THE PROHIBITION OF RIBA IN THE
QUR’AN AND SUNNAH
by: Imran N. Hosein
When the poor are permanently poor, and the rich, permanently rich, that is oppression! When the poor are growing poorer, and the rich, richer, then it will end in slavery. All around the world today that economic oppression exists, and is constantly increasing. Riba is the cause! A predatory global elite, which arose in modern godless western civilization, but which has spawned equally predatory offspring all over the world, is constantly sucking the wealth of mankind and impoverishing the masses through Riba. The ultimate objective, of which some are still unaware, is to deceive and entrap all of mankind in a new sophisticated slavery. Political, economic, legal, and judicial systems, the police and the armed forces, the media etc., are all controlled by that oppressive elite and all function to preserve and protect the system of oppression. But most people do not recognize this because of their ignorance, and because the system operates by way of deception. In fact the system is, in many respects, a system of legalized theft.
Riba, which is usually translated as usury, exists in many different forms, one of which is 'lending money on interest'. When money is lent on interest then money itself, independent of any labor or effort on the part of the lender, increases over time. The principle that is established is 'time equals money'. The Qur'an gives a totally different principle: "Man shall have nothing except that for which he has worked." In other words, 'effort', not 'time', equals money!
What happens when money is lent on interest is that money increases through the sweat of the borrower, or the masses. The increase is realized through the exploitation of labor, the value of goods and property. The value of labor constantly decreases, and successful businesses, including those which are honored with awards, exploit their labor force with long hours of work and 'dog' pay. There are adult men with families in Trinidad who now work full-time for US$130. or TT$800. per month. That is slave labor. The predatory elite lives of the sweat of such people. Paper money, which is also Riba, keeps on losing its value. And so wages and prices must always struggle to keep up with falling value. It is a hopeless struggle. They almost never succeed. Wealth is deceptively sucked from the masses.
Islam has strictly prohibited Riba, yet the world today, including the Muslim world, is saturated with Riba. Not only must the believers wage a struggle to keep themselves free from Riba but, also, they must exert themselves to combat Riba and to bring relief (ma'oun) to suffering humanity. That struggle can best be described as a revolutionary struggle. Those believers who do not engage in that struggle, even if they otherwise display all the external paraphernalia of 'ibadah, are hollow in their faith. The rest of the believers should not be deceived.
This book attempts to present the otherwise complex subject of Riba in a way which is simple, and easily comprehensible. It offers a definition of Riba, describes the importance of the subject, analyzes the verses of the Qur'an dealing with Riba, and enumerates the different forms of Riba as identified in the ahadith.
The book also refutes the false opinions that modern bank interest is not Riba, - that borrowing on interest for housing etc., is permissible because of the doctrine of necessity (darura), - that borrowing on interest in western countries is permissible because these countries are Dar al-Harb, - and that buying 'cash' and selling 'credit' with a 'mark-up' (see Muslim Credit Union) is permissible because it is not Riba. All those opinions are not just false, but dangerously false. All those transactions are Riba and, thus, Haram! Terrible, terrible punishment awaits those who persist in Riba even after the divine warning has reached them.
The book also has an Appendix of Questions and Answers on Riba.
Published in Malaysia
218 pages Price US$10.00
S$16.00 in Singapore
ANSARI MEMORIAL SERIES
- Dreams in Islam - A Window to Truth and to the Heart;
- The Religion of Abraham and the State of Israel - A View from the Qur’an;
- The Importance of the Prohibition of Riba in Islam;
- The Prohibition of Riba in the Qur’an and Sunnah;
- The Caliphate the Hejaz and the Saudi-Wahhabi Nation- State;
- One Jama’at - One Ameer: The Organization of a Muslim Community in the Age of Fitan;
- The Strategic Significance of The Fast of Ramadan and Isra’ and Mi’raj.
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P. O. Box 11123
50736 Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia
Email: umma@tm.net.my
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Last Updated on: April
17, 1998