"Tawheed" and "'Adl"  Unity and Justice

Allah's Tawheed or Unity is central to the Quranic message, and with that unity comes perfect justice. The idea that everything in this world, indeed everything in all of the many worlds that surround us in space and time, and perhaps other dimensions as well, stems from a single source, is a powerful message of unity. Since all of us, and everything around us, are creations of the one Creator – Allah, we must respect the hidden unity that links the many to The One, and recognize that whatever we do to that which is outside of ourselves, we are ultimately doing to ourselves. If we abuse other people, we abuse ourselves—though the full effects of that abuse may not be apparent until the last day. Likewise, if we abuse nature, we also abuse ourselves, and the consequences of that abuse will in the end be fully felt, and perfect justice dispensed by Allah when we return to Him. Those who reject this knowledge rationalize their behavior by saying, "Well, I'm not going to curb my wasteful lifestyle now, because this catastrophe you're predicting probably won't happen during my lifetime." They do not believe that they will suffer the full consequences of their own actions. But the Quran stands as a clear warning that this is not the case, amplifying the inner voice of conscience Allah built into our deepest nature: And we can see in the Quran as Allah Says (what means): "Then each will see what he had done in the past; and they will turn to Allah, their true Lord, and all the lies they had fabricated will be of no avail to them." [Quran, 10:30]

"Zuhd" (Renunciation/Asceticism)

'Zuhd' is an especially hard word to translate into English because the closest cognate, asceticism, carries traces of Christian attempts to "mortify the flesh." Mortification implies self-torture aimed at making us feel revulsion for our physical, earthbound existence. Islam, however, has no such tradition of self-torture. Instead, Zuhd describes a balanced, judicious approach to abstaining from excesses of ease, comfort and pleasure-seeking, in order to detach the soul from potential addictions and instead turn towards Allah. The wise detachment of Zuhd is meant to be practiced not just by a few self-flagellating monks in hair shirts, but by each and every Muslim. That is why fasting in the month of Ramadan is a universal requirement, not an option: Fasting is a perfect lesson in moderation and self-control, as well as compassion for the less-fortunate. This moderate, universal Zuhd could, Allah willing, help us create a genuinely sustainable world, by healing the current order at both the spiritual and physical levels. (These two levels, of course, are intimately connected.) Zuhd teaches us that giving up our excesses is a blessing, not a curse—especially if we do it voluntarily, rather than waiting for Allah-given natural limits to do it for us. In practicing Zuhd, we are following a very important Sunnah. Though the leader of a powerful, rapidly-expanding community, the Prophet Muhammad  lived and died in a small, hardly-furnished house, leaving behind virtually no material possessions. He was moderate in his consumption of food and drink, careful not to waste a drop of water when performing ablutions, fasted frequently, and prayed devoutly late into the night. Let us pray that humanity soon discovers the wisdom of his example.

"Fardh" (Obligation)

Islam prescribes certain specific obligations: Bearing witness that there is none worthy of worship but Allah and that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah, Praying, Alms giving, Fasting and Performing Pilgrimage are the best known. Fardh has been viewed by some scholars as involving general as well as specific obligations, that is, obligations from Allah that may not be specific enough to be enforceable by the community: being charitable, just, and merciful, remembering Allah, putting ones family, community, and planet ahead of oneself, and so on could be viewed as obligations in the general sense. In the more common, specifically legal sense of fardh, there are obligations incumbent on everyone (fardh al-'ayn) and others that can be fulfilled for the whole community by some of its members (fardh al-kifayah). Because these obligations are from Allah, they demand to be taken seriously. Thus the Islamic world-view emphasizes the notion of obligation, in contrast to the Western preoccupation with individualism and rights at the expense of obligations and responsibilities. The notion of obligation is obviously essential to any serious attempt to save our environment. If we are governed by the principle of individual "rights" we will not want to infringe on anyone's "right" to consume more and more material goods—and to cut down forests, dig mines, exterminate animals, spew pollutants, and ravage ecosystems in pursuit of those goods. An ethic built on obligations before rights, like the Islamic ethic, seems better suited to a world in which is more than six billion people pursuing their "right" to unlimited material consumption will spell doom for the planet as a whole. In particular, the obligation of the fortunate to care for the less fortunate must be universally acknowledged if we are to limit planetary consumption in a humane, rational manner. Clearly the Islamic ethic of obligation is well suited to saving the world by correcting the unbalanced Western, and especially American, ethic of "rights" whose bottom line is the right of the wealthy and powerful to unlimited consumption of the planet's resources.

