Sayyid Abu'l A La Maududi On Islamic Economics A Review Article (Arshad Zaman)

Islamic Studies 50:3-4 (2011) pp.
303–321 303
Sayyid Ab┴’l A‘l┐ Maud┴d┘ on Islamic Economics

A Review Article
ARSHAD ZAMAN
In the course of a distinguished career as a writer, scholar, public intellectual,

and politician, Maul┐n┐ Sayyid Ab┴’l A‘l┐ Maud┴d┘ (1903–1979) also spoke
and wrote on economic issues, and had a profound impact on economic
thought in Pakistan, and the Muslim world. Fortunately, a selection of his
speeches and writings, dating mainly from the early years of Pakistan to a few
years before the secession of East Pakistan (Bangladesh) were compiled as a
book in Urdu in 1969 by his close associate, Professor Khurshid Ahmad
(b. 1932). This article reviews an English translation of this work, First
Principles of Islamic Economics that has appeared recently. 1
After a brief Introduction the selections in this work are arranged in two
parts: Islam’s philosophy (or system, the words are used interchangeably) of
economic life, and the application of this philosophy to some specific
economic issues. The contents of the book are presented in a Table (overleaf),
showing chapter titles, sources, and their original dates. Before reviewing the
text, however, it is necessary to comment — unfortunately, at some length,
given the semantic minefield that readers of texts on Islamic economics must
traverse — on a few issues relating to the Urdu original, and its translation.
* This review was written reluctantly at the persuasive invitation of Zafar Ishaq Ansari, and was
first submitted in late 2011. Without implicating them in my errors or views, I am indebted to
Farzad Rafi Khan, Waqar Masood Khan, Muhammad Khalid Masud, Syed Salman Nadvi,
Muhammad Nejatullah Siddiqi, Asad Zaman, and Iftikhar Zaman for their comments,
suggestions, and guidance on earlier drafts. The help of Id┐rah-i Ma‘┐rif-i Isl┐m┘, Karachi; and,
Man╖┴rah, Lahore; and the Institute of Policy Studies, Islamabad, in locating Maul┐n┐’s
writings, is also gratefully acknowledged.
1
Sayyid Abul A‘l┐ Maud┴d┘’s First Principles of Islamic Economics, Ed., Khurshid Ahmad
(Markfield, Leicestershire: The Islamic Foundation, 2011). The Urdu original is: Sayyid Abu’l
A‘l┐ Maud┴d┘, Ma‘┐shiy┐t-i Isl┐m, Ed., Khurshid Ahmad (Lahore: Islamic Publications Limited,
1969). In the text of this Review, the letters E and U refer to the English and Urdu versions,
followed by a colon and page number: e.g. (E: 12) for English, p. 12, or (U: 21), for Urdu, p. 21.
Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

Please do no cite without permission
Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2225711

304 ARSHAD ZAMAN
Comparative Table of Contents

(Showing Dates and Sources of the Writings Selected)
The Economics of Islam First Principles of Islamic Economics

(Urdu Original, 1969) (English Translation, 2011)
Author’s Preface (1969) Foreword (by Editor; New, 2011)
Foreword (by Editor; Original, 1969) Author’s Preface
Introduction (1948) Introduction
I. The Economic Conception of Islam I. The Islamic Concept of Well-Being
1. The Economic Problem of Man and its 1. Mankind’s Economic Problems and their
Solution (1941) Solutions
2. Economic Teachings of the Qur’┐n* 2. Economic Teachings of the Qur’┐n*
(Article 1963, updated)
3. The Difference between Capitalism and 3. The Differences between Islam and
Islam* (S-1, 1948) Capitalism*
4. The Economic Philosophy of Islam
(1951)
4. Principles and Objectives of Islamic 5. The Principles and Objectives of Islam’s
Economic Organisation (1965) Economic System
5. Some Basic Principles of Economic Life* 6. Some Basic Principles of Economic Life
(F, Vol. 1–3)
II. The Economic Order of Islam: Some II. The Economic System of Islam: Some
Aspects Basic Features
6. The Question (Mas’alah) of Land 7. The Question of Land Ownership
Ownership (Z 1950)
7. The Problem (Mas’alah) of Interest (S-1 8. The Question of Interest
1948, & T 1961)
8. The Essence of Zak┐t and its Commands 9. Zak┐h in Theory and Practice
(Kh 1957, & F 2: 205–208, T 1946, 1950,
1951, 1953, 1954, R v. 4)
9. Islam and Social Justice (1962) 10. Islam and Social Justice
10. The Problems of Labour, Insurance, and 11. Issues of Labour, Insurance and Price
Price Control (1957, X, T 1944) Control
11. The Re-Codification of Economic Laws, 12. Recodification of the Economic Laws of
and its Principles 0(S-1 1948) Islam
* No source given; but see last footnote, below.
Abbreviations: F: Tafh┘m al-Qur’┐n; Kh: Khu═ub┐t 1957; N: Isl┐m┘ Na╘m-i Ma‘┘shat k╚ Buny┐d┘
Ark┐n, in Isl┐m aur Jad┘d Ma‘┐sh┘ Na╘ariy┐t (based on: S-1); R: Ras┐’il-o Mas┐’il 1951–65; S: S┴d,
S-1 1948, S-2 1952, S 1961; T: Tarjum┐n al-Qur’┐n; X: Resolution of the Executive Committee,
Jam┐‘at-i Isl┐m┘; Z: Mas’alah-i Milkiyat-i Zam┘n; see footnotes to this Review for full references.
Note: In this Table sources are given mainly under the Urdu original (my translation). Where
only the years are mentioned, the reference is to Maul┐n┐’s speeches.
Translation is an impossible task, in which a Solomonic choice has to be

made between being true to the author and being comprehensible to the
reader. The translator, Ahmad Imam Shafaq Hashemi, has done a marvellous


