1.To minimize, if not remove, deceptive practices from the process of
business dealings and transactions, such as those involved in barter
trading. This prohibition also helps stabilize the market forces of sup-
ply and demand, which will eventuallyhelp to stabilize market prices
and to minimize, and eventually remove, deception orgharar(decep-
tive practices, including misrepresentation about quality, supply/de-
mand factors, pricing, and product types and specifications). The big
question and most challenging issue has been (and I believe still is)
how to obtain the most fair and representative market value of an
item in a free market system and how to price it, especially in a world
that was at the time dealing withnonstandardized currencies made of
different materials (as opposed to today’s world, in which fiat (paper)
money is used everywhere). This issue will be discussed in more detail
in Chapter 5.
2.To prevent the application and charging of riba al-nassee’aa, in case the
indebted person is not able to service his debt due to conditions that are
out of his/her control.Shari’aa Prohibits Deceptive and Speculative
Activities in Business Transactions (Gharar)
Another strictly prohibited condition of sales transactions isgharar,or
deception. In fact, calling a transaction riba-free implies that it is also
gharar-free. The word is derived from the Arabic root wordghoroor,
meaning arrogance and deception. Gharar results in dissatisfaction of
one of the parties involved in the transaction when it is revealed; it in-
cludes defrauding people and improperly taking away peoples’ money
and properties^39 (which is haram). Another definition that is more at-
tuned to modern economics was given by the late Professor Mustafa Al-
Zarqaa. He defined the forbidden gharar sale as ‘‘the sale of probable
items whose existence or characteristics are not certain, the risky nature
of which makes the transaction akin to gambling.’’^40 The Qur’aan lays
the foundations for fair business dealings, stipulating that contracts must
fully disclose all aspects and specifications of the items involved in the
transaction:
6:159...givemeasure and weight with (full) justice; —no burden
do We place on any soul, but that which it can bear; —whenever ye
speak, speak justly, even if a near relative is concerned; and fulfill
the covenant of God. Thus doth He command you, that ye may
remember.The Faith-Based Judeo-Christian-Islamic Foundation 43