The Economic System of Islam — Page 18
18 electricity, gold, silver, and other precious metals as well as drugs and chemicals that are used to treat illnesses. There is limitless variety of produced goods, some for personal consumption, some for industry as raw materials, and some are traded internationally. God reminds us that everything has been created for the benefit of mankind. No individual can lay exclusive claim upon these re- sources, whether it is a Pharaoh, a Hitler, a Churchill or a Roose- velt. Everything that has been created is for the benefit of the entire human race, including the rulers and the ruled, the high and the low, the superior and the subservient. No one may claim that God has created these things only for his own personal use. The Quran tells us that ‘I have created this for you’ and that we are all collective claimants of His creation. Islamic Injunction on the Use of Wealth The Quran spells out the following principle regarding the true purpose of wealth: 10 [And give them out of the wealth of Allah which He has bestowed upon you. ] The pronoun ‘them’ in this passage, as shown by the context, stands for slaves, i. e. prisoners of war who are not in a position to ransom 10 S u rah an-N u r, 24:34, (publishers)