SAYYID ABU’L A‘L└ MAUDUDI ON ISLAMIC ECONOMICS: A REVIEW ARTICLE
305
job in which he has privileged the reader — and modernised the text (e.g. by
transforming ma‘┐sh┘ from economic, to well-being, in the title of Part One) —
without departing too far from the author. Even so, there is a deep rooted
ambiguity in the original that is transmitted in translation, which may trouble
the uninitiated reader. This ambiguity relates largely to the sense and referents
of two critical words, translated as economic and system, and to the concept of
an Islamic system (or order).
Words: Economic, and System

The nouns economy and economics, and the adjective, economic, that can refer
to either, translate the ambiguous Urdu words, ma‘┘shat, ma‘┐shiy┐t, and
ma‘┐sh┘. 2 Maul┐n┐ used ma‘┘shat (economy) and ma‘┐sh┘ (economic) not in the
sense of the English words, but based on their Arabic sense of livelihood, as a
metonym for livelihood arrangements. Even though iqti╖┐d, iqti╖┐diy┐t, and
iqti╖┐d┘, respectively, translate the three English words in their modern sense
unambiguously, Maul┐n┐ consistently used ma‘┘shat rather than iqti╖┐d; 3 with
his firm command over all three languages, this choice cannot be attributed to
carelessness. His intent clearly, given the context of his discourse, his disdain
for academic economics, his intimacy with the Qur’┐n, and his customary
attention to language, was to use ma‘┘shat and ma‘┐sh┘ (economy and economic)
in their Arabic, rather than English, sense. A failure to appreciate this
semantic ambivalence has misled many an English-speaking reader of texts in
Islamic Economics.
2
From al-‘aysh, which refers to animal life — and is more specific than al-╒ay┐t (life), which can
be used for God and angels as well as animals — in Arabic al-ma‘┘shah means livelihood,
sustenance, or life. This is how the word is used in the Holy Qur’┐n (43: 32 and 20: 124; and in
the plural, ma‘┐yish, 15: 20 and 7: 10; and as ‘┘shah, life, in al-‘┘shat al-r┐╔iyah, 101: 7). See Ab┴ ’l-
Q┐╖im ╓usayn R┐ghib al-I╖fah┐n┘, Mufrad┐t al-Qur’┐n (Urdu tr. in 2 vols., Lahore: Shaikh
Shams al-╓aqq, 1987), s.v. al-‘aysh. This is also how Maul┐n┐ translates it in these verses,
respectively, into Urdu (tr.=my translation of the Urdu); and how his translator renders them,
in English (in parentheses): guzar basar k╚ dhar┐’i‘, tr. means of existence (“livelihood”), zindag┘
(“life”), ma‘┘shat k╚ asb┐b, tr. means of livelihood (“sustenance”), s┐m┐n-i z┘st, tr. wares of life
(“livelihood”), and ‘aish (“life”). Sayyid Abul A‘l┐ Maud┴d┘, Tafh┘m al-Qur’┐n, tr. Zafar Ishaq
Ansari, Towards Understanding the Qur’┐n, 9 vols. to date (Leicester: Islamic Foundation,
1988−present). In the book under review, which cites two of these five verses, both ma‘┘shah (in
43: 32) and ma‘┐yish (in 7: 10) are also translated as “livelihood” (E: 31, 25). Ma‘┐sh, life in this
world, is often opposed to ma‘┐d, life in the hereafter (Al-Qa╖a╖, 28:85). Note, finally, that
meanings of Arabic words inducted into Urdu, can often drift from their original meanings.
3
From qa╖ada (f┘, to adopt a middle course, in; to be economical, thrifty, frugal), iqti╖┐d is
economising, saving, thrift, thriftiness; ‘ilm al-iqti╖┐d, economics (−al-siy┐s┘, political economy).
The sole exception to this statement seems to be the section, Iqti╖┐d┘ Ni╘┐m, in Isl┐m k┐ Ni╘┐m-
i ╓ay┐t, Tarjum┐n ’l-Qur┐n (TQ, hereafter), 31:2 (Sha‘b┐n 1367/1948 June), 89-96, but despite
the title the word (iqti╖┐d) does not appear anywhere in the text of the article.


