Working in Banks, Loans and Interest
Mu' meneen
Brothers and Sisters,
As Salaam Aleikum wa
Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be
upon all of you)
One of our
brothers/sisters has asked this question:
Dear brother Burhan!
Assalam Alaikum Wa Rahmatullah-e-Wabarakatuh,
First of all, All Praises are for Allah Subhanah, who
guided us to the right path through the Holy Quran
and the Sunnah of his Prophet (S.A.W). Next, I must
pay great regards to u for the noble task of guiding people in the light of
Holy Quran and Sunnah, that
u are beautifully carrying on...May Allah Bless you and reward you the best for
your efforts, and May Allah Almighty guide us to the right way, and May Allah
Almighty help us understand and follow the Glorious book of Holy Quran and Sunnah of his Prophet
(S.A.W).
Dear brother! I have a query regarding THE PEOPLE WHO WORK IN BANKS, AND FOR
THOSE WHO KEEP ACCOUNTS (BOTH THE PROFIT AND LOSS SHARING AND CURRENT), IN THE
BANKS.
1.) Brother! Please do help me understand the issue in the light of Holy Quran and Sunnah, that if a
person is working in bank as an officer, and is not directly involved in
interest handling, then whether his income is right (Halaal)
or wrong (Haraam).
2.) Moreover, are we not appreciating the interest banking by keeping our
accounts with such banks; and being clients of these banks, are we not directly
involved in interest (Riba)?
3.) The government of my country has borrowed heavy loans from the IMF and
World Bank, and pays them interests over these loans. When I am a citizen of
this country as well as a government officer, I am loyal to this goverment, so, in this case, is my income also unacceptable
(Haraam) as I am drawing this income directly from
government?
Please solve these confusions in the light of the Glorious book of Quran, and Sunnah of the Prophet
(S.A.W). Allah Almighty will reward you for this on the day
of judgment (Insha Allah
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Answer:
Working in Banks,
Loans and Interest
In the
name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness.
Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray,
none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no
person, no grave, no prophet, no imam,
no dai,
nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws)
is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.
Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 274-276:But those who devour riba
become like the one whom Shaitaan has bewitched and
maddened by his touch. They have been condemned
to this condition because they say, Trade is just like riba, whereas Allah
has made trade halaal and riba
haraam.
Henceforth, if one abstains from
taking riba after receiving this admonition from
his Lord, no legal action shall be taken
against him regarding the riba he had devoured
before: his case shall ultimately go to
Allah. But if one repeats the same
crime even after this,
he shall go to Hell, where
he shall abide for ever! Allah deprives
riba of all blessing and develops charity, and Allah does not
like an ungrateful, sinful person.
Allah says further in the Holy Quran
Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah
verse 278:O Believers!, fear Allah and give up that riba which is still due to you, if you are true believers. But if you do not do so, then you are warned of the declaration of war against you
by Allah and His Messenger!
Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisa verse 161:That they took riba, although they were forbidden. And that they devoured mens substance
wrongfully. We have prepared for those
among them who reject faith a grievous punishment (of Hell Fire)!
Q-1: Brother! Please do help me understand the
issue in the light of Holy Quran and Sunnah, that if a person is working in bank as an officer, and
is not directly involved in interest handling, then whether his income is right
(Halaal) or wrong (Haraam).
Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2829 Narrated by Ali ibn
AbuTalib
Ali heard Allah's Messenger (saws) invoke the curse of Allah on
those who took usury, those who paid it, those who recorded it,
and those who refused to give sadaqah.
When
Allah and His Messenger (saws) have declared something forbidden, then to derive any
income from such an establishment would also be forbidden. Thus, if one is seeking employment, he should fear Allah, abstain from seeking work in a conventional
bank. But if one is already working in
a conventional bank,
it would be prudent for him to seek repentance of Allah, and search immediately for another place to
employ his talents; and when he finds an
appropriate job, resign from the present
bank job. And if one does this move
purely for the sake of Allah Subhanah, it is expected that
the Bounteous Lord will enrich him from His Infinite resources and give him a
huge reward for his efforts to obey the
commands of Allah and His Messenger (saws).
Q-2: Moreover, are we not
appreciating the interest banking by keeping our accounts with such banks; and
being clients of these banks, are we not directly involved in interest (Riba)?
Sunan of Abu-Dawood Hadith 3325 Narrated
by Abu Hurayrah
The Prophet (saws) said: A time is certainly coming to mankind
when only the receiver of usury will remain, and if he does not receive it,
some of its vapour will reach him.
Unfortunately, we live in those
times today. The Prophet (saws) said
that a time will come,
when even if one tries his utmost to stay away from riba, the whole
society and surroundings will be so much engrossed in riba, that some of its vapour
or dust will reach this pious person.
There are
several reputed Islamic banks and institutions in the world today who are
engaged in doing transactions which are approved by Shariah. A believer, who truly wants to stay away from
dealing in Riba,
may use the services of any of these Islamic banks; and Allah Subhanah
will reward him for his intentions to stay pure of the evil of riba.
Q-3: The government of my country
has borrowed heavy loans from the IMF and World Bank, and pays them interests
over these loans. When I am a citizen of this country as well as a government
officer, I am loyal to this goverment, so, in this
case, is my income also unacceptable (Haraam) as I am
drawing this income directly from government?
Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith
1.1 Narrated by Umar
bin Al Khattab
I heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) saying, "The reward of
deeds depends upon the intentions, and every person will get the reward
according to what he has intended."
If one
has voted for such a government to power who indulges in riba,
or one is satisfied with his heart at his governments indulgence in riba; then indeed he will share a part of the sin of the
people who lead such a government. But
if ones heart is dis-satisfied with a government who
disobeys the clear commands of their Lord, and strives and votes for a
government to lead their country who are obedient to
the commands of the All-Mighty Lord, he will be rewarded by Allah Subhanah for his intentions and his deeds.
If one is
working for a government who indulges in riba; but
his own job and duties are of a halaal nature and
have nothing to do with the governments decision to indulge in riba; then his earnings will be deemed legal and
absolutely halaal in the sight of Shariah.
One
should realize the difference between working as an officer in a bank and
working as an officer in the government.
The banks core and only business is dealing in riba
and therefore haraam, while the governments core duty
is to govern the country, and not the indulgence in riba!
Whatever
written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allahs Assistance and Guidance,
and whatever of error is of me. Allah
Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.
Your Brother in Islam,
