Jurisprudence Biography Of The Prophet (pbuh)

Jurisprudence Biography of The Prophet (PBUH) Lesson 53 The pillars That Prophet Established in Islamic Economy By: Dr.Muhammad Rateb Al-Nabulsi Translated by : Salma Haddad, USA In The Name Of God the Most Merciful, the Most Gracious Dear brothers and sisters, with this new lesson of the prophet’s jurisprudence biography series and we’re still in Medina almunawara where the prophet (PBUH) was still building the foundations and basics, (foundations of social relations, and foundation of education.). In the previous meeting we started with the economics foundation and we explained the development of resources and the development of relations. If we want to take a good look at the basics and foundations the prophet (PBUH) carved in Islamic economy we will found that there are some points we have to talk about:

The First Base: Economy in religion: economy is based on religion and regulating the economic relationship between Muslims, also education, reforming the daily things we deal with, and securing human needs, all that should be based on religion. I don’t believe that any one understood the religion or understood how we should live the religion as the prophet (the best of the creature and god beloved one) did, he was the first human to understand religion for what it is by living it and treating others based on it, here are some examples : - Once he saw a young man praying while working hours, prophet (PBUH) asked him: “who is supporting you?” the young man replied: “my brother”, Prophet (PBUH) said: “your brother is a better worshipper than you”. - In another story he grabbed one of his friend’s (Sahaba) hand and it was rough from working, the prophet lifted it up and said: “God and his prophet loves this hand “ - Once, while he was with his friends (Sahaba) and they saw a young man going to work some of the prophet friends (Sahaba) said: “We hope

that he is going to do his work with the intention of serving god” , the prophet replied to them: “who works to feed his family or to feed his children then his work will be considered as serving god?” Our generous prophet gave the religion wide meanings, for example if you were in your store trading/selling products to other Muslims with honesty, giving them good products with fare prices, that will be considered worshiping god as well. If you were a doctor in your clinic dealing with your patients sincerely and mastery with fare prices, that means you are worshiping god too. When you are a farmer in your field trying to alleviate hardship on the nation (the ummah), you are providing them agricultural products without importing the harmful substances that is considered as an act of worshiping god. When we understand that Islam is a lifestyle and when we practice it, we will see that economy is part from our religion, when Muslims separated life from religion, religion for us became just about praying and there are other areas we need to practice it within our religion. When Muslims went far from this true understanding they became weak and everybody else start looking at us as an easy target. As I always say your religion won’t be respected unless you excelled in your life. Muslim without a job asking for financial aid, getting shaky and weakening in front of the powerful and rich people, is that a good picture of the Muslim, we want to represent our religion??? Prophet (PBUH) said “The upper hand, the person who gives, is better than the lower hand, the person who takes” - Albukhari from hakim ben hezam I assure you again that the religion is the base of economy, opening a store making halal money, paying your (zakat) helping the poor and needy, raising your children well and providing their needs because as some of the sahaba said : “the good money is the one that protect my honor and makes me closer to god”. So working is based on religion and it should be treated as part of it. If your work is based right and you did it in the right way, serving Muslims without lying or cheating and if you perfected your job it might be the reason for you to enter paradise. The more we (Muslims) progress the stronger we will be, the weak Muslim is the one that imports everything and doesn’t invent or export anything, staying under the mercy of the powerful rich countries importing food, clothes and tools from them. Not being able to buy weapons because the powerful countries won’t allow that. Muslims will be then under the mercy of others ruling, isn’t that right? Prophets friend “Omar” was surprised when he went to a town and found all the economic activities in the non-Muslims hands he asked them even blamed them for that they replied as if they were lazy rich people:

