40 chapter two
and makes man accountable for his actions. Economic resources
which are owned by man on the basis of “ownership by trusteeship”
should be managed in accordance with the conditions established in
this contractual relationship; any violation of these conditions makes
man accountable to the ultimate owner: God. Man’s freedom may
be called, therefore, operational freedom; it is not absolute but
restricted and qualified. The restriction on man’s freedom in utilis-
ing economic resources on earth is twofold: on the production side,
he should seek efficiency, and on the distribution side he should
strive for social justice (this is explained below).
A system of reward and punishment
This will have to be established to complete the operational machin-
ery of trusteeship whereby the fulfillment of responsibilities will be
evaluated in the Hereafter and judged accordingly. The Qur"ànic
verses state, “And every man’s augury have We fastened to his own
neck: on the Day of Judgment We shall bring out for him (his) scroll,
which he will see spread open. Read thine (own) record: sufficient
is thyself this day make out an account against you”, (Qur"àn, 17:
13–14).
Islamic Economic Principles
The Principle of Moderation, I"atidàl
The principle of moderation stipulates that human behaviour, the
economic and even the non-economic, should be exercised in mod-
eration with no tendency towards extremism. First, consumption
should be in moderation and the real faithful, the believers, are
described in the Qur"àn as those, who when they spend are neither
excessive nor niggardly, but who are keeping a fine balance between,
“O Children of Adam, take your adornment while going to pray,
and eat and drink but not in extravagance, verily God does not like
extravagance, (al-musrifùn, those who waste by extravagance)”, (Qur"àn
7:31), and “Let not your hand be tied to your neck (in not spend-
ing) nor let it be stretched fully (in spending extravagantly) so that
you may not end in poverty and regret” (Qur"àn, 17:29).
The concept of moderation is based on Islamic ideology and it
extends to not only the materialistic use of resources, as we will see
shortly, but also to religious devotion in obeying the divine force.