Lawful earnings, debts and contracts

Lawful earning, a condition of worship The Prophet ﷺ said: "Allah is good and accepts only what is good…" then he mentioned the man who travels for a long time, dishevelled, dusty, who stretches his hands to the sky: "My Lord! My Lord!", while his food is unlawful, his drink unlawful, his clothing unlawful: "how could he be answered?" (Muslim 1015). Lawful earning is not a detail: it conditions the acceptance of supplications and charities. Earning one's living is worship: "No one has ever eaten better food than what he earned by the work of his own hands; and Allah's prophet Daawuud used to eat from the work of his hands" (Bukhari 2072).

Forbidden sources • What is forbidden in itself: selling alcohol, pork, drugs; gambling and lotteries (al-maysir, 5:90); pornography; interest (lesson 13). • What is taken unjustly: theft, fraud, bribery (2:188), cheating on working hours, lying about a product, fraud against public benefits or tax. • Working in a forbidden activity: serving alcohol, working in a casino. Mixed cases (a grocery store that also sells alcohol, an accounting job in a conventional bank) are discussed: ask the imam [À VÉRIFIER : présentation].

Honesty in trade and work • "Whoever cheats us is not one of us" (Muslim 102), said by the Prophet ﷺ on finding wet grain hidden under the dry grain. • The blessing of a sale is linked to truthfulness and transparency (Bukhari 2079, Muslim 1532). • The employee respects his contract and hours; the employer pays wages on time: "Give the worker his wage before his sweat dries" (Ibn Maaja 2443) [À VÉRIFIER : numéro et degré]. • The self-employed person invoices honestly and declares his income.

Contracts Islamic contract law rests on a few principles, found in everyday life in Canada (lease, buying a car, phone contract, subscription): • Consent: "unless it is trade by mutual consent" (4:29). • Clarity: the object, price and deadlines must be known. The Prophet ﷺ forbade sales involving excessive uncertainty (bay' al-gharar) (Muslim 1513), for example selling a fish still in the water or an item whose existence is unknown. • Not selling what one does not own (Abu Daawuud 3503, At-Tirmidhi 1232) [À VÉRIFIER : numéros], which affects some online resale arrangements (dropshipping) [À VÉRIFIER : présentation]. • Keeping one's commitments: "O you who believe! Fulfil your contracts" (5:1). The lawful conditions of a contract are binding; "Muslims are bound by their conditions, except a condition that makes the lawful unlawful or the unlawful lawful" (At-Tirmidhi 1352) [À VÉRIFIER : numéro et degré].

The ethics of debt • Write debts down, with witnesses: this is the subject of the longest verse of the Qur'an (2:282). A loan between friends or family is put in writing: this protects the friendship. • Avoid unnecessary debt: the Prophet ﷺ often sought Allah's protection from sin and debt (al-ma'tham wal-maghram) (Bukhari 832, Muslim 589) [À VÉRIFIER : numéros]. • The intention to repay: "Whoever takes people's wealth intending to repay it, Allah will repay it for him; and whoever takes it intending to destroy it, Allah will destroy him" (Bukhari 2387). • Do not delay: "Delay in payment by one who has the means is injustice" (Bukhari 2287, Muslim 1564). • The gravity: the martyr is forgiven everything except debt (Muslim 1886); the Prophet ﷺ at first declined to pray over a dead man who left an uncovered debt, until someone guaranteed it (Bukhari 2289) [À VÉRIFIER : numéro]. • Repay better, without condition: the Prophet ﷺ sometimes returned a better camel than the one he had borrowed, and said that the best are those who repay best (Bukhari 2305, Muslim 1600) [À VÉRIFIER : numéros]. An extra freely offered, without having been agreed, is not riba. • For the creditor: grant time to one in difficulty, or forgive the debt (2:280); "whoever grants time to a debtor in difficulty or forgives him, Allah will shade him in His shade" (Muslim 3006) [À VÉRIFIER : numéro].

The text: Surah An-Nisaa' (4), verse 29 يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تَأْكُلُوا أَمْوَالَكُمْ بَيْنَكُمْ بِالْبَاطِلِ إِلَّا أَنْ تَكُونَ تِجَارَةً عَنْ تَرَاضٍ مِنْكُمْ ۚ وَلَا تَقْتُلُوا أَنْفُسَكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ بِكُمْ رَحِيمًا ﴿٢٩﴾

