The Sharī‘ah’s severity in prohibiting riba
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His Eminence the Shaykh: A person who is compelled to take riba interest says: Is it not better that I take it and put it into building mosques or for the poor, instead of letting the enemies of Islam benefit from it?
The reality is that this is an important question because of the urgent need to know the answer based on the Book and the Sunnah, not on the approval of the intellect. And if we base the answer to this question on the Book and the Sunnah, it becomes clear to us that it is not permissible for him to take this riba;By the saying of Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He): [al-Baqarah: 278-279] Here, Allah (Mighty and Majestic) made it clear that if a person repents, he has only the principal of his money, neither oppressing nor being oppressed.
And it is established in Sahih Muslim that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) addressed the people on a Friday,So he said: (Know that the riba of the pre-Islamic age of ignorance is abolished, and the first riba I abolish is the riba of al-‘Abbas ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib, for it is abolished in its entirety), so you see in this hadith that the Messenger abolished the riba that was contracted in the pre-Islamic age of ignorance before the rulings in Islam were established. So what about riba that occurred after the rulings in Islam were established?! And on this basis we say: It is not permissible for a person to take riba from the banks, whatever these banks may be,Then we say: Even if we assume the truth of what is said, that these interests are sent to the churches and to fighting the Muslims, he bears no sin in that. Why? Because these interests are not the profits of his money, for it is possible that the money he gave to this bank was disposed of by the bank in a way that resulted in a loss, or in a way that did not result in a profit, or in a way that resulted in a profit without the inclusion of riba,So the statement: That these are the profits of his money is not correct. These are not the profits of his money. This is riba that the bank gives to the one who gave it this money to benefit from it. And if they are not the fruits of his money, he has no share of its sin if it is spent on building churches or on weapons aimed at the chests of the Muslims.
Then we say: If we prevent this riba, which may be vast sums of money—perhaps millions—If we prevent it and say to the Muslims: O Muslims, by your faith and your Islam, it is not permissible for you to take riba. So the Muslims will be compelled to seek Islamic channels and Islamic banks to be independent of these riba banks; because crises, needs, and dire necessities must inevitably bring something to the fore,So if it is said to the people: This riba that you claim is interest is not permissible for you. And if you take it, you have eaten riba when you ate it. And if you give it in charity to draw near to Allah, it will not be accepted from you. And if you give it in charity to get rid of it, what is the benefit of a person polluting his hand with impurity and then going to wash it?
So we say: If this is prevented, there is no doubt that it will be a cause for people to seek Islamic sources and to form Islamic banks to be independent of these riba banks.
Then we say: There is no doubt that the scholars of the Jews and the Christians know that riba is forbidden for them,For Allah the Exalted said in the Qur'an: [al-Nisa: 161] They know this in their books, and they also know that the Muslims have been prohibited from it. So the enemies of the Muslims rejoice when they see that the Muslims have made riba lawful and taken it. They know that sins are among the causes of abandonment, so they see the Muslims taking this riba money as arrows aimed at their own chests; because sins are a cause of abandonment. And it is not hidden from us all what happened to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his Companions, who, by Allah, were the greatest army on the face of the earth since Adam was created, and they were under the leadership of the greatest leader of the children of Adam,And yet they suffered defeat for a single sin: [Al Imran: 152] The defeat occurred.
So if abandonment occurred with a single sin, which is less than riba, what about riba, for which there is a warning that has not come for any other sin except shirk (associating partners with Allah), as Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said? How can we make riba lawful? If these people know that we have made riba lawful, there is no doubt that they will rejoice in this.And they say: Now the Muslims have done what leads to their abandonment, and reality is a witness to this. The Muslims today represent a large part of humanity, and yet their limbs are severed, and they watch. They have not been able to raise their heads with that. So this Bosnia and Herzegovina is an independent Islamic republic recognized internationally, and it is being torn apart; its sons are killed, the honor of its women is violated, and its children are orphaned, and the Muslims have not moved a finger for it! And it is not hidden from us the secret document found by the brothers in Bosnia and Herzegovina, issued by the Prime Minister of Britain to his Foreign Minister,Where he says: The Muslims cannot move in a way that benefits Bosnia and Herzegovina; because they are under our command.
Or words to that effect.
And he says: We will strongly oppose the establishment of an Islamic republic in Europe, and we will strongly oppose giving the Muslims weapons to defend themselves. This is a challenge to Islamic sentiment. But why? Because, unfortunately, the Muslims have disobedience that necessitates abandonment and crushing. We ask Allah for safety.
Therefore we say: These riba monies, which are called interest, are, by Allah, losses, and it is not permissible to take them under any circumstances. So you, O Muslims! If you want to get rid of this sin, leave riba. Establish Islamic banks that follow the path of Allah; the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and by that you will be safe. But if we assume that the bank insists on taking these riba monies, as exists in some banks;So some banks say: I cannot accept your return of this thing; because this disrupts my accounts. So here you take it; because you are compelled to take it. Then you give it in charity to get rid of it, not to draw near to Allah with it.
