Surah al-Baqarah

The Cattle (2) - Ayah 282

In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

Commentary:

• You should try to relate your consumption to your income remembering the saying of the Prophet (peace be upon him), "May God prevent me from sin and borrowing." You are not supposed to borrow unless it is necessary.

Get Your Intentions Straight!

• A scholar of Islam once said, "Whoever borrows with pure intention, God will pay for him; and whoever borrows with the intention of being extravagant and wasteful, God will ruin him."
   
• Nowadays, it is very easy for individuals and nations to fall into debt. The availability and widespread use of credit cards make it very easy for people to run up large shopping bills and debts.
   
• Instead of being a facility, credit cards have become a source of burden and a millstone for many people. Resulting debts have created mental strain and worry, and also family and social tension.

• When friends and relatives borrow from one another it is generally considered unseemly either to commit these loans to writing, or to have them attested by witnesses. Such an act is considered a sign of distrust.

• However, God enjoins that whenever loans or business transactions take place, their conditions should be recorded in black and white and should be attested by witnesses so that there remains no ground for misunderstanding or dispute.

• In times such as ours, when every action, whether at personal, social, political, or economic level is recorded and computerized, we may be able to appreciate the practicality, wisdom, and sophistication of the commandments of Allah and the Prophet (peace be upon him), given to us as a blessing, over 1400 years ago! Subhan-Allah.

   

• In a Hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) mentioned that there are three kinds of people whose grievances and Duaas will not be accepted or heeded by Allah. One of them is a person who loans out his money to a person without making anyone a witness to that transaction. [at-Tabari]