306 ARSHAD ZAMAN
Both the conception of economics as an integral part of politics, and of

the moral and immoral uses of ‘economic’ skills have ancient roots: Aristotle
distinguished between the natural and honourable art of household
management (oikonomik╚s); and the unnatural and discreditable accumulation
of wealth by the art of getting rich (an aspect of chr╚matistik╚) by commerce
and trade, at the expense of others. 4 In Arabic, oikonomik╚s became ‘ilm tadb┘r
al-manzil, and extended to the city-state, ‘ilm tadb┘r al-mudun; 5 and centuries
later in English, extended to the state (as a polity), Political Economy —
which, more Chrematistics than Economics, “proposes to enrich both the
people and the sovereign.” 6 By the late nineteenth century, as both the sense of
the adjective ‘political’ shifted in the English language and ‘scientific’
economic analysis emerged from ‘philosophical’ economic thought, the
adjective was dropped and Economics acquired its modern sense — in modern
Arabic, ‘ilm al-iqti╖┐d.
These distinctions were understood in the Urdu literature on economics
in Maul┐n┐’s times. By 1869 three economics texts — by the Baptist American,
long-time president of Brown University, Rev. Francis Wayland, by Nassau
William Senior, and by John Stuart Mill — had been translated into Urdu. 7
4
Aristotle, Politica, 1258a38–1259b1. Chrematistics is from chremata: wares, commodities, or
goods. See also the earlier book by Xenophon, Oikonomikos — The Economist, i.e. The
Household Manager or Household Management (from oikos, household, by extension, agricultural
estate) — a dialogue between Socrates and Critobulus. On oeconomics, see The “Infrastructure”
of Aristotle’s Politics: Aristotle on Economics and Politics, in Carnes Lord and David K.
O’Connor, ed., Essays on the Foundations of Aristotelian Political Science (Berkeley: University of
California Press, 1991, 74-111), and M. I. Finlay, The Ancient Economy (Berkeley: University of
California Press, 1973), 17-21. I am indebted, with the usual caveat emptor, to Dimitrios Krallis
for assistance with some of Aristotle’s texts.
5
Yassine Essid, A Critique of the Origins of Islamic Economic Thought (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1995),
with the important question or origins raised by Abdul Azim Islahi, The Myth of Bryson and
Economic Thought in Islam, J.KAU: Islamic Economics, 21:1 (2008 AD/1429 AH), 65-70.
6
Adam Smith, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (London, 1776),
Bk. IV, Introduction. The first book to use political economy in its title was Sir James Steuart's
(1712–80) 2-vol. work, An Inquiry into the Principles of Political Oeconomy (London, 1767); and
economics, by itself, was Alfred Marshall, Principles of Economics (London, 1890). Unlike
England, Germany in the eighteenth century remained closer to the older tradition, with the
development of the Principles of Economic Administration and Policy (Polizeiwissenschaft), in a
Cameral Science, or Science of the State (Staatswissenschaft). Cf. J. A. Schumpeter, History of
Economic Analysis (New York: Oxford University Press, 1966/1954), 159ff.
7
Francis Wayland, The Elements of Political Economy (New York: Leavitt, Lord & Co., 1837),
tr. Pan╔it Dharam N┐r┐yan, U╖┴l-i ‘Ilm-i Inti╘┐m-i Mudun (Dihl┘: Anjuman-i Ish┐‘at-i ‘Ul┴m-i
Muf┘dah, 1845). Nassau William Senior, An Outline of the Science of Political Economy (London:
W. Clowes and Sons, 1836), published earlier as an article, “Political Economy,” in the
Encyclopaedia Metropolitana, tr. B┐b┴ R┐m K┐l┘ Chaudhar┘ and R┐’╚ Shankar D┐s, Ris┐lah-i ‘Ilm-
i Inti╘┐m-i Mudun (Allugurh [sic. — Aligarh]: Scientific Society, Syud Ahmud’s [sic.] Private

307
While translations continued apace, in 1904, Shaikh Mu╒ammad (later,

‘All┐mah’) Iqb┐l published the first Urdu textbook, ‘Ilm al-Iqti╖┐d. 8 In 1917,
Mu╒ammad Ily┐s Barn┘’s ‘Ilm al-Ma‘┘shat appeared; a much more substantive
work, that held the field until the 1940s and 1950s (both Maul┐n┐ Seoh┐rv┘ and
Muft┘ Shaf┘‘ cite it). 9 Not unlike Aristotle, however, both popular and
scholarly opinion seems not to have looked kindly at a ‘science of wealth,’
with the result that Barn┘ chose to present his textbook of modern economics
(‘Ilm al-Iqti╖┐d) under the old title of economic management (‘Ilm al-Ma‘┘shat):
The misapprehensions that have � � � � �‫ اس � � ا� ��ع اور ا� و‬
arisen about the real scope and ‫غ‬
� ‫� �ں �ا � � � ا� � ا� اردو �ا�ں‬
coverage of this science are reflected ‫ت‬ ‫ث‬
in its Urdu names as well. Thus, it ِ ،�‫ ا�ل دو‬
‫ ا�ل‬ ِ ،‫� � آ� �۔ �� ِ �روت‬
‫ى ت‬
has been given the titles of science ‫ �ب �رى و�ہ � � � ا�بت‬ � ‫��ى اور‬
of affluence, principles of wealth,
‫اس � د� � � �۔ اور � ا�د � � ا�ر اور ر��ں‬
principles of riches, and of national
saving, etc. Newspapers and � ��‫� اس �ر رواج دے د ىا� � � اس � ا� ا‬
‫ث‬
magazines have made the word ‫�گ �� ۔ � اس � � �� اور‬
iqti╖┐d so widespread that people are ‫ت‬
� ‫و� � وا� � �� فآم‬
‫ آ�آ‬
surprised at any objection to it. But ‫� شت‬
10
‫� وہ � ا �عتىشت �۔‬
after understanding the essence and
F 9
scope of this science, the name that