The reality is that this is an important question because of the urgent need to know the answer based on the Book and the Sunnah, not on the approval of the intellect. And if we base the answer to this question on the Book and the Sunnah, it becomes clear to us that it is not permissible for him to take this riba;By the saying of Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He):
(278) O you who have believed, fear Allah and give up what remains [due to you] of interest, if you should be believers. (279) And if you do not, then be informed of a war [against you] from Allah and His Messenger. But if you repent, you may have your principal - [thus] you do no wrong, nor are you wronged.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَذَرُوا مَا بَقِيَ مِنَ الرِّبا إِنْ كُنْتُمْ مُؤْمِنِينَ * فَإِنْ لَمْ تَفْعَلُوا فَأْذَنُوا بِحَرْبٍ مِنَ اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ وَإِنْ تُبْتُمْ فَلَكُمْ رُؤُوسُ أَمْوَالِكُمْ لا تَظْلِمُونَ وَلا تُظْلَمُونَAnd it is established in Sahih Muslim that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) addressed the people on a Friday,So he said: (Know that the riba of the pre-Islamic age of ignorance is abolished, and the first riba I abolish is the riba of al-‘Abbas ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib, for it is abolished in its entirety), so you see in this hadith that the Messenger abolished the riba that was contracted in the pre-Islamic age of ignorance before the rulings in Islam were established. So what about riba that occurred after the rulings in Islam were established?! And on this basis we say: It is not permissible for a person to take riba from the banks, whatever these banks may be,Then we say: Even if we assume the truth of what is said, that these interests are sent to the churches and to fighting the Muslims, he bears no sin in that. Why? Because these interests are not the profits of his money, for it is possible that the money he gave to this bank was disposed of by the bank in a way that resulted in a loss, or in a way that did not result in a profit, or in a way that resulted in a profit without the inclusion of riba,So the statement: That these are the profits of his money is not correct. These are not the profits of his money. This is riba that the bank gives to the one who gave it this money to benefit from it. And if they are not the fruits of his money, he has no share of its sin if it is spent on building churches or on weapons aimed at the chests of the Muslims.
Then we say: If we prevent this riba, which may be vast sums of money—perhaps millions—If we prevent it and say to the Muslims: O Muslims, by your faith and your Islam, it is not permissible for you to take riba. So the Muslims will be compelled to seek Islamic channels and Islamic banks to be independent of these riba banks; because crises, needs, and dire necessities must inevitably bring something to the fore,So if it is said to the people: This riba that you claim is interest is not permissible for you. And if you take it, you have eaten riba when you ate it. And if you give it in charity to draw near to Allah, it will not be accepted from you. And if you give it in charity to get rid of it, what is the benefit of a person polluting his hand with impurity and then going to wash it?
So we say: If this is prevented, there is no doubt that it will be a cause for people to seek Islamic sources and to form Islamic banks to be independent of these riba banks.
Then we say: There is no doubt that the scholars of the Jews and the Christians know that riba is forbidden for them,For Allah the Exalted said in the Qur'an:
And their taking of riba, although they were forbidden from it
وَأَخْذِهِمُ الرِّبا وَقَدْ نُهُوا عَنْهُuntil [the time] when you lost courage and fell to disputing about the order [given by the Prophet] and disobeyed after He had shown you that which you love. Among you are some who desire this world, and among you are some who desire the Hereafter
حَتَّى إِذَا فَشِلْتُمْ وَتَنَازَعْتُمْ فِي الْأَمْرِ وَعَصَيْتُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا أَرَاكُمْ مَا تُحِبُّونَ مِنْكُمْ مَنْ يُرِيدُ الدُّنْيَا وَمِنْكُمْ مَنْ يُرِيدُ الْآخِرَةَSo if abandonment occurred with a single sin, which is less than riba, what about riba, for which there is a warning that has not come for any other sin except shirk (associating partners with Allah), as Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said? How can we make riba lawful? If these people know that we have made riba lawful, there is no doubt that they will rejoice in this.And they say: Now the Muslims have done what leads to their abandonment, and reality is a witness to this. The Muslims today represent a large part of humanity, and yet their limbs are severed, and they watch. They have not been able to raise their heads with that. So this Bosnia and Herzegovina is an independent Islamic republic recognized internationally, and it is being torn apart; its sons are killed, the honor of its women is violated, and its children are orphaned, and the Muslims have not moved a finger for it! And it is not hidden from us the secret document found by the brothers in Bosnia and Herzegovina, issued by the Prime Minister of Britain to his Foreign Minister,Where he says: The Muslims cannot move in a way that benefits Bosnia and Herzegovina; because they are under our command.
Or words to that effect.
And he says: We will strongly oppose the establishment of an Islamic republic in Europe, and we will strongly oppose giving the Muslims weapons to defend themselves. This is a challenge to Islamic sentiment. But why? Because, unfortunately, the Muslims have disobedience that necessitates abandonment and crushing. We ask Allah for safety.
Therefore we say: These riba monies, which are called interest, are, by Allah, losses, and it is not permissible to take them under any circumstances. So you, O Muslims! If you want to get rid of this sin, leave riba. Establish Islamic banks that follow the path of Allah; the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and by that you will be safe. But if we assume that the bank insists on taking these riba monies, as exists in some banks;So some banks say: I cannot accept your return of this thing; because this disrupts my accounts. So here you take it; because you are compelled to take it. Then you give it in charity to get rid of it, not to draw near to Allah with it.