Time, Barakah, and Financing
Introduction
Time management is often considered important, and according to Mufti Faraz, “The key to taking one’s life to another level is in time management.” However, the concept of time management from an Islamic perspective is the opposite of the non-Islamic perspective. This is due to the existence of Barakah in Islam. To understand this, Sahih al-Bukhari includes principles about time, barakah, and financing in Islam.
A Look at Sahih al-Bukhari / Principles in Sahih al-Bukhari
Principle 1: Time Management
A famous hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari states that Abu-Huraira narrated, “People say Abu-Huraira does too many narrations. The reason is that while people would go to business, trade, and being busy in the market, I was a poor man, and what I did was to be in the company of the Prophet Muhammad PBUH. My dedication was to stay with the prophet and learn. At the same time, grasp every statement from the Prophet Muhammad PBUH.” Thus, Abu-Huraira made it his lifetime goal to learn from the Prophet and to constantly be in his company.
Mufti Faraz provides time management tips that he had learned and practiced throughout 20 years which are as follows.
- Sleep according to a timetable with a fixed time to help improve sleep quality. In addition, sleeping after 12 p.m. should be avoided and the number of hours to sleep varies from person to person.
- Plan the day ahead the night before. Having a proper timetable and listing goals to reach per day, week, month, and year helps achieve this.
- Normalise prayer, meditation, and exercise. This is important as it provides a connection to Allah SWT which is good for the mind and soul. In addition, praying gives a sense of meaning to a person’s day.
- Have blocks in a day. Mufti Faraz highlights this and mentions that this enhances productivity in a day. For instance, from 5 a.m. to 8 a.m., only focus on work, and from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., for personal time. Mufti Faraz also mentions, “Allah could have put all five prayers in one time, but he decided to divide blocks for the time of each prayer instead.”
- Have time for family to bond.
Principle 2: The Concept of Barakah
Linguistically, Barakah is an increase, growth, and establishment. Barakah in an Islamic context is a metaphysical energy that is embedded into activities, resources, and time. From Mufti Faraz’s perspective, Barakah comes as a blessing from Allah. It is “Allah’s divine aid for a person”. If Barakah comes, the use of it is beneficial and has a positive impact. As a result, in less time, one may get more done, and when providing less input, more output is achieved. It could also act as a layer of protection and preservation. An example where Allah may have granted Barakah is when there was a scholar who would be sleeping for only a few hours, but felt as if he had slept for 8 hours. Therefore, a question that arises is ‘How can we get Barakah?’. One must be aware of their intentions, pray, and at the same time, seek it from Allah SWT because Barakah is a blessing and can only be given by Allah.
What is More Important?: Quantity of Wealth or Barakah in Wealth?
According to the public, some say the Barakah in wealth is more important because it is related to the afterlife and wealth is only for worldly matters. Others say it should be balanced and one should be able to use wealth to reach Barakah. Mufti Faraz states that wealth and Barakah should work hand in hand. This is because a person may aim for quantity, however without Barakah, and no matter how much wealth they have, it will not be sufficient. Thus, quantity of wealth is important alongside Barakah in wealth.
Principle 3: Importance of Markets
It is stated that,
حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ، حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ، عَنْ عَمْرٍو، عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ قَالَ كَانَتْ عُكَاظٌ وَمِجَنَّةُ وَذُو الْمَجَازِ أَسْوَاقًا فِي
الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ، فَلَمَّا كَانَ الإِسْلاَمُ فَكَأَنَّهُمْ تَأَثَّمُوا فِيهِ فَنَزَلَتْ {لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَنْ تَبْتَغُوا فَضْلاً مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ } فِي مَوَاسِمِ الْحَجِّ، قَرَأَهَا ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ.
“Narrated Ibn `Abbas: `Ukaz, Majanna and Dhul-Majaz were marketplaces in the Pre-Islamic period of ignorance. When Islam came, Muslims felt that marketing there might be a sin. So, the holy verse came: “There is no harm for you to seek the bounty of your Lord (in the seasons of Hajj).” (2.198) Ibn `Abbas recited the Verse in this way.” (Sahih al-Bukhari 2050)
Masjid Then Market
When the prophet Muhammad PBUH arrived to Madinah, after the masjid, he focused his attention to the market. He first visited Nabit, and said: “This is not a market for you.” because it had barriers and was not an open market. He then went to another market and again said: “This is not a market for you.” He then went back to this market, then said: “This will be your market and no duties shall be levied on it.”
At the time, there were Jewish markets in Madinah that were charging taxes and other sorts of barriers to businesses and to those entering the market. The prophet PBUH removed those barriers and gave freedom of trade to the community. Scholars say the messenger of Allah was of the most intelligent people. In the context of Barakah, prioritising a masjid first is an act of prioritising Barakah, and the market is the quantity of wealth. Thus, this could show as evidence that Barakah and quantity of wealth indeed come hand in hand.
