6 AN INTRODUCTION TO ISLAMIC FINANCE
and “moderation.” These last few concepts are more precisely expressed
as the principle of the “golden mean,” according to which believers are
not only individually urged to act in conformity with this principle, but
also the community is called upon, by the Qur’an, to be a “nation in the
middle.”^6
Thus, justice in Islam is the conceptualization of an aggregation of
moral and social values, which denotes fairness, balance, and temperance.
Its implication for individual behavior is, fi rst of all, that the individual
should not transgress his bounds and, secondly, that one should give others,
as well as oneself, what is due.
In practice, justice is operationally defi ned as acting in accordance with
the Law, which, in turn, contains both substantive and procedural justice.
Substantive justice consists of elements of justice contained in the substance
of the Law, while procedural justice consists of rules of procedure assur-
ing the attainment of justice contained in the substance of the Law. The
underlying principles which govern the distinction between just and unjust
acts determine the ultimate purpose of the Islamic path, the Shari’ah, which
includes: the establishment of the “general good” of society (considered to be
the intent of the Qur’an for human collectivity and the Shari’ah is the path
by which it is achieved); building the moral character of individuals; and,
fi nally, the promotion of freedom, equality, and tolerance, which are often
stated as important goals of the Shari’ah. Of these, protecting the interests of
society is accorded the greatest importance. Although there can be no con-
tradiction between justice for the community as a whole and justice for the
individual, the interest of the individual is protected so long as such interest
does not come into confl ict with the general interest of the community.
SHARI’AH—THE LAW
Islam legislates for man according to his real nature and the possibilities
inherent in the human state. Without overlooking the limited and the weak
aspects of human nature in any way, Islam envisages man in light of his pri-
mordial nature as a theophany of Allah’s attributes, with all the possibilities
that this implies. It considers the human as having the possibility of being
perfect, but with a tendency to neglect potentialities of the human state
by remaining only at a level of sense perception. It asks, therefore, that in
exchange for all the blessings provided by their Supreme Creator, humans
seek to realize the full potential of their being, and remove all the obstacles
which bar the right functioning of their intelligence. To order human life
into a pattern intended for it by its Creator, humans are provided with a
network of injunctions and rules, which represent the concrete embodiment
of the Divine Will in terms of specifi c codes of behavior, by virtue of accep-
tance of which—through the exercise of his free choice—a person becomes
a Muslim and according to which the individual lives both his private and
social life. This network of rules—called the Shari’ah, which is etymologi-
cally derived from a root meaning “the road”—leads man to a harmonious
life here and felicity hereafter.