for the development of each and every individual. It treats as sacred
the right of every man to have full scope for his development.
Division of labour is meant to ensure maximum production of
wealth. It does not imply that the man who does manual work is
inferior to the man who organises the industry. No doubt, the work
of one person may be more remunerative than that of another. The
Qur'an takes the position that a person who earns more should not
keep it all to himself, but should give the surplus to those who,
through lack of ability or opportunity cannot earn enough to satisfy
their needs. In the ideal society emphasis would be on mutual help
and not on individualism. The following verse puts it clearly:
And Allah has blessed some of you above others in respect of capacity
to earn livelihood, yet those who are blessed (with an abundance)
restore not their provision to those subordinate to them so that they
may share equally with them. Is it then the blessing of Allah which they
deny? (16:71).
The "blessing of Allah" comprises those advantages that the
individual enjoys which have not been gained through his own
efforts, namely his innate capacities, education and other
opportunities. In gratitude for these gifts, he should use his wealth
to help those who are less fortunate than himself. He should regard
his wealth as the gift of God and his gratitude to God should be
expressed in acts of beneficence. We should all live as members of a
single family, and we are really that, being, so to say, "God's
children." The father does not discriminate between his children.
He loves them all alike. God, as the Qur'an says, is Rabbul-aalameen
(1:1). He takes care of every living being in the world. The concept
of the "One World" developed during the last decade, was
foreshadowed by the Qur'an a long time ago.
A necessary consequence of this view is that the means of
production should not be owned by any one person or group but
should be held in common by all. The Qur'an throws valuable light
on this point as will be shown in the next section.
III. Means of ProductionLand is the most important of the means of production. The
desire to possess it has proved to be a fertile source of strife between
individuals as well as between states. Most of the wars have been
Islam: A Challenge to Religion 204