seems best is the science of ma‘┘shat.
Given Maul┐n┐’s association with All┐mah Iqb┐l, and the status of Ily┐s
Barn┘’s text in its time, it is almost certain that he would have seen these
works. Yet, he did not find their approach useful. In his first statement on
‘economic’ matters, speaking at Aligarh Muslim University in 1941, he
Press, 1865). John Stuart Mill, Principles of Political Economy with some of their Applications to
Social Philosophy (London: John W. Parker, West Strand, 1848), tr. Pan╔it Dharam N┐r┐yan,
U╖┴l-i Siy┐sat-i Mudun (Aligarh: Scientific Society, 1869). Mudun, lit. Cities, was a metonym for
city-state, or polity; siy┐sah (Ar.) is government, administration, or management. Hence,
Inti╘┐m-i Mudun can be Public Management; and Siy┐sat-i Mudun, Public Administration.
8
Shaikh Mu╒ammad Iqb┐l, ‘Ilm al-Iqti╖┐d, jis k┐ ma‘r┴f n┐m ‘Ilm-i Siy┐sat-i Mudun ha╚ (The
Science of Economics, known as Public Management [sic. — Political Economy]; Lahore: Kh┐dim
al-Ta‘l┘m Steam Press of Paysa Akhb┐r, Undated/December 1904), pp. 216; All┐mah Iqb┐l had
consulted Egyptian newspapers for his translations, and Maul┐n┐ Shibl┘ Nu‘m┐n┘ had checked
them (Iqb┐l, ibid., 7). There are references to an earlier work by Mu╒ammad Man╖┴r Sh┐h Kh┐n
and Mu╒ammad Sa‘┴d Sh┐h Kh┐n, Ris┐lah-i ‘Ilm-i Inti╘┐m-i Mudun (publisher and date
unknown), but little else is known about it.
9
Mu╒ammad Ily┐s Barn┘, ‘Ilm al-Ma‘┘shat: U╖┴l-i Ikan┐miks y┐ P┤litikal Ik┐n┤m┘ par Urd┴ mei╞
sab s╚ Pahl┘ Mustanad aur J┐mi‘ Kit┐b (Aligarh: Ma═ba‘-i Institute, 1917, xxix+760 pp+Annexes).
For references to works by Maul┐n┐ Seoh┐rv┘ and Muft┘ Shaf┘‘ see footnotes 36 and 37, below.
10
Ibid., 29. Unless otherwise noted, all translations are mine.

308 ARSHAD ZAMAN
complained that “books with high-sounding jargon and terms dedicated to

Economics as a discipline” and “the scholarly hair-splitting by economic
wizards” were of no help to the common man (E: 3, U: 35–6). He sought help
in seeking ‘arrangements for the provision of livelihoods’ derived from the
scriptures (Qur’┐n and ╒ad┘th) of Islam. This is the sense of the Urdu words
translated as economy and economic (modifying economy, not economics), in the
expression, economic system, found in the book under review.
This leads us to the second word, system, which translates na╘m or ni╘┐m,
meaning arrangement, organisation, or order, in an aesthetic sense, rather than
a body of doctrines, a set of equations, or a group of material objects, in the far
more integrated sense that is conveyed to the modern reader by the word
system. 11 The word system (along with Nature, natural law and principles) is
among the core metaphysical concepts around which traditional Christianity
was reconstituted as secular scientific Modernity. In their interaction with the
West during “the long nineteenth century” (1789–1914), in a process of
reactive assimilation, Muslim reformers grafted what they understood of these
concepts onto traditional Muslim concepts. 12 In the process a new vocabulary
was created that signified, often not distinctly, a composite of the semantic
field from which European words and ideas were drawn, and the original
semantic field of the words with Arabic roots onto which they were mapped. 13
11
In European languages, the first use of the word ‘system’ in its modern sense can be traced to
Galileo Galilei, Dialogo sopra i due massimi sistemi del mondo (The Dialogue Concerning the
Two Chief World Systems, 1632; tr. into Latin, Systema Cosmicum, 1635). It was extended to
moral and social affairs by the French Enlightenment materialist-atheist Paul-Henri d’Holbach,
Système de la nature, ou Des loix du monde physique et du monde moral (System of Nature, or the
Laws of the Physical and the Moral World; “London” — in fact, Amsterdam — 1770), and
Système social, ou Principes naturels de la morale et de la Politique, avec un examen de l’influence du
gouvernement sur les mœurs, (Social System, or natural Principles of morality and Politics, with a
review of the government’s influence on manners; 3 vols., London, 1773). In economics, “the
term system... is used... in a variety of different senses which should not be confused, for
instance: a set of more or less co-ordinated principles of political action (e.g. liberal system, free-
trade system); an organized body of doctrine (e.g. the scholastic system, Marshall’s system); a set
of quantities between which certain relations are assumed to exist (e.g. system of prices); a set of
equations expressing such relations (e.g. the Walrasian system).” Schumpeter, History of
Economic Analysis, 29, n. 3. Possibly, Maul┐n┐’s “system” (ni╘┐m) may be understood in the
first, or perhaps the first two, of these senses.
12
Reacting to similar pressures, Bishop Butler had declared: “Christianity, like the course of
Nature, is a system.” Joseph Butler, The Analogy of Religion, to the Constitution and Course of
Nature (Philadelphia: J. R. Lippincott & Co., 1857), 26.
13
The point is endorsed by Hourani, who writes that the Islamic reformism of ‘Abduh and
Rash┘d Rid┐ “took place under the stimulus of European liberal thought, and led to a gradual
reinterpretation of Islamic concepts so as to make them equivalent to the guiding principles of
European thought of the time: Ibn Khald┴n’s ‘umr┐n gradually turned into Guizot’s
‘civilization,’ the ma╖la╒ah of the M┐lik┘ jurists and Ibn Taymiyyah into the ‘utility’ of John

