The
last revelation of the Qur’an
In the last revelation of the Qur’an Allah Most Wise,
chose to return to a subject which had already been dealt with in earlier
revelations – in the Qur’an, as well as in the Torah, the Psalms, and the
Gospel – namely the subject of the prohibition of Riba. On the authority
of Ahadith we know that the last revelation received by the blessed Prophet
(sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) shortly before his death, was the passage
in Surah alBaqarah (2:279-281) which dealt with Riba:
“Umar ibn Khattab said: The last verse to be
revealed was on Riba, but Allah's Messenger was taken without having expounded
it to us; so give up not only Riba but also Reebah (i.e., whatever raises
doubts in the mind about its rightfulness).”
(Sunan, Ibn Majah;
Darimi)
“Ibn Abbas said: O you who believe, fear Allah
and give up what remains (due to you) from Riba (from now onwards) if you are
indeed believers….And none shall be dealt with unjustly. (al-Baqarah,
2:279-281). Ibn Abbas said: This was the last verse revealed to the
Prophet.”
(Sahih, Bukhari)
That last revelation confirmed the Prophet’s retroactive
enforcement of the legislation prohibiting Riba in the khutbah al-wida’a (Farewell Sermon)
from ’Arafat. The last revelation is to be found in this passage from
the Qur’an. We quote the entire passage with our own explanatory
comments in small type:
“Those who spend of their wealth by day and by night, secretly
and openly, for such there will be reward with their Lord, nor will they have
cause for fear, nor will they grieve.”
(Provided that wealth is spent in a
manner that is Halal, such spending will stimulate the economy and put wealth
into circulation.)
“Those (on the other hand) who consume Riba will not stand
(before Allah on the Last Day) except as though Satan drove them to madness
with his touch (this
is because Riba represents the opposite of ‘spending’ – in Riba wealth is
sucked out of the economy until the masses are reduced to poverty and
destitution.)”
“That is because they say business and Riba are similar to each
other.” (They
argue that ‘lending money on interest’ is a legitimate form of business.)
“But Allah has permitted business and forbidden Riba.” (Their argument is false. Allah has
made business Halal but has made Riba Haram. And so Riba is not a form of
business. This is because the very essence of a legitimate business transaction
is that it must admit of the possibility of either a profit or a loss. When
money is lent on interest the possibility of a loss is so minimized that it is
almost eliminated! Hence the lending of money on interest cannot qualify as a
business transaction.)
“And so, anyone who receives (this) warning from his Lord and
thereupon desists (from Riba) may keep his past gains (i.e., the Riba he
previously accepted), and his affair rests with Allah (i.e., it will be for Allah to judge
him – he will not be forced by the Islamic State to return the Riba he had
taken.)
“But as for those who return to it (i.e., persist in Riba by way of lending money on interest, for
example, after this revelation of the Qur’an), they are destined for the fire, therein to
abide forever!”
“(And with this) Allah eradicates Riba,
whereas He blesses charitable deeds with manifold increase (because the essence of Riba is to ‘take’ and to ‘give’
nothing in return, while the essence of charity is to ‘give’ and ‘take’ nothing
in return).”
“And Allah does not love anyone who is stubbornly ingrate and
who persists in sin (with
particular reference to the sin of consuming Riba).”
“Verily, those who have attained to faith and do good works, and
are constant in prayer, and dispense charity, they shall have their reward from
their Lord, and no fear need they have, and neither shall they grieve.”
“O you who have attained to faith, fear Allah and give up all
the Riba which is outstanding (i.e., which you still claim to be due to you) if
you are truly believers. If you do not do so (i.e., if you persist in lending money
on interest even after declaring yourselves to be Muslims) then take
notice of (a declaration of) war from Allah and His Messenger (i.e.,
take notice that Muslims who abide by Islam would wage war against you for the
liberation of all those who are oppressed because of Riba).”
“But if you turn away (i.e., if you give up Riba) then you shall
have (i.e., you will be entitled to reclaim) only your principal sums (which you had lent on the basis of
Riba; i.e., you may have only the principal sum – not the principal sum plus a
reasonable amount of interest, or not the principal sum plus a service
charge).”
“Deal not unjustly and you shall not be dealt with unjustly.” (This might more properly be translated
as follows: In accepting the return of only the principal sum lent you will
spare yourself from the sin of being unjust to others, and in giving up the
interest which was due to you, you will not, yourself, be subjected to any form
of injustice.)
“And if the debtor is in difficulty, grant him time until it is
easy for him to repay. But if you remit it (i.e., if you write off the debt) by
way of charity, that will be best for you, if you only knew.”
“And fear the Day in which you (i.e., all of mankind including
those who consume Riba) will be brought back to Allah, then every human being
will receive what it earned, and none shall be wronged."
(Qur’an, al-Baqarah, 2:274-281)
Why did Allah, Most Wise, choose to send one more revelation
shortly before the death of the Prophet (‘alaihi al-Salam)? Why did He
choose a time that appears to have been the last possible time to send that
revelation? Why did He do this after sending revelation in which He announced
the perfection of Din and the
completion of His favor to the believers?
There must surely be very important answers to all these
questions. It appears to us that such a last
revelation could only properly be used to reiterate something that lay at the
very heart of the divine guidance. Additionally, it could be used to direct
attention to that part of the divine guidance in which the faith of the
believers would be most vulnerable to a future attack (the mother of all
attacks) by enemies of Islam. Finally, it may have come at the last
because it would assume a position of absolutely strategic importance in the
Last Age. And Allah knows best!
The choice of the subject of Riba as the last
revelation appears to constitute the most dire of all warnings that Riba can pose the gravest of all threats to
the faith, freedom, and power of the believers. This subject is of supreme
importance for herein lies the potential for the most dangerous, destructive,
and devastating attack on the faith of the believers and the integrity and
power of the Ummah of the Prophet (‘alaihi al-Salam).
to be continued....
No comments:
Post a Comment