The text: Surah Al-Baqara (2), verse 282 يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِذَا تَدَايَنْتُمْ بِدَيْنٍ إِلَىٰ أَجَلٍ مُسَمًّى فَاكْتُبُوهُ ۚ وَلْيَكْتُبْ بَيْنَكُمْ كَاتِبٌ بِالْعَدْلِ ۚ وَلَا يَأْبَ كَاتِبٌ أَنْ يَكْتُبَ كَمَا عَلَّمَهُ اللَّهُ ۚ فَلْيَكْتُبْ وَلْيُمْلِلِ الَّذِي عَلَيْهِ الْحَقُّ وَلْيَتَّقِ اللَّهَ رَبَّهُ وَلَا يَبْخَسْ مِنْهُ شَيْئًا ۚ فَإِنْ كَانَ الَّذِي عَلَيْهِ الْحَقُّ سَفِيهًا أَوْ ضَعِيفًا أَوْ لَا يَسْتَطِيعُ أَنْ يُمِلَّ هُوَ فَلْيُمْلِلْ وَلِيُّهُ بِالْعَدْلِ ۚ وَاسْتَشْهِدُوا شَهِيدَيْنِ مِنْ رِجَالِكُمْ ۖ فَإِنْ لَمْ يَكُونَا رَجُلَيْنِ فَرَجُلٌ وَامْرَأَتَانِ مِمَّنْ تَرْضَوْنَ مِنَ الشُّهَدَاءِ أَنْ تَضِلَّ إِحْدَاهُمَا فَتُذَكِّرَ إِحْدَاهُمَا الْأُخْرَىٰ ۚ وَلَا يَأْبَ الشُّهَدَاءُ إِذَا مَا دُعُوا ۚ وَلَا تَسْأَمُوا أَنْ تَكْتُبُوهُ صَغِيرًا أَوْ كَبِيرًا إِلَىٰ أَجَلِهِ ۚ ذَٰلِكُمْ أَقْسَطُ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ وَأَقْوَمُ لِلشَّهَادَةِ وَأَدْنَىٰ أَلَّا تَرْتَابُوا ۖ إِلَّا أَنْ تَكُونَ تِجَارَةً حَاضِرَةً تُدِيرُونَهَا بَيْنَكُمْ فَلَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَلَّا تَكْتُبُوهَا ۗ وَأَشْهِدُوا إِذَا تَبَايَعْتُمْ ۚ وَلَا يُضَارَّ كَاتِبٌ وَلَا شَهِيدٌ ۚ وَإِنْ تَفْعَلُوا فَإِنَّهُ فُسُوقٌ بِكُمْ ۗ وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ ۖ وَيُعَلِّمُكُمُ اللَّهُ ۗ وَاللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ ﴿٢٨٢﴾

Meaning: 4:29: "O you who believe! Do not consume your wealth among yourselves unjustly, unless it is trade by mutual consent. And do not kill yourselves: Allah is Merciful to you." 2:282 (summarised meaning of the longest verse of the Qur'an): "O you who believe! When you contract a debt for a fixed term, write it down; let a scribe write it between you with justice…" The verse asks that the debtor dictate, without reducing anything; that a guardian dictate for one who cannot; that two witnesses be taken; that even small debts be written; that cash exchanges may go unwritten; and that neither scribe nor witness be harmed. It ends with: "Be mindful of Allah: Allah teaches you, and Allah knows all things."

Arabic text: Tanzil Quran Text (Simple, version 1.0.2), © 2008-2010 Tanzil.net, Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 licence, reproduced without any change (http://tanzil.net). Each verse is on its own line, followed by its number; the basmala, which the Tanzil file places at the start of the first verse, is written on its own line.

Understanding the lesson

Explanation Zakaat purifies wealth; but that wealth must also be lawful. The hadith of the man whose supplication is not answered shows that unlawful earnings close a door between the believer and his Lord. Islam does not ask one to be rich, but to be clean in what one earns. The principles of contracts are simple and universal: consent, clarity, absence of deception and of excessive uncertainty, keeping one's word. They apply to major contracts as well as to small everyday commitments. Debt is permitted, and the Prophet ﷺ himself borrowed; but it is heavy. Islam makes it a matter of honour and conscience: writing it down, intending to repay, not delaying, and, on the creditor's side, being patient and lenient.

Lessons to draw from it • Check the lawfulness of your sources of income and, if in doubt, ask the imam. • Be exact in your hours, your invoices and your declarations. • Read a contract before signing it, and sign only what you can honour. • Put every loan in writing, even between relatives. • List your debts and make a repayment plan; pay on time if you can.

Key points to remember • "Allah is good and accepts only what is good" (Muslim 1015). • The best earning: the work of one's hands (Bukhari 2072). • "Whoever cheats us is not one of us" (Muslim 102); no gharar (Muslim 1513). • Write debts down (2:282); trade by mutual consent (4:29). • Delay by one able to pay is injustice (Bukhari 2287, Muslim 1564).

The main message Clean money begins with honest earning and commitments kept: earn lawfully, write down your debts, repay on time, and be lenient towards the one who owes you.