Prohibited Kinds of Trade Islam does not prohibit any trade except those which involve injustice, cheating, making exorbitant profits, or the promotion of something which is haram. It is haram to do business in alcoholic beverages, intoxicants, drugs, swine, idols, statues, or anything of this sort whose consumption and use Islam has prohibited. Any earnings from such business are sinful earnings, and the Fire is likely to be the abode for the flesh which has been nourished on such earnings. Honesty and trustworthiness in such businesses will not be counted as meritorious' for Islam came to fight and destroy such practices. However, there is no objection to trading in gold and silk because they are permitted to women, except if something is made of these materials exclusively for the use of men. Even if the trading is in entirely halal things, a merchant must still adhere to many moral considerations so that he may not join the ranks of the wicked, for "Indeed, the wicked will be in hell." (82:14). One day when the Prophet (peace be on him) was going to the mosque, he saw some people engaged in selling. "O merchants," he called out to them. When they turned their faces toward him, some of them craning their necks to listen to what he had to say, he said, Merchants will be raised up on the Day of Resurrection as wicked people, with the exception of those who fear Allah, do righteous deeds, and are truthful. (Reported by al-Tirmidhi Ibn Majah, Ibn Hibban, and al-Hakim.)Waithelah ibn al-Asqa' said, "We were business people. The Prophet (peace be on him) frequently came to us, and he would say, "Merchants, beware of lying." (Reported by al-Tabarani)Thus, he warned tagainst lying about their merchandise, since this is the weakness of merchants. Lying leads to wrongdoing, and that in turn leads to the Fire. The Prophet (peace be on him) warned in general against swearing and, in particular, against swearing to a lie, saying, On the Day of Ressurection Allah will not look at three (kinds of) persons nor purify them. One of them is the person who swears (to the truth) while lying about his merchandise. (Reported by Muslim and others.)Abu Sa'id narrated, "An Arab with a sheep passed by me and I said, 'Will you sell it for three dirhams?' He replied, 'No, by Allah!' but then he sold it to me. I mentioned this to the Messenger of Allah (peace be on him), who remarked, He sold his Hereafter for this world. (Reported by Ibn Hibban in his Sahih.)The merchant should beware of cheating, for the cheater is outside the community of Islam; he should beware of tampering with the scales when weighing; beware of hoarding lest he forfeit the protection of Allah and His Messenger (peace be on him); and beware of dealing in usury or interest (riba), for Allah has prohibited it, and the Prophet (peace be on him) has said, "A dirham of riba which a person consumes knowingly is worse than committing zina thirty-six times." (Reported by Ahmad on the authority of sound transmitters.) We will elaborate on all these matters when we come to the topic "Human Affairs."
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