He (also) made the rivers subservient to you...

He (also) made the rivers subservient to you, and He made the sun and the moon-which are persistent (upon their course) – subservient to you, and He made the night and the day subservient to you. (In short), He gave you all that you asked Him. If you count Allah’s blessings, (they are so many that) you will never be able to number them – (but still) the human is very unjust (and) very ungrateful!” (14: 32-34) These verses clearly state the followings: • This earth is our abode.

●This earth and its surrounding atmosphere have the resources to sustain our lives on it. • Divine guidance will come to us and we are expected to follow it. • Satan is our enemy and will try his best to misguide us. • The life on this earth is for a fixed time only. • The hereafter is the final destination. Whether the final destination will be blissful or painful depends on whether or not we follow the divine guidance.

So a human being is a creation of God, a citizen of this earth, surviving by wisely using its natural resources alone or with the, cooperation of fellow humans. Human interaction may be pictured as following: As a creation of God, a human being is expected to obey the Divine commandments in relation to the self, to fellow humans, and also towards the earth. We cannot forget the satanic temptations that overwhelm many people.

This three way interaction defines the perimeter of Islamic ethics in the business sphere. The guiding principles in these interactions are: Obeying the Divine commandments. (2:38 above) Dealing with others on the basis of justice and fairness. “O you who believe! Be upright for the sake of Allah, in testifying for fairness: and do not let the hatred of a people urge you to be unjust, be just (since) that is closer to piety.

Fear (from displeasing) Allah, verily Allah is Aware of what you do.” (5:8) Being moderate in one's personal life and in the use of natural resources. “O you who believe! Neither forbid the (use of) good (things) that Allah has allowed for you nor exceed the limits because Allah does not love those who exceed the limits.” (5:87) Previous…

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