309
Maul┐n┐ used the words ni╘┐m and na╘m in two fluid senses: one, to
translate the “-ism” in Capitalism (“Ni╘┐m-i Sarm┐yahd┐r┘,” 14 lit. ‘capitalistic
order’), etc., i.e. as an ideological system; and two, understanding ‘ideology’ as
a set of principles, 15 in the sense of a competing set of Islamic principles (or
Islamic ideological order), that he derived inductively, directly from the sacred
texts, largely setting aside the narrower, methodologically rigorous, and long
well-established principles of jurisprudence (u╖┴l al-fiqh). Maul┐n┐’s Islamic
order therefore sought to compete both with European ideologies and, by its
wider scope and intuitive method, with Islamic jurisprudence.
As a practical reformer, Maul┐n┐ read the European ‘-isms’ he analysed, as
forms of political organisation of social and economic life, based on principles
or law. He had no patience with academic discussions and against the temper
of his times, he did not (at least at first) like the word system: Criticising the
Bolsheviks and the idea of scientific socialism, he had ridiculed the ploy of
using the word ‘system’ to buttress dubious concepts and propositions:
Among the fascinating weaknesses � � � �‫�� ذ� � د� �ور�ں � � ى ا‬
of the Western mind, one also is ‫ت‬ ‫ت‬
‫ � وہ ى‬
� �‫ �ب‬ ‫ ��ً ب ب‬،� ‫� وہ ْا� � � � ��ا‬
that it is very fond of novelty,
especially if it is most absurd and if � � � � ‫اور اس � � �� وا� � د�ك اور‬
‫ٹ‬ ‫ٹ‬
the presenter boldly and � ‫ب�رے � ب �رے �ت � �� اور ا� د�ى‬
unhesitatingly rejects one major ‫ت‬
‫ذرا �� ا� ب‬
‫ �ب � � � ان � ا�ر‬
accepted truth after another, and so
organises his theses in a little F 15 ‫ى‬
‫ا�’’�‘‘ �ا � ��۔‬
16
scientific way that a “system” is

created within them.
Stuart Mill, the ijm┐’ of Islamic jurisprudence into the ‘public opinion’ of democratic theory,
and ‘those who bind and loose’ into members of parliament.” Albert Hourani, Arabic Thought
in the Liberal Age 1798–1939 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983/1962), 344.
14
Also, “Ni╘┐m-i J┐g┘rd┐r┘ (Feudal System),” etc; yet he did not translate socialism, communism,
or ‘Nazism’ into Urdu; and by contrast, often used na╘m (rather than ni╘┐m) to express Islamic
economic organisation (Na╘m-i Ma‘┘shat); Isl┐m aur Jad┘d Ma‘┐sh┘ Na╘ariy┐t (Islam and Modern
Economic Ideologies; Lahore: Id┐rah-i Ma═b┴‘┐t-i ║alabah, 1987/1958), 21, 8, 43, 71, and 97.
Helpfully, Maul┐n┐ had taken early to inscribing English equivalents of Urdu words (in
brackets in Latin script) in his writings, where necessary (but see footnote 15).
15
Maul┐n┐ understood the English word “ideology” in the sense of “being based on principles.”
Thus, in his article, Mas’alah-i Qawm┘at, Maul┐n┐ writes that the Jam┐‘at-i Isl┐m┘ is to be an
“u╖┴l┘ jam┐‘at (ideological party)” unmindful of the opposite connotations in the two languages.
Quoted in Asr┐r A╒mad, Ta╒r┘k-i Jam┐‘at-i Isl┐m┘: ╚k Ta╒q┘q┘ Mu═┐li‘ah (Jam┐‘at-i Isl┐m┘: An
Investigative Study; Lahore: Markaz┘ Maktabah-i Tan╘┘m-i Isl┐m┘, 2008, 1st ed. 1966), 60.
16
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Na╘ariy┐t, 51.Yet, in his later writings, he did use the word sistam (in
Urdu) as a synonym for ni╘┐m but, like ideology, it isn’t clear if he intended the full semantic
range of the English word by it.

310 ARSHAD ZAMAN
In the book under review, therefore, the reader should understand

‘system’ as a set of more or less co-ordinated guidelines for political action, in
the areas of morals, laws, and public policy; a loose, ideal, conceptual order
rather than a tight, empirical (descriptive or analytical) one. (Instead of system,
therefore, the word ‘order’ is used, inclusively, in most cases hereafter.) Thus,
in the book, ‘economic system’ should be seen to refer to such an order, in
relation to arrangements for the provision of livelihoods.
The Idea of an Islamic Order (Ni╘┐m or Na╘m )

Arguably, Maul┐n┐’s greatest contribution to Muslim political thought was his
view that not just law and jurisprudence, but an ideology, as he understood
the then contemporary European sense of the word, can be derived intuitively
by induction from the sacred texts of Islam. 17 He not only staked this claim,
but over the course of some thirty years or more he both spelled out just such
an ideology, and later sought to put it into practice in Pakistan — thereby
assuring him his place among the great Muslim statesmen and reformers of the
twentieth century.
In absorbing Maul┐n┐’s thought, however, we are forced to ask whether
an Islamic ni╘┐m or na╘m can be derived exclusively from Islamic sources, and
expressed in the Arabic language, without viewing Islamic texts through
European lenses? The question is problematic, for two reasons: First, because
these two words don’t occur anywhere in the Qur’┐n. Nor does a quick search
yield any Report (╒ad┘th) in which the Holy Prophet, peace be on him, had
used these words. Viewed without the frame of European categories, na╘m has
the sense of arrangement, composition, organisation, or order: a pearl necklace
is a na╘m or ni╘┐m of pearls (na╘m al-durar or ni╘┐m al-lu’lu’); in literature,
na╘m is poetic form; and the ‘ulam┐’ refer to the na╘m (text — neither prose
nor poetry) of the Qur’┐n, in view of its miraculous quality.
The same sense carries over to the word ni╘┐m. Of the civil strife (fitnah)
of the final days of ‘Uthm┐n’s (r.) caliphate, it was said, “then, people disputed
[with each other] and had no ni╘┐m” (thumma ikhtalafa ’l-n┐s wa l┐ ni╘┐ma
lahum), as licentiousness became widespread. Similarly, the people tried to
stop ‘Umar (r.), when he planned to head out himself to fight the Persians at
Nah┐wand: “For if you are lost there, the Muslims will have no ni╘┐m” (fa-in
17
In the European sense, “The term [ideology] is of French origin and at first meant simply the
analysis of ideas… Occasionally it seems to have been used in much the same sense as Moral
Philosophy, i.e. as roughly equivalent to social science… Napoleon I also used it but in a
different sense that carried a derogatory connotation: he described as idéologues those opponents
of his government, such as Lafayette, whom he considered unrealistic dreamers.” J. A.
Schumpeter, History of Economic Analysis, 35, n. 4.