“God created them to serve us” here Omar said: “how would you feel if you become their slaves ?” . Production is strength and consumption is weakness. For example if you bought a car and something broke in it and you want to fix it, if they told you it will cost 1,000, 5,000, 10,000, 40,000, or 150,000 Syrian lira you will respond “ok” because you want it to be fixed. That’s called an agreement. They sold us an aircraft engine for 5 million dollars and four engines are worth 20 million dollars (one billion Syrian liras) with that amount of money how many tons of wheat or cotton or clothes we can export. When they ruled the science they ruled us. I am talking from reality, let me tell you this; if we Muslims kept thinking ‘this is life’, ‘we just hope for heaven’ we will lose life and the afterlife. We have to work hard and we have to be strong, the first doctor, teacher, lawyer, engineer, merchant, or the first inventor, what’s with the defeatist attitude?! Work and take high education get the PhD and be good at it. If we don’t succeed in our jobs we won’t have the future that we are looking for. We have to do our jobs perfectly and even if the market is depressed, no matter how much unemployed people there are, you will guarantee a decent income all the time. There might be ten people working in same major that you are in 90% of these ten won’t have work and 10% might be booked for the next 6 months. Prophet (PBUH) said:” God loves those who do their best perfecting their work” _baheqi / from Aisha – Swear to god I respect all Muslims but when I see anybody else succeeding in his work I have to admit that he is a successful person in his life. A friend of mine mentioned to me the incredible amount of money his software company is making and he has 100 employees, each one of them has a decent income. The company is solving problems for a hundred people by giving them a job; this is the Muslim I really look up to. The West is ruling the world and they are ruling us too; they are controlling us by imposing their culture on us, they abused our kids and families and they made us serve them, I was touched by these words (economy is from religion). Brothers and sisters once again: your religion won’t be respected if you don’t succeed in your life. In some Islamic country, the direction against Islam was strong, and when they tried to get rid of Islamic direction they were surprised that 60% from the economy of that country was in Muslims hands, they were shocked and they stopped. Don’t be weak be strong within the rules and laws because we don’t want to be careless, unprofessional or not developing our work because our work is not separated from our religion.

The second base: Halal and Haram according to Islamic law:Work in halal walk away from haram even if haram was worth millions you don’t want it have the faith that god will bless your halal money even if it was less than haram money. “Asking for halal is a duty (fareeda) after the main duties” – tabarani/from ibn maso’udOf course before starting your project or business you have to study it first and organize the place you’ll be working in and make everything tidy and clean, get the best products for fare price, organize your working hours and if you pay attention for all that you will shine and succeed. Believe me my brothers what or whenever you excelled in your work you will always succeed and win, sometimes you‘ll see a company opening branches here and there, they are succeeding, why do you think that’s happening? Of course because they are studying it and doing their job perfectly. Make your job serving other Muslims: I have students that are doctors in life I told them once (of course to all my students the doctors and the others), but especially to doctors: put your money under your feet and you will win it. If money is your purpose in life, you’ll lose it. Your job is to cure people and don’t ask about money, you will shine and you will be rich, people will be looking forward to meet you, but if you are after your patients money and if you don’t pay attention to the advise you are giving them sooner or later they will find out that and they will go some where else. This is really sensitive point: make your purpose to serve Muslims, make your purpose to provide some thing valuable, make it your purpose to be strong. We forget some times that our prophet words were holy words and we forget to practice what he asked us to, Read carefully those words from our prophet (PBUH): “The strong Muslim is better and beloved more by god than the weak Muslim” –muslim/abu horayra may Allah be please with himBe strong with your money and education, be successful and earn your self an important position that you can solve other people problems with just one signature from you.