"Fitrah" (Deep primordial nature)

As opposed to certain popular doctrines, which hold that the cosmos is flawed and human nature is basically bad, Islam tells us that our deepest nature is beautiful, harmonious and right. It is only ignorance and bad choices, not an original built-in flaw, that can prevent us from realizing the fullest fruits of our Fitrah, our beautiful deepest human nature, which is a gift from Allah. In other words, we were made to live in harmony with ourselves and our world. We simply have to pursue the knowledge, and make the decisions, that will allow us to do so. The Quran and Sunnah, designed to awaken the built-in rational and intuitive knowledge of our Fitrah, contain the gist of the knowledge we need. The Quran and Sunnah can be supplemented but not replaced by instrumental reason and empirical science. A world guided by this viewpoint will avoid the errors of original sin and unbridled science, and put all its efforts into establishing and maintaining the harmony between humans, creation, and the Creator that is the deepest essence and potential of our humanity.

Corruption upon the earth

The Quran incessantly warns us against spoliation and corruption. One aspect of this corruption, besides the spiritual one, is the corruption of the earth—the environment, the animal species, and the plants. The two forms of corruption are closely related. The following passage seems especially appropriate to today's environmental dilemma, which is closely linked to humanity's spiritual dilemma. Allah Says (what means): "Corruption is spread over land and sea from what men have done to themselves that they may taste a little of what they have done: They may haply come back (to the right path). Say: "Travel on the earth and see/how came the end of those before you." [Quran, 30:4l–42]

If we accept Allah's invitation and travel around the earth, we will see the ruins of countless civilizations that fell due to some combination of spiritual corruption and environmental heedlessness. The highly advanced Mayan civilization, for example, crumbled in just a few generations, as unsustainable farming practices coincided with an explosion of ever-bloodier warfare aimed at gaining captives for human sacrifice.

Variations on this theme have been repeated countless times throughout 10,000 years of human history.

Jared Diamond, in a new book called COLLAPSE: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, suggests that today's industrial-capitalist civilization seems on the brink of following its predecessors into oblivion through environmental degradation. But Diamond does not fully appreciate the spiritual dimension of the problem. As the continuation of the Quranic passage quoted above Allah Says (what means): "Most of them (the ruined civilizations) were idolaters. So set your face towards the straight path before the day arrives from God which is irreversible." [Quran 30:42-43] Various forms of idolatry whether warfare for egotistical ends and human sacrifice to pagan idols, or the worship of money, consumer goods, social status, and shiny erotic televised images—are the root cause of natural catastrophes. To save ourselves and our communities we must turn toward the straight path, the path laid out with unsurpassed clarity in the Quran, before our situation becomes irreversible. There are signs that our environmental situation (not to speak of our moral situation) may soon become irreversible. British scientist Steven Hawking has warned that as little as a 7 degree rise in global temperatures could set off a negative feedback loop that would send temperatures sky-rocketing until the earth becomes as the boiling, molten surface of Venus, completely inhospitable to any form of life. Meanwhile, a new global warming study suggested that previous estimates were far too optimistic, and that the world is likely to experience a global 10 degree temperature jump within the next century. The London Independent headline  2005 puts it starkly: Global warming approaching point of no return, warns leading climate expert.

