Property

وَلَا تَأۡكُلُوٓاْ أَمۡوَٰلَكُم بَيۡنَكُم بِٱلۡبَٰطِلِ وَتُدۡلُواْ بِهَآ إِلَى ٱلۡحُكَّامِ لِتَأۡكُلُواْ فَرِيقٗا مِّنۡ أَمۡوَٰلِ ٱلنَّاسِ بِٱلۡإِثۡمِ وَأَنتُمۡ تَعۡلَمُونَ ١٨٨

And eat not one another’s property unjustly, nor give bribery to the rulers that you may knowingly eat up a part of the property of others sinfully.

Surah 2 Al-Baqarah Verse 188

• One meaning of this verse is that people should not try to seek illegitimate benefits by bribing magistrates. Another meaning is that when a person is aware that the property he claims rightfully belongs to someone else, he should not file a judicial petition either because the other party lacks the evidence to support their case or because by tricking and cunning the petitioner can usurp that property
• It is possible that the judicial authority would decide in favour of the false claimant on the basis of the formal strength of the claim, but as this judicial verdict would merely be the result of the chicanery to which the claimant had restored to, he would not become its rightful owner. In spite of the judgement of the court, the property would remain illegitimate in the sight of Allah

۞وَمِنۡ أَهۡلِ ٱلۡكِتَٰبِ مَنۡ إِن تَأۡمَنۡهُ بِقِنطَارٖ يُؤَدِّهِۦٓ إِلَيۡكَ وَمِنۡهُم مَّنۡ إِن تَأۡمَنۡهُ بِدِينَارٖ لَّا يُؤَدِّهِۦٓ إِلَيۡكَ إِلَّا مَا دُمۡتَ عَلَيۡهِ قَآئِمٗاۗ ذَٰلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمۡ قَالُواْ لَيۡسَ عَلَيۡنَا فِي ٱلۡأُمِّيِّ‍ۧنَ سَبِيلٞ وَيَقُولُونَ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ ٱلۡكَذِبَ وَهُمۡ يَعۡلَمُونَ ٧٥ بَلَىٰۚ مَنۡ أَوۡفَىٰ بِعَهۡدِهِۦ وَٱتَّقَىٰ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يُحِبُّ ٱلۡمُتَّقِينَ ٧٦

Among the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christian) is he who, if entrusted with a Qintar (a great amount of wealth), will readily pay it back to you; and among them there is he who, if entrusted with a single Dinar (a golden coin), will not repay it to you unless you constantly stand demanding, because they say: ‘There is no blame on us to betray and take the properties of the illiterates (Arabs)’. But they tell a lie against Allah while they know it. Yes, whosoever fulfils his pledge and fears Allah much; then verily Allah loves those who are Al-Muttaqun.

Surah 3 Al-Imran Verses 75-76

وَلَا تُؤۡتُواْ ٱلسُّفَهَآءَ أَمۡوَٰلَكُمُ ٱلَّتِي جَعَلَ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمۡ قِيَٰمٗا وَٱرۡزُقُوهُمۡ فِيهَا وَٱكۡسُوهُمۡ وَقُولُواْ لَهُمۡ قَوۡلٗا مَّعۡرُوفٗا ٥

And give not the foolish your property which Allah has made a means of support for you, but feed and clothe them therewith, and speak to them words of kindness and justice.

Surah 4 An-Nisa Verse 5

• Foolish here refers to: children and women (Ibn Abbas); Women and boys (Al-Hasan); Orphans (Said bin Jubayr); Women (Qatadah)
• It is advised to hold on to your money, take care of it, and be the one who spends on his wife and children for clothes, food and provisions
• Allah prohibited giving the unwise the freedom to do as they wish with wealth, which Allah has made as a means of support for people. This ruling sometimes applies because being young, as young people are incapable of making wise decisions. It also applies in cases of insanity, erratic behaviour and having a weak intellect or religious practice.
• The verse emphasizes to the community of believers that wealth/property is one of the main support of human life. It should not be left, therefore, at the mercy of those who are incompetent to handle it properly. By misusing wealth such people might destroy the bases of social and economic life and wreck the moral foundations of human society.
• Narrated Al-Mughirah bin Shubah that the Prophet (pbuh) said: ‘Allah has forbidden for you:

1. To be undutiful to your mothers
2. To bury your daughters alive
3. Not to pay the right of others; and
4. To beg of men (i.e. begging)

