SomeoneaskedImamJa`faras-Sādiqaboutagroupofpeoplewhoare
prosperouswhiletheirMuslimbrothersareinsevereneed.Isitrightfor
the rich people to eat anddrink satisfactorily whiletheir brothers are
hungry, especiallyduringthe difficultdays? The Imam said,“Surelya
MuslimisbrotherofaMuslim;hedoesnotoppresshisbrother,neither
abandonshimnordepriveshim.TheMuslimsareobligedtoworkhard
fortheirbrother, to relateto him,to helphim, andtobe charitable to-
wards the needy people.”[31]
On Collective Level:Economicequality isguaranteed throughthe obligatorytaxes onthe
excesswealth of everyMuslim.Inan ideal Islamic society, the Islamic
government is responsible for enforcing the laws of Islamic taxes like
khums,zakāt,fitrah,khirāj,etc.Forexample,whileexplainingtheroleof
anImam inhiscapacityasaleader, ImamMusaal-Kādhimsays,“The
Imamistheheirofapersonwhohasnoheir,andheistheproviderofa
person who has no provider.”[32]
ThiseconomicsecurityistobeextendedtoallthesubjectsofanIslam-
icstate,eveniftheyarenon-Muslims.OnceImam‘Alipassedbyanold
manwhowasbeggingonthesideoftheroad.TheImamasked,“Whatis
this?” The people said, “O Amīru 'l-mu'minīn, heis a Christian.” The
Imam said,“Youhaveusedhimuntil hebecameoldandisunable (to
workanylonger),andthenyouhavedeprivedhim(ofhisbasicneeds)!!
Provide for him from the public treasury.”[33]
Inshort,Islamaimsateliminatingthe“need”(hājat),andelevatingthe
needy people to the level of being “free from want” (ghani).
* * *This lesson is entirely based on
Khums: An Islamic Tax(Third Edition, 1992) of Sayyid M. Rizvi