Look around us at the beautiful life forms that Allah has created as signs pointing to their creator, and contemplate the potential transformation of this jewel of a world into a ball of molten toxic waste. We must resist wastefulness, egotistic consumerism and disregard for the creation around us. We must realize that our commitment to Allah requires us to be conscious and protective of our environment and merciful towards animals. We must use the strength of our religion to rise proudly to the defense of our Ummah and the planet that is its home.

 

Islam shows great concern for the environment. A number of verses in the Quran and the sayings of Prophet Muhammad  have addressed this issue.

Islam’s solution to environmental problems lies in man’s adaptation of the guidance of Islam. Allah has stated that He made all the material objects on earth for man’s use, and not for his abuse.

Allah Almighty has not prevented humankind from enjoying a luxurious standard of living, but this should not be maintained by damaging and abusing natural resources. This is clearly stated in a number of verses in the Quran. Allah says (what means):"But seek, through that which Allah has given you, the home of the Hereafter; and (yet), do not forget your share of the world. And do good as Allah has done good to you. And desire not corruption in the land. Indeed, Allah does not like corruptors.“ [Quran 28:77]

The Quran and the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad  contains instructions for Muslims to preserve the environment, which includes not cutting down trees unnecessarily. In this respect, Prophet Muhammad  pointed out that there are benefits in planting trees, which will last until the Day of Judgment. This is illustrated in the saying of the Noble Prophet : "If the Last Hour is imminent while one of you has a palm seedling in his hand (which he can plant before it happens), then let him plant it.” [Reported by Ahmad and Al-Bukhari]

Allah has ordained severe punishments for those who damage and abuse natural resources. Allah Says (what means): “Eat and drink from the provision of Allah, and do not commit abuse on the earth, spreading corruption." [Quran 2:60]


"Corruption has appeared throughout the land and sea by (reason of) what the hands of people have earned, so He (i.e. Allah) may let them taste part of (the consequences of) what they have done that perhaps they will return (to righteousness).” [Quran 30:41]

Ibn Mas'ood, may Allah be pleased with him, reports, "While we were on a journey with Allah's Messenger  he went a short distance from where we had encamped. There we saw a small bird with two of its chicks and caught them. The bird was fluttering when the Prophet  came back, so he  asked, 'Who has distressed it by taking its chicks?' Then he  asked us to return the chicks. There we also saw an anthill and burnt it out. When the Prophet  saw that, he asked, 'Who has burnt it?' When we informed him that we had done it, he said, “Only the Lord of fire has the right to punish with fire.”

Allah says in the Quran (what means): "And there is no creature on (or within) the earth or a bird that flies with its wings except that they are nations (communities) like you." [Quran 6:38]

We infer from the Prophet’s statement and this Quranic verse that all living things are partners to man in existence and they deserve our respect. We must be merciful towards animals and strive to ensure the preservation of different species.

Islam forbids wasting water and using it without benefit. The preservation of water for the nourishment of humankind, animal life, bird life and vegetation is a practice that gains Allah’s pleasure.

In his article "Islam and the Environment," Arafat El Ashi, director of the Muslim World League in Canada, [www.al-muslim.org ] writes, "Human life is sacred in the sight of Islam. No one is permitted to take the life of another person except as life-for-life."

Under Islam, El Ashi states, "It [is] incumbent on every Muslim to contribute his/her share in improving greenery. Muslims should be active in growing more trees for the benefit of all people." Even during battle, Muslims are required to avoid cutting down trees that are useful to people.

Humankind’s stewardship of the earth entails a profound responsibility. Other living species, as mentioned above, are also considered by Allah to be “communities”. Creation itself, in its boundless diversity and complexity, may be thought of as a vast universe of “signs” of Allah’s Power, Wisdom, Beneficence and Majesty. The responsibility of humankind is to keep Allah’s creation undistorted. The environment is a trust presented by Allah to humankind and its abuse is a misuse of Allah’s trust.