And Allah has hated for you:

1. Sinful and useless talks like backbiting, or that you talk too much about others
2. To ask too many questions (in disputed religious matters)
3. To waste the wealth (by extravagance; with lack of wisdom and thinking)’

يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ لَا تَأۡكُلُوٓاْ أَمۡوَٰلَكُم بَيۡنَكُم بِٱلۡبَٰطِلِ إِلَّآ أَن تَكُونَ تِجَٰرَةً عَن تَرَاضٖ مِّنكُمۡۚ وَلَا تَقۡتُلُوٓاْ أَنفُسَكُمۡۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ بِكُمۡ رَحِيمٗا ٢٩ وَمَن يَفۡعَلۡ ذَٰلِكَ عُدۡوَٰنٗا وَظُلۡمٗا فَسَوۡفَ نُصۡلِيهِ نَارٗاۚ وَكَانَ ذَٰلِكَ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ يَسِيرًا ٣٠

O you who believe! Eat not up your property among yourselves unjustly except it be a trade amongst you, by mutual consent. And do not kill yourselves. Surely Allah is Most Merciful to you. And whoever commits that through aggression and injustice, We shall cast him into the Fire, and that is easy for Allah.

Surah 4 An-Nisa Verses 29-30

• The expression ‘unjustly’ embraces all transactions which are opposed to righteousness and which are either legally or morally reprehensible. These may be Riba, gambling and other fraudulent transactions.
• ‘And do not kill yourselves’ can be considered either in conjunction with the previous line when it means that to consume wrongful property is tantamount to counting one’s own destruction; for such practices corrupt society on such a scale that even the most cunning are not spared in their destructive consequences. Taken independently, it means either or both that one should not kill others (homicide) or that one should not kill oneself (suicide)
• Narrated Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet (pbuh) said: ‘Whoever kills himself with an iron tool, then this tool will be in his hands and he will keep stabbing himself with it in the Fire of Hell forever and ever. Whoever kills himself with poison, then his poison will be in his hand and he will keep taking it in the Fire of Hell forever and ever. Whoever kills himself by throwing himself from a mountain will keep falling in the Fire of Hell forever and ever’

۞وَإِلَىٰ مَدۡيَنَ أَخَاهُمۡ شُعَيۡبٗاۚ قَالَ يَٰقَوۡمِ ٱعۡبُدُواْ ٱللَّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنۡ إِلَٰهٍ غَيۡرُهُۥۖ وَلَا تَنقُصُواْ ٱلۡمِكۡيَالَ وَٱلۡمِيزَانَۖ إِنِّيٓ أَرَىٰكُم بِخَيۡرٖ وَإِنِّيٓ أَخَافُ عَلَيۡكُمۡ عَذَابَ يَوۡمٖ مُّحِيطٖ ٨٤ وَيَٰقَوۡمِ أَوۡفُواْ ٱلۡمِكۡيَالَ وَٱلۡمِيزَانَ بِٱلۡقِسۡطِۖ وَلَا تَبۡخَسُواْ ٱلنَّاسَ أَشۡيَآءَهُمۡ وَلَا تَعۡثَوۡاْ فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ مُفۡسِدِينَ ٨٥ بَقِيَّتُ ٱللَّهِ خَيۡرٞ لَّكُمۡ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤۡمِنِينَۚ وَمَآ أَنَا۠ عَلَيۡكُم بِحَفِيظٖ ٨٦

And to the Madyan (Midian) people (We sent) their brother Shuaib. He said: “O my people! Worship Allah, you have no other Ilah (God) but Him, and give not short measure or weight, I see you in prosperity; and verily I fear for you the torment of a Day encompassing. And O my people! Give full measure and weight in justice and reduce not the things that are due to the people, and do not commit mischief in the land, causing corruption. That which is left by Allah for you (after giving the rights of the people) is better for you, if you are believers. And I am not set over you as a guardian”. They said: “O Shuaib! Does your Salat (prayer) (i.e., the prayers which you offer has spoiled your mind, so you) command that we leave off what our fathers used to worship, or that we leave off doing what we like with our property? Verily, you are the forbearer, right-minded!” (They said this sarcastically).

