The road to becoming a successful business tycoon is from human mundane affairs and left in a large part to human efforts and ingenuity, except where Allāh wishes to show his magnificience. In essence, someone who puts in a lot of time, effort, needed knowledge and intelligence into an endeavour is more likely to be successful even if he is a disbeliever than one who is non-challant even if he is a believer. So human mundane affairs are, to a large extent, guided by the laws of nature. Whoever strives, finds (من جد وجد).
Islam places no limit on how rich you can become in life, contrary to how some make it look as though piety was synonymous to poverty. Sheikh Aasim Alhakim was quoted to have said 6 of the 10 companions who were given glad tidings of admittance into jannah while alive were wealthy. So piety is not a prosperity limiter. You can see this in the fact that as important as the day of Jumu’ah is Allāh says “Then when the (Jumu’ah) Salat (prayer) is finished, you may disperse through the land, and seek the Bounty of Allah (by working, etc.), and remember Allah much, that you may be successful.” Even the day of Jumu’ah was not given as a holiday. Close up shop for the short moment the jumu’ah will last and when concluded go to whatever halal length to seek wealth from the bounties of Allāh.
However, we should not turn Islām to a channel towards seeking prosperity itself like some people have turned their religion into. Islam is primarily concerned with your success in the hereafter by guiding your actions in the dunya. Whoever turns it to a means of finding wealth will typical end up being fraudulent. Do you not see how those Malams and Afas who have no tangible income sources besides their Islamic engagements turn beggars and strong advocates of innovations (in acts of worship). If you dare tell them many of those fraudulent money churning manoeuvres they do at occassions are inapproproiate they will feel attacked because that is their source of livelihood! If I were to keep looking at my 5000 friends and can’t stop thinking of how to milk money from them without offering any good or service in exchange, whatever Da’wah I claim to do will become corrupted as I will pander to people’s desires and most likely seek for fraudulent ways to defraud them under the guise of religion.
This is one reason why it is very important for scholars and callers to Islām to have a source of livelihood rather than depend on handouts from their followers if they really wish to preserve their dignity. There are Imams of Jumuah Mosques who are limited in what they can discuss in their sermons because they have to be careful not to irk the ire of the Mosque’s governing board whose interests may be more political or sectarian than Sunnah inclined. There is power in being reasonably independent.
Whoever charts a course to worldy propserity using religion will either end up disappointed, ridiculed or fraudulent. If you want spiritual success, go the mosque, but if you want prosperity, go to the market. Just don’t forget Allāh even while in the market. To further buttress this, we are in fact forbidden from making transactions in the mosque.
Imam At-Tirmidhi narrated from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “If you see someone buying or selling in the mosque, then say: ‘May Allah not make your trade profitable!’ and if you see someone enquiring after lost property in the mosque, then say: ‘May Allah not return it to you!’”.
May Allāh grant us understanding.
A. Haroun writes from Abuja, Nigeria.
