To Eat Up others' Property Unjustly

LESSON # 203 FROM HOLY QUR’AN

BAQARAH – 2 (The Cow)

To Eat Up others' Property Unjustly

Verse –188a of 286, Section – 23 (Part  - 2)

And eat not up your property among yourselves in vanity,

Wa  laa  ta’-kuluu  ‘am-waalakum-   bay-nakum-  bil-baa-tili

Lesson

Laa  ta’-kuluu – (do not eat) this word has been originated from the word ‘akala which means ‘to eat’. Technically it doesn’t mean only ‘to eat’ but it also signifies to use the property after getting it unlawfully.

‘Am-waalakum – (property of one another) all the Muslims are being addressed and here it doesn't mean ‘your property’ but it aims ‘the property of one another out of you’.

Bay-nakum – (mutually themselves) the wise persons have told that the circle of this word is very spacious. This order is not limited only on the property of the Muslims; it also means the property of the entire human beings. Desiring they are either Muslims or Infidels, getting the property of any person with treachery, deception, oppression and in vanity is illegal and unlawful.  

Bil-baa-tili – (unjustly, unfairly) it aims every illegal manner of the possession of others property. There can be a lot of forms of it but the lawful method is only one. The method, which will be adopted except this one, will be considered unlawful and unjust.

It was intended from the prescription of the fasting that the spirits of the persons of nation would become pure, they may grow first of all the habit into them to leave the usage of lawful things to get the willingness of God Almighty, so that it may become easier for them to leave the unlawfully gotten property in future and they abstain entirely from it.

To live collectively and mixing up with each other the need to exchange the things is certain. So it is commanded, “And eat not up your property among yourselves in vanity” (you should not try to eat up the property of any other person in vanity during mutual money dealings), you should leave all at once to plunder, to entangle in gambling, to get the property with deception, fraud, cleverness and other unfair means, like this the charges of singing and playing upon the musical instruments, business of wine for example making, buying and selling it etc, to take bribe, false evidence, to embezzle in trust, to eat up the property of weak and helpless person in vanity are unfair methods. The human beings should ward off these evils.

The Holy Qur’an has left its decision usually on the people’s own conscience that every person should feel his responsibility at his own, correct his behaviour and character, keep fear of his actions’ accounts in his mind, every matter be dealt with honesty and trust so that the government might need to interfere only in the proper and particular matters.

Abridgment of this verse is, “it is not the only goodness to leave the pure and lawful things during the month of Ramadan but the real goodness is to leave eating up and getting unlawful property of others forever. Never acquire any one’s property with deception, fraud, dishonest, tyranny, oppression or unjust. To get bribe and illegal gifts is unlawful. As the spirits of the Muslims will become pure with the fasting like this their deeds and actions will become nice by following these orders. It will affect blessed on morality, social deeds, politics, and justice as far as every field of life.     

Transliteration in Roman Script & English Translation of Holy Qur’an written by Marmaduke Pickthall, Published by Paak Company, 17-Urdu Bazar, Lahore and Paraphrase collected from Dars e Qur’aan published By Idara Islah wa Tableegh, Lahore (translated by Muhammad Sharif) (http://hltsharif.blogspot.com) (muhammadsharif276@gmail.com)