311
u╖ibta bi-h┐ lam yakun li ’l-muslim┘n ni╘┐m); or as ‘Al┘ (r.), grabbing the reins
of Ab┴ Bakr’s (r.) mount, stopped him as he headed out to Qa╖╖ah: “...By God,
if we come to sorrow by you, Islam will never have a ni╘┐m” (… fa wa-All┐h
la’in fuji‘n┐ bika l┐ yak┴n li ’l-Isl┐m ni╘┐m abad┐). 18 Clearly, if God gave the
Muslims an Islamic ni╘┐m (order or system) neither He, nor His messenger,
peace be on him, called it by that name.
Second, while it makes eminent sense to hold that the moral and legal
teachings of Islam (al-shar┘‘ah) are characterised by, or give rise to, or aim at
achieving an aesthetic ‘orderliness of everyday life’ (ni╘┐m), Maul┐n┐ held both
that there was an Islamic order (ni╘┐m) distinct from these teachings, and that
the establishment of this order on earth was the real call of Islam, to which
prayers, fasting, etc. were all of a preparatory nature. 19 Since it was difficult, in
the ideological struggle with colonial powers, to fight system with revelation,
an influential section of anti-imperial Muslim leadership was moved to extract
an Islamic system out of sacred texts. In the process, however, the message of
these texts was de-centred and re-interpreted to privilege political struggle and
the pursuit of prosperity, and the inducted spirit of Islam and objectives of
Islamic law (al-shar┘‘ah) took on a life of their own, often overwhelming the
text itself when the letter held back the spirit. 20
Thus, in his commentary on the sign (┐yah) of the Qur’┐n revealing God’s
perfection of Islam (al-M┐’idah, 5: 3), Maul┐n┐ interprets perfection (ikm┐l) as
meaning not of God’s commandments, as most scholars have always held, but
of the inferred ‘order’ (of thought and action, possibly to compete with Hegel
and Marx and of civilisation and culture, perhaps contra Guizot) that he
posited as the objective of these commands:
18
The quotes, seriatim, are from: Ab┴ ’l-Q┐sim Sulaym┐n ibn A╒mad ibn Ayy┴b al-║abar┐n┘,
Al-Mu‘jam Al-Kab┘r, Ed., ╓amd┘ ibn ‘Abd al-╓am┘d al-Salaf┘, 20 vols. (Mawsil: Maktabat al-
‘Ul┴m wa ’l-╓ikam, 1983/1404), s.v. Zayd ibn Kh┐rijah; Mu╒ammad N┐╖ir al-D┘n al-Alb┐n┘,
Ed., Al-Ta‘l┘q┐t al-╓is┐n ‘al┐ ╗a╒┘╒ ibn ╓ibb┐n wa Tamy┘z Saq┘mihi min ╗a╒┘hihi wa Sh┐dhdihi
min Ma╒f┴zih, 12 vols. (Jeddah: D┐r b┐ Waz┘r, 2003/1424), 3: 5, ╓ad┘th no. 4756; and ‘Im┐d al-
D┘n Ab┴ ’l-Fid┐ Ism┐’┘l ibn ‘Umar ibn Kath┘r, Al-Bid┐yah wa ’l-Nih┐yah, 12 vols., Ed., ‘Abd
All┐h ibn ‘Abd al-Mu╒sin al-Turk┘ (Cairo: Hijr, 1998/1418), 9: 446.
19
See Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Isl┐m k┐ Maqs┴d-╚ Haq┘q┘ (The Real Objective of Islam), in Khu═b┐t
(Sermons): “In a few words it is sufficient to say that the true purpose of Islam is to erase the
government of men over men, and establish the government of the one God, and to spare no
effort to attain this objective is called jihad; and prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, paying poor-dues,
are all in preparation for this work.”
20
The idea that power and prosperity required supplementing the shar┘‘ah had taken hold in the
Muslim world. Thus, for example, the 1839 charter of the Tanzimat in Turkey (Gülhane-i Hatt-ı
Humayun), which laid the foundation for extra-shara‘┘ principles of public law (beyond custom
and imperial edict), declared: “as long as such organizing regulations are not enacted neither
strength nor prosperity can be attained.” Şerif Arif Mardin, Some Explanatory Notes on the
Origins of the ‘Mecelle’ (Medjelle), The Muslim World, 51:3 (July 1961, 189-96), 195.

312 ARSHAD ZAMAN
Perfecting the Faith means making ِ � �‫د� � � � د� � �اد ُاس � ى ا‬

‫ �م � و‬
it a permanent ni╘┐m of thought ِ � �‫� اور ى ا� ا‬
‫ �م ى ب‬
� � �‫ �ب و �ن � د‬
and action, and so complete a ni╘┐m
of civilization and culture, that � ‫� ز�� ج ُ � �� اب ا��ً ى�ا �ً ��د‬
‫ى ت‬
there is in it an answer, in principle � ‫ �ات اور ر�� ل‬ ‫اور‬
‫اس � �ب ہآ�ر �� ورت � � آ�۔‬
or in detail, to all questions of life, 21
so that in no condition should it be
F 20
necessary to go outside it to obtain

