted fair means or trampled on others’ rights in doing so.
If the man has indulged in unfair practices and as a result has taken away others’ rights, not only has he transgressed God’s red line but he will be answerable to God and will have to ‘return’ such unfair share to the aggrieved parties on the Day of Judgment.
As per Quranic teachings, this will be carried out either by transferring his good deeds to the aggrieved parties or shifting their sins to him. What a petrifying situation where every good deed, no matter how small, shall be so extremely precious.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre, nor the official policy or position of the government of the UAE or any of its entities. The purpose of this article is not to hurt any religious sentiments either consciously or even unwittingly.
In next week’s issue: Definition of interest or usury. |
Sohail Zubairi is the projects advisor with the Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre. He can be contacted at [email protected].