ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books The Role of the in Building the Virtuous Community, Book Five: The Economic System of the Virtuous Community Prelude A General View of the Topic of Economy The economic or financial issue of each community is considered one of the vital constituents of the general system without which no community can endure political and social pressures, evolve, or attain perfection.

As a divine message proposed for the mental and spiritual perfection of man, Islam has paid great attention to the economic and financial aspect. Financial issues generally play an important role in achieving perfection. This fact is visible in the following points: Significance of the Economic System A.

On various occasions the Holy Qur'an has mentioned zakat (in its general sense almsgiving, and specifically, as an obligation, a tax imposed on Muslims under certain conditions) along with the religious duty of performing prayers, with the purport that these two obligations cannot be separated.

Likewise, zakat has been attached to self-sacrifice for the sake of Almighty Allah and has been presented—in the form of spending for the sake of Almighty Allah on the poor, the needy, and the financially distressed, such as the indebted and their like—as one of those acts of obedience to Almighty Allah through which His nearness can be attained. B.

Just as Islam has organized the issues of family; society; one’s relationship with Almighty Allah, nature, and humankind; and other aspects of life so also has it organized the issue of spending, by laying down public and private duties in this domain at the family and individual levels of the virtuous community as well as maintenance of the social and political existence of both the virtuous community and the general public. C.

In the beginning of its existence, the promulgation of Islam rested on substantial funds that were owned by Lady Khadijah al-Kubra (the great), the Holy Prophet’s first wife, who played an extremely great role in saving the mission of Islam in its early stages by standing against a variety of pressures brought on by the polytheists. D.

Because the polytheists assessed the significance of economic aspects at the outset of the advance of the Islamic mission, they laid an economic siege upon its propagation to try to stop it.