So if we forget about life itself and if we abandon it by saying “we don’t care about education”, just don’t forget that everything in life is based on it. To those who are without a job or certificate and leaning on people to help them even if they were good Muslims, even if they were crying and melting from faith I will tell them “NO” we don’t want that, go work and study, succeed in your job, make money, get married, have kids, socialize. If you succeed in your life you will succeed in your faith and religion. Halal and haram are in god’s hand, even if the haram was attempting kick it because you don’t want it, and hold on to the halal. The prophet’s friend Abu Baker Sedeeq, the day he became khaleefa on the Muslim nation he held the fabric on his shoulders and he went out to sell it to make some money, when other sahaba saw him they stopped him and they gave him what he needs. Once I met PhD student in his third year in university, he told me that his brother is paying for his education expenses, and his mother expenses too... his brother job was selling chandelier, swear to god this story made me wonder how this simple man by selling chandeliers is providing good life for his younger brother and mother. It hurts me when I see Muslims so poor and far away from being powerful and other people are controlling them, those Muslims situation is just really sad. Prophet (PBUH) said: “Who weakening in front of rich person, lost 2/3 of his faith” “Ask for what you need with dignity, because you will only get what’s yours” So Muslims should have dignity and working is an honor for human. when you see a mechanic while he is working you will see him wearing dirty clothes that you can’t really tell the color of it because it was changed by the dirt, the oil, and the mud (maybe they were blue in the past) and since he is a mechanic this is his job and he will be full of oil, but when he gets home at evening he will clean him self and wear something clean because the day is over, its like an honor reward for him. We have to think about this deeply: don’t look at religion as something just for your end, understand the religion in what it is in reality, and how to live it in your daily bases too. Religion is life and I hope every body will have successful majors in this life and to be strong preachers calling people to recognize Allah.

The third base: The investments: investing is a duty that god asked us to do he gave us the land and the sea, for example what’s the point if you have one million lira if you let it set your going to pay 25,000 zakat on it for four years 40,000 for zakat on your one million, in 40 years the million will disappear If you let your money set without investing it you will lose it. For example: A man living in his father’s house, his father bought the house long time ago for cheap price in some old fancy Damascus towns now it’s worth 30 million if he doesn’t sell it that amount of money will just set there, 30 million will solve hundred problem sell the house and buy 5 million worth house with the rest of the money start a company have an employee you will win, then buy another house change and develop till you feel that you gave something. I want to ask you one question, and every once a while I want you to ask it to your self, what did you provide this nation (the ummah) with? Did you carry any of the nation problems on your shoulder? Did you try to ease the pain from this nation? Some body might have an apple farm business and he will start selling his products with acceptable price... he provided apples with less price and good quality if we all work we will provide something to this nation but if you don’t we will need some one to help us and provide us with our needs . I always said : there is people around me its either I have to carry them by my self or they carry the massage of Islam with me and the difference is huge between who helps you to carry and who you have to carry let’s be god slave’s that gives don’t be god slave’s that always takes .

The forth base: Honesty, without cheating or fraud, and not to Extortion: There is no place for lying or cheating or fraud in the Islamic economy system. As the prophet (PBUH) said: “ the greatest winning is the traders benefit those who if they tell they wont lie and they won’t betray, and if they promise they will

keep their promises, and if they buy from you they wont insult what they are buying, and if they sell they wont try to cheat, and if they have debt’s on them they wont take long to pay it, and if you owe them debt, they wont make it hard on you to pay it” When you make your money in halal way every body will benefit from it because if every body make their money in halal way no one will cheat there will be no monopolizing if every body goes with the prices within the law all the prices will drop the prices will be acceptable and affordable but if we monopolize some of the items and no one can find it in the market the prices for that item of course will go higher and that’s forbidden (haram) , there are some rules in our economy Islamic system if we work with it the seller and the buyer will benefit from it . The forbidden income that based on benefits and built on harm: I would like to explain to you that there is: forbidden income based on benefits and built on harm, and in the other hand there’s halal income that’s based on traded benefit, for example a person that has money but he is not good in investing it and there is another person with experience with no money if they work with together they will both benefit , if you were a agricultural engineer and some one gave you five million to start a business and you start selling agricultural items you are an expert in what your doing everybody will benefit by buying and selling keeping the competition and investing because its based on traded benefit , but the forbidden income is based on harm if you monopolized an item you will increase the price on that item. Now there are some plants fertilizers in a country and it has one supplier and he agrees with the head company they will tell him that the liter is for 5oo Syrian lira but he’ll sell higher 700-700, 1000-1000 monopolizing. That’s why in the west they don’t allow any invention to be monopolized from one company or one side, anything should be sold to two companies so they will compete, and that competition will be good for the customer’s side, That’s why the competitive community is a wonderful community the monopolized community is so cruel and for some reason we are in old mind brains loving to monopolize, some will tell you: this is mine my company, I say to those people (NO) that monopolizing might given you a very high benefit but that’s just for few of you on the expense of all the other nation . Islam gave justice in sharing the wealth and in how to treat and compete between all the members of this Muslim community with that competition who is the winner? It is the customer of course. For example there is this soap and it has an offer (it has a little box of something) and the other soap company has another offer in this case who is benefiting from the offers? It is the customer, but if there were monopolizing the customer needs will be used that’s why it’s wrong.