Surah 11 Hud Verses 84-87

وَأَوۡفُواْ ٱلۡكَيۡلَ إِذَا كِلۡتُمۡ وَزِنُواْ بِٱلۡقِسۡطَاسِ ٱلۡمُسۡتَقِيمِۚ ذَٰلِكَ خَيۡرٞ وَأَحۡسَنُ تَأۡوِيلٗا ٣٥

And give full measure when you measure, and weigh with a balance that is straight. That is good and better in the end.

Surah 17 Al-Isra Verse 35

• The verse commands use of correct weights and measures in market places, prevents from all forms of cheating and wrong-doing to others on this count.
• ‘good and better’ – such conduct will lead to felicitous results in both worlds – the present and the Next. In so far as the present life is concerned, such conduct will be advantageous since it is likely to promote mutual confidence and helps to build genuine trust between buyers and sellers which, in turn, leads to success in business and to prosperity as such (good). As for a felicitous end in the Next life, it is quite obvious that this depends entirely on faith and pious conduct in this world (better)

وَمَآ ءَاتَيۡتُم مِّن رِّبٗا لِّيَرۡبُوَاْ فِيٓ أَمۡوَٰلِ ٱلنَّاسِ فَلَا يَرۡبُواْ عِندَ ٱللَّهِۖ وَمَآ ءَاتَيۡتُم مِّن زَكَوٰةٖ تُرِيدُونَ وَجۡهَ ٱللَّهِ فَأُوْلَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلۡمُضۡعِفُونَ ٣٩

And that which you give in gift (to others), in order that it may increase (your wealth by expecting to get a better one in return) from other people’s property, has no increase with Allah, but that which you give in Zakat seeking Allah’s Countenance then those, they shall have manifold increase.

Surah 30 Ar-Rum Verse 39

وَمَآ أَمۡوَٰلُكُمۡ وَلَآ أَوۡلَٰدُكُم بِٱلَّتِي تُقَرِّبُكُمۡ عِندَنَا زُلۡفَىٰٓ إِلَّا مَنۡ ءَامَنَ وَعَمِلَ صَٰلِحٗا فَأُوْلَٰٓئِكَ لَهُمۡ جَزَآءُ ٱلضِّعۡفِ بِمَا عَمِلُواْ وَهُمۡ فِي ٱلۡغُرُفَٰتِ ءَامِنُونَ ٣٧

And it is not your wealth, nor your children that bring you nearer to Us (i.e. please Allah), but only he who believes and does righteous deeds (will please Us); as for such, there will be two fold reward for what they did, and they will reside in the high dwellings (Paradise) in peace and security.

Surah 34 Saba Verse 37

• This verse is open to two meanings and it appears that both are correct:

1. That it is not wealth and children that bring one close to Allah; rather it is one’s faith and one’s good deeds that enable one to achieve proximity with Him
2. It is possible that wealth and children might bring one close to Allah. However, this is possible only in the case of those righteous believers who spend their wealth in Allah’s Cause and who undertake their children’s education and upbringing in such a manner that they grow up being Allah-conscious and upright

وَيۡلٞ لِّكُلِّ هُمَزَةٖ لُّمَزَةٍ ١ ٱلَّذِي جَمَعَ مَالٗا وَعَدَّدَهُۥ ٢ يَحۡسَبُ أَنَّ مَالَهُۥٓ أَخۡلَدَهُۥ ٣ كَلَّاۖ لَيُنۢبَذَنَّ فِي ٱلۡحُطَمَةِ ٤

Woe to every Humazah Lumazah; Who has gathered wealth and counted it. He thinks that his wealth will make him last forever! Verily he will be thrown into the crushing Fire.

Surah 104 Al-Humazah Verse 1-4

• Al Humazah refers to slander by speech and Al-Lumazah refers to slander by action. This means that the person finds faults with people and belittles them. Mujahid said “Al-Humazah is with the hand and the eye, and Al-Lumazah is with the tongue”. The two Arabic words hamz and lamz are almost synonymous. The distinction between the two is so subtle that even Arabs define one w.r.t. the other and vice versa. Used together, they convey the idea that the person is a habitual fault-finder and backbiter. He is used to humiliating, mocking and questioning the family background. He is given to tell tales in order to sow discord among friends and family. He calls people by derogatory nicknames and ascribes all sorts of weakness to them.
• ‘gathered wealth and counted it’ – means, his wealth occupies his time in the day, going from this to that keeping a tab on investments and profits. Then when the night comes he sleeps like a rotting corpse

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