On the contrary, many who have plenty are more interested in adding more to their coffers than spending to please Allah. And in doing so, they cross all limits of corruption and by usurping the resources of others. It is for such people that Allah warns them that He does not like such people and will nab them both in this world and the life of the hereafter. History stands witness to this Divine promise as many wealthy nations and people perished, leaving behind tales of their corruption, dishonesty and utter disregard for Divine warnings.
In Surah 28 Al Qasas, Allah describes the one of the wealthiest rich men of all times, Qarun, who was bestowed so much, yet he added more to his wealth by depriving others of theirs and did not help the poor. "Qarun was one of Moses’ people but he rebelled against them. God gave him so many treasures that even the keys to open the containers the treasures were kept in would have been heavy for strong men to carry. The people said to him do not gloat because God does not like those people who gloat. Use what God has given you to attain a good abode in the Hereafter. Be good to others as God has been good to you, and do not cause mischief; God does not love the mischief makers. But Qarun replied that all that I have is only because of my own knowledge and ability. Did he not understand that God has destroyed many people before him, many that were mightier in strength and richer in wealth? But criminals are not always called immediately to account. And God did not like his boastful claims and all his wealth was destroyed along with him"
In the backdrop of above tale of Qarun, this is what is being said in the 77th verse of Surah 28 Al Qasas (The Story / The Narrative) reproduced herein under:
وَابۡتَغِ فِيۡمَاۤ اٰتٰٮكَ اللّٰهُ الدَّارَ الۡاٰخِرَةَ وَلَا تَنۡسَ نَصِيۡبَكَ مِنَ الدُّنۡيَا وَاَحۡسِنۡ كَمَاۤ اَحۡسَنَ اللّٰهُ اِلَيۡكَ
وَلَا تَبۡغِ الۡـفَسَادَ فِى الۡاَرۡضنَّ اللّٰهَ لَا يُحِبُّ الۡمُفۡسِدِيۡنَ
(28:77) 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 the corrupter."
Tafsir Qur'an Wiki:
Here we see the right balance that is characteristic of the divine way of life. It makes the wealthy look forward to the life to come hoping to be among the successful on the Day of Judgement, without depriving him of his share of enjoyment in the present life. In fact, the divine system urges him to do so as a duty, so that he does not discard life’s pleasures and look down upon the life of this world.
God has created the pleasures and luxuries of this life so that people may enjoy their share of these, and work towards obtaining them. Thus, human life is set on the way to progress and man fulfils the task God has assigned him on earth. The only proviso is that in such enjoyment of pleasures they should seek the reward of the hereafter. Thus, the wealthy neither deviate from the road leading to heaven, nor neglect their duties as a result of their riches. When they seek the hereafter, their enjoyment of pleasure becomes a form of gratitude to God and proper acceptance of His blessings. Thus, it is, in turn, a way to earn more reward. The divine way of life achieves harmony and balance in human life. It enables man to progress spiritually without suffering deprivation or wasting natural resources.
“Do good just as God has done good to you.” The money you have is a gift God has granted you out of his kindness. Hence, it should be received with gratitude and used for good purposes, and doing kindness to other people.
“Do not seek to spread corruption on earth.” Corruption takes many forms including injustice, indulgence in pleasure, paying no heed to God’s guidance or to the hereafter, doing what causes envy and hatred, spending money wastefully and blocking its proper use. “For God does not love the ones who spread corruption,” in the same way as He does not love those who are exultant.
Yusuf Ali Explanation:
That is, 'spend your wealth on charity and good works. It is Allah Who has given it to you, and you should spend it in Allah's cause. Nor should you forget the legitimate needs of this life, as misers do, and most people become misers who think too exclusively of their wealth'. If wealth is not used properly, there are three evils that follow: (1) its possessor may be a miser and forget all claims due to himself and those about him; (2) he may forget the higher needs of the poor and needy, or the good causes which require support; and (3) he may even misspend on occasions and cause a great deal of harm and mischief. Apparently Qarun had all three vices.
In the backdrop of the above quoted verse from Qur'an and the explanation thereof, we should be more magnanimous in charity, even it be a single piece of date. And be not like rich and arrogant people like Qarun, and his likes in our present-day life who rob people of their rightly earned means of sustenance and live a life of arrogance and heartlessness.
This ayah from Surah al Qasas seeks to strike balance between Dunya (worldly life) and Aakhirah (The Hereafter). Your involvement in worldly activities should not go to such extent that you tend to forget Aakhirah and the life to come. Similarly, your involvement in religious or spiritual activities should not make you an ascetic in that you tend to ignore the lawful enjoyment that this world has to offer.
May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door.
وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ
(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”
That is Our duty is only to convey to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.
Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so that they are able to discuss issues with non-Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.
May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.
Note: When we mention God in our posts, we mean One True God, we call Allah in Islam, with no associates. Allah is the Sole Creator of all things, and that Allah is all-powerful and all-knowing. Allah has no offspring, no race, no gender, no body, and is unaffected by the characteristics of human life.
For more Selected Verses, please refer to our reference page: Selected Verses from the Qur'an. You may also refer to our Reference Pages and Understanding Al Qur'an for knowing more about Islam and Qur'ān.
An effort has been made to gather explanation / exegesis of the surahs of the Qur'ān from authentic sources and then present a least possible condensed explanation of the surah. In that the exegesis of the chapters of the Quran is mainly based on the "Tafhim al-Qur'an - The Meaning of the Qur'an" by one of the most enlightened scholars of the Muslim World Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi.
In order to augment and add more explanation as already provided, additional input has been interjected from the following sources:
- Tafsir Ibn Khatir
- Muhammad Asad Translation
- Yusuf Ali Translation
- Translation Javed Ahmad Ghamidi / Al Mawrid
- Qur'an Wiki
- Verse by Verse Qur'an Study Circle
- Towards Understanding the Quran
In addition, references of other sources which have been explored have also been given above. Those desirous of detailed explanations and tafsir (exegesis), may refer to these sites.
Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, WhatsApp or any means on social media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Qur'ān - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.
