We call all people; those with a religion and those who do not profess any religion to come to know the spiritual and worldly advantages of Islam, read about it and explore its beauty. Message of Islam is not aimed at a certain group of people or people in a certain locality; it is for everyone and everywhere.
The Islamic way of life is a practical one, it is not beyond the human strength, but according to his ability, the provisions of Islam have been applied almost a thousand years in all parts of the Muslim world. The Muslim world did not lag behind in prosperity and progress but when failed in the application of those provisions.
The first part of this article has presented some characteristics of Islamic Shari`ah, now the rest part goes on as follows:
The Fifth Merit: No other
religion contains the injunctions about the prevention and restraint of
the carnal desires, evil instincts and worldly pleasures and about the
protection of the chastity and character of women as found in Islam.
Islam enjoined Hijab on women and prohibited men from casting their
looks on women, so that the chastity and character of women may not be
tarnished and offspring or progeny may not become doubtful.
Islam has prohibited dance before
marriageable men because it excites carnal instincts and leads to sexual
violence and harassment.
Islam has prohibited alcoholic drink because it takes away the ability
of reasoning which is the most valuable gift from Allah Almighty for
mankind. Therefore, Islamic Shari`ah has prohibited all kinds of drugs
and intoxicating materials that cause the destruction and annihilation
of reasoning power and thinking ability. People should be thankful to
Islam which has protected our mind and reasoning capabilities, upon
which depend our faith and all worldly affairs.
Islam has prohibited usury and gambling that are the causes of man’s spiritual and ethical collapse. Islam enjoins you to give ‘Qard Hasan‘
(loan without interest) to others when they need it. That is, you
should help them by offering loan without interest because interest in
Islam has been regarded a sort of charity. Help the needy when they are
in need and give loans to them without making them feel obliged. Allah
is not Kind to one who is not kind to men. This is the teaching of
Islam.
The creed of usury tells you that you should take advantage of the
miseries and needs of the needy, and should increase wealth by giving
loan on interest to them, without doing any work or labor. If the debtor
is unable to pay the debt in time, give him further time with a smiling
face, so that the interest is doubled and tripled and you may
eventually put his house and property to auction.
The results of usury are briefly as follows:
1) Mutual help and obligation come to an end.
2) It makes a man hard-hearted instead of kind-hearted.
3) One addicted to this evil is pleased to see others in trouble and he
is always on the look out to find a needy person so that by showing
sympathy, he may be able to entrap him in the net of loan and get his
property auctioned.
4) When avarice and greed of wealth increase, one’s conscience teaches one various ways of dishonesty and fraud.
5) Gradually such a person becomes lazy and a pleasure-seeker. When he
sees that he collected so much wealth to enable him to earn thousands,
rather millions of rupees without any exertion and labor, he does not
care to take the trouble of indulging in trade, cultivation of land or
industry, upon which depends the progress of the country. If the
capitalists invest their capital only to secure interest and do not
establish any industrial factory, the country will never make any
progress.
In short, Islam has completely prohibited indulgence in revelry and
carnal desires, and has made adequate provision for the protection of
honor, chastity of women, lineage and progeny. It has also prohibited
the curse of usury, because Islam does not tolerate such an acquisition
of money which generates dishonesty, fraud, cruelty, hard-heartedness
and pleasure over the trouble of the afflicted.
Communism exhorts the poor to rob the capital of the capitalists and bring them down to the level of beggars and laborers.
But Islam enjoins the rich and wealthy people to pay Zakah and to help
the poor by giving alms to them without letting other people know of it
in the least. It is not valid for you to let your neighbor go to bed
hungry. When you give alms and charity to anybody, you should not press
your obligation upon him, but you should thank Allah Who enabled you to
help others, because if Allah loves those who help others. If any needy
person be not inclined to accept charity, help him by giving Qard Hasan (Loan without interest) to him.
Islam enjoins the poor not to cast their looks on the property of
others, to remain content with their own poverty, rather, to be grateful
to Allah because poverty is also a blessing which was conferred by
Allah on His friends. Prophet Ibrahim, Prophet Musa and Prophet `Isa
(peace be upon them) were blessed with the gift of poverty and He
granted Namrud, Pharaoh and the Jews the attractive sovereignty of this
temporary world. When the rulers of states were intoxicated with power,
wealth and position and became as proud and haughty as to defy that
Allah had granted them the kingdom, but Allah destroyed them all in no
time. Now you may compare the preaching of communism with the teachings
of Islam.
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Islam is a balanced religion that coincides with human nature and need, and has neither excessiveness nor remissness.
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