The Garden of Knowledge

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

 2 Dhul Qa’da 1443/03 June 2022

All praise is due to Allah, the Cherisher, Sustainer, Nourisher and Provider of the entire creation. May peace, blessings and salutations be upon our Beloved Prophet Muhammed ﷺ.

We live in a time where riba has been accepted in society and sadly to mention, not condoned by Muslims. Riba has been strictly prohibited in the Quran (2:275):

وَأَحَلَّ ٱللَّهُ ٱلۡبَیۡعَ وَحَرَّمَ ٱلرِّبَوٰا

   “And God has permitted trading and prohibited Riba [interest]. “

What is Riba? Linguistically Riba means to increase/grow. According to classical scholars, Riba refers to: “An increase/growth in gold, silver and other food items.” Ibn – Rafa makes mention in his Kifaya that Riba refers to taking specified money without money which involves a consideration and this consideration is what is Riba. Very simply put, Riba in contemporary times refer to: “ any increment above the principal amount, whether
it is a soft, development loan charged at 1% annually or a
usurious consumption loan charged at 10% monthly. So riba
includes both usury and commercial interest.”

Allah commands us in verse 278 and 279 of Surah Baqarah by saying:

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَذَرُوا۟ مَا بَقِىَ مِنَ ٱلرِّبَوٰٓا۟ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ

“Oh you who believe, fear Allah and give up what remains (due to you) of interest, if you should be believers”

فَإِن لَّمْ تَفْعَلُوا۟ فَأْذَنُوا۟ بِحَرْبٍ مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِۦ ۖ وَإِن تُبْتُمْ فَلَكُمْ رُءُوسُ أَمْوَٰلِكُمْ لَا تَظْلِمُونَ وَلَا تُظْلَمُونَ

“If not, then be informed of a war (against you) from Allah and His Messenger ﷺ , but if you repent, you may have your principal (capital) thus you do not wrong, nor are you wronged”

Ibn Kathir mentions that Ibn Abbas (R.A) said “ فَأْذَنُوا۟ بِحَرْب “ clearly means that you should be sure of  Riba being a war against Allah and His Messenger ﷺ .

Abdullah ibn Masud (R.A) makes mention in a Hadith:

لَعَنَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم آكِلَ الرِّبَا وَمُوكِلَهُ وَشَاهِدَهُ وَكَاتِبَهُ ‏.‏

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) cursed the one who accepted usury, the one who paid it, the witness to it, and the one who recorded it. [Sunan Abi Dawud 3333] [Sahih Muslim 1597].

The abovementioned verses and hadith underline the severity of one getting involved, or even witnessing transactions involving Riba hence great emphasis is placed on the Muslim ummah coming together to get a better understanding of Islamic Finance and working together towards a Riba-free economy, which will not only be beneficial for Muslims, but humanity at large.

Riba has a predatory nature to it where the borrower is prey to the lender and is forced into payment regardless of financial status and position. It is a form of injustice and oppression to a person who cannot fulfil his/her obligations to pay debts and could very well lead to trauma and depression. One of the main principles of Islam is mutual assistance and support, meaning that Islam encourages helping our fellow brothers and sisters in need without expecting anything extra in return from them. If we find ourselves in a situation where someone cannot pay us back for a loan, rather make an intention to give the money to that person as a sadqah (charity) instead of holding it over their heads and oppressing them with exorbitant interest rates. In this manner, we will attain the pleasure of Allah for bringing ease to a person in difficulty. Doing this we will find that Allah will increase us in riches and wealth.

Abu Hurairah (R.A) narrates the Hadith of Nabi ﷺ :

‏ “‏ مَنْ نَفَّسَ عَنْ مُؤْمِنٍ كُرْبَةً مِنْ كُرَبِ الدُّنْيَا نَفَّسَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ كُرْبَةً مِنْ كُرَبِ يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ وَمَنْ يَسَّرَ عَلَى مُعْسِرٍ يَسَّرَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالآخِرَةِ “ِ

“He who alleviates the suffering of a brother out of the sufferings of the world, Allah would alleviate his suffering from the sufferings of the Day of Resurrection, and he who finds relief for one who is hard-pressed, Allah would make things easy for him in the Hereafter.”

In sha Allah in our upcoming articles we will discuss the types of Riba, how we can escape Riba in today’s time and much more.

We ask Allah to save us from Riba and to make us from amongst those who assist our fellows solely for the pleasure of Allah. May Allah accept our efforts from us and grant us understanding In Sha Allah!