Economy is the basic line in life and if we can be stronger we will relax. You have to succeed in all your personal and social majors: I am telling you these last words: there is nothing called partial success if you succeed in your work and you failed in your home that is not succeeding if you’re succeeding in you home and work and you’re not succeeding in you’re the religion-faith part. That’s not succeeding too, and if you were succeeding in your relation with god, but don’t have job in your hand or any thing to live from your not successful and you are leaning on somebody to help you. You got to succeed in all sides and areas in your life and most important part is your relationship with god, get to know him better, practice and do what he asked you to do be where he asked you to be and don’t be where he asked you not to be, succeed with your family too. There is a lot of successful people, but they are a failure with there wives and children, you have to succeed with your wife and kids, and with your health, by doing what your supposed to do. Believe me my brothers the medication usage in the third world countries is hundred percent more than other countries because they are not educated for example if somebody likes salt he will put a lot of it on his food and he will have high blood pressure, and high blood pressure doesn’t have an alert so he wont know that he have it all the sudden he will have a brain damage, and he wont have anything in his house to help him while he is dealing with the silent killer (blood pressure). We need to educate our selves and we should acknowledge things in this life. “A strong Muslim is better and beloved more by god than the weak Muslim” You have to succeed with your god and family and your body and in your job if you didn’t succeed in all of that then your success is not considered a success. For example a man will travel to another country to make some extra money when he comes back he has money to buy two houses, but his children became bad, having bad friends and spending their life’s on the streets and their mother is visiting with the neighbors, their not praying, not fasting this is a success but a damaged family came with it . I assure you this: the true and real success is the success in everything with god, family, kids, work and body you won’t be considered successful unless you got all above things, this is what I believe in. Sahaba (the prophet friends) they succeed they used to pray all night and they used to be knights at daytime, our prophet (PBUH) before he passed away he looked with a smile to sahaba and said: “Wise and intelligent from their knowledge they could have been prophets” (He meant the Sahaba) The true believer (Muslim) personality is really interesting you will admire his wide knowledge and good manners he is an elegant person

his house is clean and in good shape. He is always on time; he is successful with his wife and kids even if he is poor he will be the same in all that that’s the true believer (the true Muslim). (And whose affair (deeds) has been lost (28) Surat alkahf The level of faith as science, knowledge and elegance: If there is somebody with no plans and no respect toward time with messy house and not perfected work even he loves god, this example is declined because true believers should have strong smart personality since faith is considered as scientific level. “God wont accept an ignorant person that doesn’t know anything, if he wants to accept them, he will teach them” Faith is an ethical level too, if true Muslim tells you something he won’t lie and he will treat you, well he doesn’t go after his lust and needs, faith is elegance too it has its own touch of beauty on life with a very high taste so many people will be attracted to this faith, you might find this person and he is mean, malicious, but he is an elegant-smelling good– looking good kind of person too and you’ll see another person with a kind heart and sweet heart, but you won’t like the way he looks. We like people that we respect or love we like to respect the perfect-successful person. Dear brothers we are facing a huge problem now, our religion won’t be respected because it’s our fault, you get one life to live so succeed at it because winning your life is winning your afterlife. And thanks to god the god of the whole universe