guidance and direction.
Next, based on this reading, Maul┐n┐ read the life of the holy prophets
(peace be on them all) as a struggle to gain the power necessary to establish
God’s order on earth:
‫ن‬
So, the end objective of the mission �‫ ا�اء � ا� ّس�ام � � � �� د � ر‬ ‫ � ْ د� � ب ى‬
of the prophets, on whom peace, ِ ‫و� ا�� ّئىہ �� اْس ْ پ �ورے‬‫ت‬
� ��‫ �م ز‬ � ْ � �
has been to establish Godly ‫خ‬ ‫خ‬
government, and give effect to that
22
F ‫ا�� وہ �دا � �ف � �� ۔‬
21
21
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Tafh┘m, 1: 444. Compare: “No legal injunction whatsoever was revealed
after this verse: and this explains the reference to God’s having perfected the Faith…”
Mu╒ammad Asad, The Message of the Qur‘┐n (England: The Book Foundation, 2008/Spain:
1980), 165, n. 10. In Qur’┐n k┘ Ch┐r Buny┐d┘ I╖═al┐╒╚n (The Four Basic Terms of the Qur’┐n;
Lahore: Islamic Publications, 1973), Mawl┐n┐ holds that not only d┘n, but also the words il┐h,
rabb, and ‘ib┐dat—usually, but inadequately, translated as: religion, god, Lord, and worship,
respectively—have been misunderstood, so that “over three-fourths of the Qur’┐n’s teachings, in
fact its real spirit” has been hidden from Muslim eyes for centuries (pp. 14, 11), until Maul┐n┐’s
rediscovery. For a critique, see Sayyid Abul Hasan ‘Al┘ (Nadv┘), ‘A╖r-e ╓┐╔ir m╚n D┘n k┘ Tafh┘m-
o Tashr┘╒ (ma‘ I╔┐fah Jad┘dah), Karachi: Majlis-e Nashariy┐t-e Islam, Undated (First Published:
Dh┘ Qa‘dah 1398: October 1978). ‘Al┘ (Nadv┘) writes that he had sent his book to Maul┐n┐
Maud┴d┘, who replied most graciously in a letter dated January 23, 1979 that “I have never
considered myself above criticism, nor do I mind it,” and had invited ‘Al┘ (Nadv┘) to review his
other works in a similar manner and apprise him of ‘Al┘ (Nadv┘)’s “impressions and qualms”
(“ta’athur┐t aur khadsh┐t”) (my translation, ibid., 11).
22
Maul┐n┐ Ab┴ ’l-A‘l┐ Maud┴d┘, S┘rat-i Sarvar-i ‘└lam, Ed., Na‘┘m ╗idd┘q┘ and ‘Abd al-Wak┘l
‘Alav┘, 2 vols. (Lahore: Id┐rah-i Tarjum┐n al-Qur’┐n, 1978), 1: 366. In a footnote to the
continuation of this text, Maul┐n┐ rebuts the claim that government is not an objective (maq╖┴d)
but a promised reward (maw‘┴d), and holds that it is the aim and objective of the shar┘‘ah:
‫ذ‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ت‬ ‫زز‬ ‫ز‬
‫”��دہ ز�� د�ار ب �رر�ں � ز آ�بن � � �ہ ا� � � آ‬
�‫ آ� � � �� د � � ��د �۔ � آ�بت � �ات �ر�� ان � ذ� � در ا‬
‫ت‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ت‬
� ‫ اْس � ڈ�� اور �� ر � �۔ اور � �� د� � �م ً�ا �� ورت �اس‬،� ‫ ا� ا�م �� ر‬ ‫�� ى‬
‫خخ‬ ‫خ‬
“‫ �� رض �۔‬ ‫ �ا � �� ب و �د � اور اس � � �د ا‬ ‫�م د‬
This appears to be a response to Maul┐n┐ Ashraf ‘Al┘ Th┐nv┘’s statement in 1362/1941, two
years before his death, in which he made the maq╖┴d-maw‘┴d distinction that was widely echoed
subsequently. See Khw┐jah ‘Az┘z al-╓asan (Majz┴b), Ashraf ’l-Saw┐ni╒ (4 vols., Multan: Id┐rah’-
i T┐’l┘f┐t-i Ashraf┘yah, 1406/1985), 4:29.

313
entire ni╘┐m of life that they had

brought from God.
Maul┐n┐ was not alone in arguing that to meet the challenge of the times
Islam should not be held back by the strict ‘letter’ of the law, but should be
reformed or reconstructed 23 to achieve the ‘spirit’ (or beneficial purposes,
ma╖┐li╒, or objectives, maq┐╖id) of the moral and legal teachings of Islam (al-
shar┘‘ah) — a view that has never ceased to gain a growing following. The
consensus, however, has remained first, that the aims or benefits of the shar┘‘ah
that are not supported by the text of the Qur’┐n or Reports, cannot be
determined uniquely; and second, that God’s commands cannot be set aside by
appeal to their underlying wisdom. Thus Sh┐h Wal┘ All┐h (d. 1762), who
wrote a definitive work explaining the benefits and purposes underlying the
divine commandments, and castigated those who held that they were simply a
test of obedience, bereft of purpose or wisdom, also cautioned that:
ً
[The sunnah] also requires that �� ‫]ﺍﻟﺴﻨﺔ[ ﺃﯾﻀﺎ ﱠﺃﻧە ﻻ ﯾﺤﻞ ﺃﻥ ُﯾﺘﻮﻗﻒ‬
ّ ‫ﻭ ﺃﻭﺟﺒﺖ‬
when the commands of the shar┘‘ah ّ
��‫ﺍﻣﺘﺜﺎﻝ ﺃﺣ�ﺎﻡ ﺍﻟﺸﺮﻉ ﺇﺫﺍ �ﺡﺖ ﺑﻫﺎ ﺍﻟﺮﻭﺍﯾﺔ ﻋ‬
are established by sound traditions, … 24‫ﻣﻌﺮﻓﺔ ﺗﻠﮏ ﺍﳌﺼﺎ�ﺡ‬
23F
then it is not permissible to suspend

