The Greatness of Trust and Its Status in the Shari'ah

The Shaykh:
May Allah greet you and bless you.

The questioner:
In light of the noble verse regarding the trust, and the fact that the mountains were offered the burden but refused to carry it, while man accepted it, and they feared him because he was oppressive and ignorant, tell us about the greatness of the trust and its status in the Islamic Shari'ah.

The Shaykh:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. The concept of amanah (trust) is derived from amn (security), which is the opposite of fear. Allah has exalted the status of amanah, so He, Glorified and Exalted is He, said: He, Mighty and Majestic, said: In this verse, it is stated: "Indeed, We offered the amanah to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, but they declined to undertake it and were afraid of it." Allah offered this amanah to these great creations as an offer and a choice, not as a compulsion. Whoever fulfills it receives a reward and preserves it, and whoever betrays it bears the sin. Therefore, these creations preferred safety over the reward; they declined to undertake it and refrained from carrying it because of the magnitude of its responsibility and their fear of it. They feared, they feared the amanah. This indicates the greatness of the amanah. Adam and his descendants carried it; they preferred the reward over safety, out of love for the reward, so they took it on. In this, these two characteristics are mentioned: this is the nature of mankind. As for the people among mankind who are better and good, they include the messengers, the prophets, and the righteous ones. However, the intended meaning here is the general nature of mankind. Among the characteristics of the general nature of mankind are injustice and ignorance, which is the lack of forbearance. For ignorance is of two types: ignorance meaning the lack of knowledge, and ignorance meaning the lack of forbearance. That is why it is said that he was unjust and ignorant.
The trust intended in this noble verse is the legislative commands: performing acts of obedience and avoiding what is forbidden, along with the oneness of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and not associating partners with Him. This is the greatest trust that Allah placed upon His creation, as He, Mighty and Majestic, said: "except to worship Me." So worship is a trust between the servant and his Lord, in general and in particular. For this reason, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Prayer is a trust, and ritual purity is a trust." These are examples, and the trust is general for everything that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, has legislated. It is a trust between the servant and his Lord. Also, the deposits that are with the trustworthy people of the people; most people do not understand from the trust except this type. They think it is limited to deposits. Is that not so?
Deposits are a type of trust that he must fulfill. "Deliver the trust to the one who trusts you" This is a type of trusts. And also among the trusts are the secrets between people. A secret is a trust; you preserve it and do not disclose it because you are trusted.
Upon him. And also among the trusts is the job that the one in authority appoints you to, whether a governorship, an agency, or any official job. It is a trust in your responsibility. And you also take a wage for it, so it is a trust in your responsibility that you must fulfill with sincerity for Allah and His Messenger, for the leaders of the Muslims and their common people. You perform the work entrusted to you in the job, and you do not diminish anything from it. So it is a trust. If you leave something from it and neglect it, then this is a betrayal of the trust. So the Muslim must be alert to this matter. Yes.

The presenter:
May Allah reward you.