The Life & Character of the Seal of Prophets (sa) – Volume III — Page 56
Seal of the Prophets - Volume III 56 easily, sitting idle, which is entirely in contradiction to the economic perspective of Islām. The above-mentioned four fundamental points have only been mentioned with the thought of brevity, otherwise Islām has devised many ways in its economic system to distribute national wealth. The intent of Islām is that on the one hand, the process of personal struggle and effort continues, thus the pathway to reap the fruits of one’s personal labour remains open to every individual, as this is the greatest motivation for labour and progress in the world. On the other hand, it strives to prevent the inequitable accumulation of the country’s wealth into the hands of a few. It is this moderate course of action, which if adopted could save Muslims from the paths of excessive abundance and extreme deprivation. Government is Responsible for the Disabled However, despite these means, if a portion of the country cannot fulfil their needs from within their lawful income on account of their being ill, or incompetent, or on account of having a large family, with relevance to this, Islām instructs that the responsibility for the fulfilment of the basic necessities of such people, which relate to food, clothing and lodging, lay upon the government. It has made responsible to arrange for the basic needs of such people by state funds. Moreover, so too was the case in the era of the Holy Prophet sa and his Khulafā’ur-Rāshidīn. As such, there is a narration that when the chieftain of the region of Baḥrain became Muslim, the Holy Prophet sa sent him the following guidance: ً اِفْرِض ْ عَلی ٰ كُل ِّ رَجُل ٍ لَیْس َ لَه ٗ اَرْض ٌ اَرْبَعَة َ دَرَاھِم َ وَعَبَاءَة “From among those who do not own property, every individual should be given 4 Dirhams and clothing for sustenance from state funds. ” 1 1 Sharḥul-‘Allāmatiz-Zarqānī ‘Alal-Mawāhibil-Ladunniyyah, By Allāmah Shihābuddīn Al-Qusṭalānī, Volume 5, p. 36, Wa Ammā Mukātabatuhū ‘Alaihiṣ-Ṣalātu Was-Salāmu Ilal-Mulūki Wa Ghairihim / Wa Kataba Sallallāhu ‘Alaihi Wa Sallama Ilā Mundhar-ibni Sāwā , Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (1996)