The hadith is as follows:
حَدَّثَنَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ الْمُنْذِرِ الْحِزَامِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا إِسْحَاقُ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ بْنِ سَعِيدٍ، حَدَّثَنِي صَفْوَانُ بْنُ سُلَيْمٍ، حَدَّثَنِي مُحَمَّدٌ، وَعَلِيٌّ، ابْنَا الْحَسَنِ بْنِ أَبِي الْحَسَنِ الْبَرَّادِ أَنَّ الزُّبَيْرَ بْنَ الْمُنْذِرِ بْنِ أَبِي أُسَيْدٍ السَّاعِدِيِّ، حَدَّثَهُمَا أَنَّ أَبَاهُ الْمُنْذِرَ حَدَّثَهُ عَنْ أَبِي أُسَيْدٍ، أَنَّ أَبَا أُسَيْدٍ، حَدَّثَهُ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ ذَهَبَ إِلَى سُوقِ النَّبِيطِ فَنَظَرَ إِلَيْهِ فَقَالَ ” لَيْسَ هَذَا لَكُمْ بِسُوقٍ ” . ثُمَّ ذَهَبَ إِلَى سُوقٍ فَنَظَرَ إِلَيْهِ فَقَالَ ” لَيْسَ هَذَا لَكُمْ بِسُوقٍ ” . ثُمَّ رَجَعَ إِلَى هَذَا السُّوقِ فَطَافَ فِيهِ ثُمَّ قَالَ ” هَذَا سُوقُكُمْ فَلاَ يُنْتَقَصَنَّ وَلاَ يُضْرَبَنَّ عَلَيْهِ خَرَاجٌ ” .
“It was narrated that Abu Usaid said that: the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) went to the market of Nabit, [1] and looked at it, and said: “This is not a market for you.” Then we went to another market and looked at it, and said: “This is not a market for you.” Then he came back to this market and walked around in it then he said: “This is your market. It will always be your market and no duty will be levied on it.” (Sunan Ibn Majah 2233)
Islamic Finance Structures Overview
Doubtful Matters
With the existence of markets, there comes a point where some matters become doubtful and activities contain grey areas that come in between a decision. In Sahih al-Bukhari, contains an explanation for situations which are doubtful. It states that when a person avoids something that he is unsure about, then he has indeed saved himself from something unlawful. However, in a doubtful situation, if he engages in it, he is more likely to do something unlawful. It is stated that,
حَدَّثَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الْمُثَنَّى، حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ أَبِي عَدِيٍّ، عَنِ ابْنِ عَوْنٍ، عَنِ الشَّعْبِيِّ، سَمِعْتُ النُّعْمَانَ بْنَ بَشِيرٍ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ سَمِعْتُ النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم. حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ عُيَيْنَةَ، عَنْ أَبِي فَرْوَةَ، عَنِ الشَّعْبِيِّ، قَالَ سَمِعْتُ النُّعْمَانَ، عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم. حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ، حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ عُيَيْنَةَ، عَنْ أَبِي فَرْوَةَ، سَمِعْتُ الشَّعْبِيَّ، سَمِعْتُ النُّعْمَانَ بْنَ بَشِيرٍ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم. حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ كَثِيرٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا سُفْيَانُ، عَنْ أَبِي فَرْوَةَ، عَنِ الشَّعْبِيِّ، عَنِ النُّعْمَانِ بْنِ بَشِيرٍ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ قَالَ قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم “ الْحَلاَلُ بَيِّنٌ، وَالْحَرَامُ بَيِّنٌ وَبَيْنَهُمَا أُمُورٌ مُشْتَبِهَةٌ، فَمَنْ تَرَكَ مَا شُبِّهَ عَلَيْهِ مِنَ الإِثْمِ كَانَ لِمَا اسْتَبَانَ أَتْرَكَ، وَمَنِ اجْتَرَأَ عَلَى مَا يَشُكُّ فِيهِ مِنَ الإِثْمِ أَوْشَكَ أَنْ يُوَاقِعَ مَا اسْتَبَانَ، وَالْمَعَاصِي حِمَى اللَّهِ، مَنْ يَرْتَعْ حَوْلَ الْحِمَى يُوشِكْ أَنْ يُوَاقِعَهُ ”.
“Narrated An-Nu`man bin Bashir: The Prophet (ﷺ) said “Both legal and illegal things are obvious, and in between them are (suspicious) doubtful matters. So whoever forsakes those doubtful things lest he may commit a sin, will definitely avoid what is clearly illegal; and whoever indulges in these (suspicious) doubtful things bravely, is likely to commit what is clearly illegal. Sins are Allah’s Hima (i.e. private pasture) and whoever pastures (his sheep) near it, is likely to get in it at any moment.” (Sahih al-Bukhari 2051)
When is Doubt Created?
Doubt is created only when there is evidence to the doubt. It is something that a person clearly remembers doing, and not just by thought or assumption. For instance, a man could feel uncertain about whether his wudu’ is still valid. Unless there is evidence that he broke his wudu’ and he clearly remembers it, then it is just an assumption. Doubt is also created when two scholars of the same standing give one preference over the other on a matter.
Q&A
Highlighted Question asked by the public:
Is it possible for Islamic Financial Institutions (IFIs) to work on their policies, procedures, treatment of customers and staff, to try and maximise Barakah in their businesses?
Answer by Mufti Faraz:
I believe it has to exist. By measuring the outcomes of a business, they should question whether or not they have Barakah. Barakah is often overlooked and is rarely discussed. It would be phenomenal to have a business with two frameworks. The first would be a Bakarah framework, and second, a business or credit analysis framework for the company.
Written by Nafisah Yusra Abdul Rahim.
Notes taken from Messenger Money Morals – Lesson 4: Time, Barakah, and Financing.
Lesson 4: Approaches to Islamic Finance and The 14 Qur’anic Principles
Lesson 2: Introduction to Sahih al-Bukhari and Intentions in Islamic Finance
