The Wisdom of the Prohibition of Usury

Usury and its laws are no longer taboo. However, for some people it is difficult to abandon usury. They reason with various reasons how usury can be halal “according to them”. It is as if the knowledge they hear, read and obtain is just mere knowledge. So that God’s prohibitions Story and His Messenger was still attacked and they didn’t care, the important thing was that the benefits could be obtained and they could enjoy them.

Know that usury transactions are the same as inviting Allah’s punishment Tax. Don’t they want to hear the words of the Prophet? sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam in the hadith of ‘Abdullah bin ‘Abbas May god bless you, he said, Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said,

If adultery and usury appear in a village, then it brings Allah’s punishment upon itself.

“When in a village (place) there has been an act of adultery and usurythen they are actually inviting Allah’s punishment for themselves.” (HR. Al-Hakim and ratified by Sheikh Al-Albani)

Because immorality and sin are the basis of all misfortune and evil in this world and the hereafter, both of which are the cause of punishment. Therefore, in this hadith, the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam explains two acts that are considered major sins, namely adultery and usury.

The warning about usury in this hadith is aimed primarily at lenders, borrowers and the public who witness the practice of usury transactions and are happy with this practice and do not try to prevent it. This is taken from the words of the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam above, “in a village”.

Namely, if usury transactions have spread among a people, then they do not take action against these actions, in fact they are together to invite Allah’s punishment. Story to their place. So the most important thing is that blessings will be removed from that place.

Moreover, nowadays usury is made to appear as if it is attractive and there is nothing forbidden in it. It is called usury with “interest”, as if there is nothing forbidden in it and it takes the form of pleasure when getting “interest”. Sometimes the use of the words “administration fees” also involves deception of the true nature of usury.

Therefore, the scholars stated a rule to refute these things. The rule reads,

What matters are facts and meaning, not words and buildings.

“What is the benchmark in something is the true nature and meaning, not the pronunciation (terms) and structure of words.”

So that the benchmark or scale is not the words (names or terms) conveyed, but the essence. If the essence is haram, then no matter how words are used to deceive, then the law is still haram. From this, it can be seen that it cannot be God Story and His Messenger forbade anything unless there was wisdom from it.

Wisdom prohibits usury

There are many reasons for prohibiting usury, including: [1],

• Usury contains clear and real injustice. Moreover, in the case of usury from debts, there is an act of taking other people’s property without any goods being exchanged. From usury, there will definitely be parties who suffer losses. In terms of debts and receivables, of course the borrower will be at a disadvantage, because the loan will continue to increase. Meanwhile, the lender only enjoys the results of the multiple usury suffered by the borrower.
• Usury educates people to be lazy and not want to try by seeking halal sustenance. Because it is enough for him to entrust his wealth to one place, then usury will run on him, so that he will get a steady profit. Compared to that, he has to try and work to get halal sustenance.

Therefore, people who eat usury will be educated in such a lifestyle. Over time, without realizing it, his wealth will be destroyed and there will be no blessing at all from every nominal increase.

• Usury can eliminate the habit of doing good to fellow humans. On the other hand, usury can also close the door to helping each other and doing good. Usury can result in the accumulation of wealth in the hands of certain people, or what is known as plutonomy.

The impact is that the rich get richer, and the poor get poorer. This stems from the bad usury transaction system. Economic inequality will continue to increase and society will be divided into two, the rich and the poor.

In the Qur’an there is no verse that mentions it tahdzir (warning) against usury, unless before or after there is a verse containing advice to give alms, give donations, and not forget the needs of the poor. So a lesson can be drawn from this, that wealth should not only revolve around rich people; and strong people are not cruel to weak people. Likewise, the rich are not equal to the poor.

• Usury is one of the causes of the spread of unemployment and the spread of this phenomenon among society. This is because capital owners prefer to lend their money using a usury system rather than investing it in industrial, agricultural or trade projects. As a result, there are fewer job opportunities, so that unemployment is increasingly widespread in communities where usury is prevalent.

This is also evident from the suffering experienced by Western countries which face unemployment problems, even though they are advanced in technology and industry. Several Western writers have conveyed this fact and explained that one of the main causes of increasing unemployment in society is the widespread practice of usury.

• Usury is one of the causes of high or expensive prices of goods. This is because if the owner of capital invests his money in industry, agriculture, or in purchasing a property, he will not be willing to sell the property or the goods it produces, except for a profit greater than the usury percentage. The higher the percentage of usury, the more expensive the prices. Therefore, usury is one of the main causes of rising prices.

And there are many more lessons from the prohibition of usury. In the end, usury is haram because it exists mafsadat (damage) and hurt (danger). Not only is it detrimental person However, usury can be detrimental to society, even a country is affected by it. It is not a lie to say that the impact of usury is in this world and the hereafter. God bless.

[Bersambung]

Back to part 2

***

Dear Friday Ap 147/ 18 November 18, 2025

Writer: Zia Abdurrofi

Article Muslim.or.id

Footnote:

[1] Summarized from the video delivered by Sheikh Sa’ad Al-Khatslan hafizahullah