INTRODUCTION TO

ISLAMIC ECONOMICS
ISLAM & ISLAMIC WORLDVIEW
1

DEFINITION OF ISLAM
Islam is derived from the Arabic root word SLM
, which means peace.

How to achieve peace of body and mind? Through

total submission to the will of Allah and the
obedience of His Law.
Islam illustrates al-Din, submission, surrender,
obedience as well as peace.
This has manifested that a man can only attain true
peace of physical and spiritual via full surrender,
obedience and submission to Allah the Almighty.

MANS WAY OF LIFE

IN ISLAM
Belief in a dual worldviews: this
world & the hereafter.
Religion is part of his/her daily life.
Maslahah of the ummah (public
benefit),
Accountability,
Trustworthiness,
Transparency etc.

WHY ALLAH (SWT) CREATED

MAN?

CONT. WHY ALLAH CREATED MAN?.

According to Islamic belief, Allah has created

man (and jinn)only to worship Him.
The word worship here encompasses all
permissible human activities and intentions as
part of the general act of acceptable worship
(ibadah).
Within the ambit of the Shariah, a mans entire
life is an act of worship; as such, his choice must
either follows the commands of Allah (including
commercial transactions) or ignores them for his5
self-interest.

MANS CHOICE IN AL-QURAN

There is no compulsion in religion. Verily,
the Right path has become distinct from the
wrong path. Whoever disbelieves in taghut
(false deities) and believes in Allah, then he
has grasped the most trustworthy handhold
that will never break. And Allah is AllHearer, All-knower (Verse 2:256).

What do you understand by the

Worldview?

WHAT IS A WORLDVIEW? DEFINITION &

INTRODUCTION
SECULAR PERSPECTIVE

A worldview is a theory of the

world, used for living in the world. A
world view is a mental model of
reality a framework of ideas &
attitudes about the world, ourselves,
and life, a comprehensive system of
beliefs with answers for a wide
range of questions:
8

CONT. WHAT IS A WORLDVIEW?

DEFINITION & INTRODUCTION
SECULAR PERSPECTIVE

What are humans, why we are here, and what is

our purpose in life? What are your goals for
life? When you make decisions about using time
it's the stuff life is made of what are your
values and priorities? *
What can we know, and how? and with how
much certainty?
Does reality include only matter/energy, or is
there more?

CONT. WHAT IS A WORLDVIEW?

DEFINITION & INTRODUCTION
SECULAR PERSPECTIVE

Some worldview questions are about God:

Can we know whether God exists?
Does God exist?
If so, what characteristics does God have,
and what relationship with the universe?
Have miracles occurred in the past, as
claimed in the Bible, and do they occur
now?
Are natural events produced and guided by
God?
Was the universe self-creating, or did God
create it?

10

CONT. WHAT IS A WORLDVIEW? DEFINITION &

INTRODUCTION
SECULAR PERSPECTIVE

Was the universe self-creating, or did God

create it?
Was it totally self-assembling by natural
process, or did God sometimes create in
miraculous-appearing ways?
Does God communicate with us (mentally
and spiritually) in everyday life, and
through written revelation, as in the Bible?
What is God's role in history?
Is there a purpose and meaning in history,
for each of us individually and for all of us
together, or is life just a long string of
things happening?
What happens after death?

11

CONT. WHAT IS A WORLDVIEW?

DEFINITION & INTRODUCTION
SECULAR PERSPECTIVE

Worldview explain how man perceives this

world. It denotes a set of implicit or explicit
assumptions about the origin of the
universe and the nature of human life.

12

CONT. WHAT IS A WORLDVIEW? DEFINITION &

INTRODUCTION
SECULAR PERSPECTIVE
Every

community or system is controlled

or influenced by its own worldview.

The

different worldviews among

communities or among systems lead to
dissimilar end means of human life.
13

MANS WAY OF LIFE

FROM SECULAR VIEW
Separation

between religion and other

aspects of life,
Materialistic,
Individualistic,
Less socio-economic justice,
Less public relations,
less concern with the Hereafter life.
14

ISLAMIC WORLDVIEW
&
ITS RELATION TO ECONOMICS

Definitions.
The Islamic Worldview.
The Nature and Characteristic of Man.
The Concept of Din and its Significance to
Economic Activity.
Islamic Worldview vs. Secular Worldview.
Views of Al-Ghazali, and Ibn Khaldun on
Islamic worldview.
15

ISLAMIC ECONOMICS & THE

SPIRITUAL INTEREST

Islamic gives importance to the pursuit of spiritual

interest (i.e. adherence to divine instructions in
worldly affairs as the ultimate act of worship).

The pursuit of self-interest as part of the human

nature is well recognized in Islam and covers both
the spiritual and the material aspects of mans
existence.

This is in contrast to secular economics claim on

the human pursuit of material interest alone as the
primary goal of satisfaction in economic activities.

16

ISLAMIC WORLDVIEW
To understand the Islamic worldview let us
first define the followings:
1. Islam, Iman, Amal, Ihsan.
2. Relationship between Allah, man, nature,
religion.
3. The nature and characteristics of man;
mans role as abd and khalifah
17

SPIRITUAL DIMENSION

The world Din carries the meaning

of Debt, i.e. man is indebted to Allah
for his existence and maintenance.
From Allahs point of view, existence
is a gift, and from mans position he
considers this gift as a debt from the
Giver.
This implies that man has to return
himself to the Creator by way of din,
conscious, before man return to Allah
in state of death.

18

CONT. SPIRITUAL DIMENSION

The beautiful return of the self to its Lord is
that which is done loyally by truly following
Allahs ordinance and law, obeying His
commands and avoiding His prohibition.

19

THE ISLAMIC WORLDVIEW

(RUYAT AL-ISLAM LI AL-WUJUD )
An Islamic world view or Ruyat al-Islam li al
Wujud, is the vision of reality and truth that
appears before our minds eye reveling what
existence is all about.
It is defined as a set of implicit and explicit
assumptions about the origin of the universe as
well as the nature and purpose of man not only
in this world but in the hereafter too.
20

CONT. THE ISLAMIC WORLDVIEW

Islamic worldview is characterized by an
authenticity and finality that points to what is
ultimate, and it projects a view of reality and
truth that encompasses existence and life
altoghter in total perspective whose
fundamental elements are permanently
established.
The Islamic worldview is based on Islam. All
worldviews must include concepts on
Allah/Tawhid, Man/Khilafah, Nature, Mans
aim in life, Adalah

21

CONT. THE ISLAMIC WORLDVIEW

Muslim believe that this world is a
temporary place for them to be
tested in order to determine whether
they will get the reward or
punishment in the Hereafter.

22

ISLAMIC WORLDVIEW
(RUYAT AL-ISLAM LI AL-WUJUD )

Al-Mithaq
(The Pre Covenant)

Allam Al-Dunyah

23

Allam Al-Dunyah

(World)

QURAN, SUNNAH,
QIYES, IJMA, IJTIHAD
(SHARIAH)

MAN-MADE LAWS
(E.G. COMPANY LAWS,
CORPORATE
GOVERNANCE CODES)

BUSINESS ACTIVITIES
(MU AMALAT)

TEST
ALLAM AL-BARZAKH
(LIFE IN THE GRAVE)

GOOD DEEDS
FALAH (REWARDS)

ALLAM AL-AKHIRAH
(HEREAFTER)

BAD DEEDS
SINS/ PUNISHMENT

24