them on the knowledge of those
benefits …
Secondly, in Maul┐n┐’s insistence that it was incumbent on Muslims to

establish the Islamic order on earth, he parted company with most Islamic
scholars (‘ulam┐’). 25 Representative of the consensus view, Sayyid Sulaim┐n
24F
Nadv┘ wrote:
In all of the literature of Islam there � ‫ ا�م � �رے د� � ى ا� �ف � ا� ��د‬
isn’t one alphabet that suggests that
23
Allama Muhammad Iqbal, Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam (Lahore: Sh.
Muhammad Ashraf, 1982). Unless the reader is familiar with the vocabulary of early modern
European philosophy, and its concern with principles governing motion in a system, he would
have a hard time making sense of any of these essays, or even the title of one essay, “The
Principle of Movement in the Structure of Islam,” ibid., 146–180.
24
Sh┐h Wal┘ All┐h ibn ‘Abd al-Ra╒┘m al-Dihlaw┘, ╓ujja All┐h al-B┐lighah (Cairo: D┐r al-J┘l,
1426/2005, 1372/1952–3), 1: 30; tr. Marcia K. Hermansen, The Conclusive Argument from God
(Islamabad: Islamic Research Institute, 2003), 16–17. (The translation above is mine.) See also,
Iftikhar Zaman, “Towards Islamic Ways of Islamization: Problems in Modernizing the Ahkaam
of the Shariah and Dawah,” Pakistan Administration, 22: 2 (1985), 1–19.
25
In a long list, see e.g. Maul┐n┐ Sayyid Ab┴ ’l-╓asan ‘Al┘ (Nadv┘), ‘A╖r-i ╓┐╛ir mei╞ D┘n k┘
Tafh┘m-o Tashr┘╒ (ma‘ I╛┐fah Jad┘dah) (Understanding and Explaining Islam in the Present Age,
with New Additions; Karachi: Majlis-i Nashriy┐t-i Isl┐m, Undated; First Published: 1398/1978).

314 ARSHAD ZAMAN
the establishment of power was the �‫ �م � اس د�ت � ا‬ ِ � � ‫� � � �م‬
real aim of this call, and that dogma ‫ض‬
�‫ �ا� و ا�م اور �ق و �را‬،‫ اور �� وا�ن‬،� �
and faith, legal conditions and com- ‫ث ت ت‬
mands, and rights and responsibili- ‫ � � � � باب ا‬،� � �� ‫اس‬
‫ وہ‬،� ��
‫ض‬
ties, were in the nature of a prelude ‫ اور‬،� ‫� � � �ا� و �ق و �را� � ا� �ب‬
‫ت‬
ِ‫ �� جہ � �م ان � � و� ا�ن اور �ن‬
to it. Instead, all that is confirmed is ِ �‫ىا‬
this: that it is laws, rights, and � ‫ت‬ ‫ث‬
responsibilities that are what are � �� ‫ ا�م ا ہى‬ ِ ‫ آ � � وہ‬،� �‫�� آ�ب‬
really sought. The establishment of F ‫ اس � وہ ��ً �ب �۔‬،�
26
25
a good government is a means for

reassurance and peace of mind for
the Muslims, so that they can obey
God’s commands easily; therefore it
is sought accidentally.
The idea of an Islamic order then seems to be more an anti-imperial

Muslim response to European ideology, than an independent idea indigenous
to Islam. When extended, finally, to an Islamic economic order, it is beset with
yet one more difficulty: the pursuit of economic well-being, while not
prohibited in Islam, is decidedly of secondary importance to the pursuit of
salvation in the hereafter; 27 a nuance that may often seem to be lost not only
26F
in the book under review but in the discourse of Islamic Economics, in

general. In sum, unless the special senses in which Maul┐n┐ has used the words
translated as system, economic, and Islamic, are kept in mind the uninitiated
reader may find it difficult to interpret some of the text of the book under
review. With this extended prologue, we may turn to the book itself.
The Islamic Economic Order

In the first part of the book, consisting of six chapters (four speeches and two
articles), Maul┐n┐ defines his Islamic economic order as a middle ground
between capitalism and socialism (as ideal constructs, based on prevailing
realities). Clearly, the adjective Islamic is not defined internally, but functions
to arbitrate between his perception of two European ideologies. Maul┐n┐ then
26
Sayyid Sulaim┐n Nadv┘, op. cit., Vol. 7: Isl┐m k╚ Siy┐s┘ Ni╘┐m k╚ U╖┴l-o Mab┐d┘ (Principles and
Elements of the Political Order of Islam), 53; he goes on to support this by S┴rah Al-N┴r, 24: 7
(┐yah al-istakhl┐f). See also his, └yat-i Istakhl┐f, Ma‘┐rif, 6:3 (╗afar 1339/1920 October), 253-261.
27
Muft┘ Mu╒ammad Shaf┘‘, Isl┐m k┐ Ni╘┐m-i Taqs┘m-i Daulat (lit. Islam’s ‘Order’ of
Distribution of Wealth; Karachi: D┐r al-Ish┐‘at, 1968), 8; tr. M. Hassan Askari and Karar
Husain, Distribution of Wealth in Islam (Islamabad: Islamic Research Institute Press, 1990).

315
derives his ‘order’ by defining the principles of capitalism, identifying its

maladies, and remedying them by adding a set of ‘Islamic’ corrections. 28
Maul┐n┐ pointed out that unlike the early Arabs, who understood the
Qur’┐n perfectly, in later centuries the meaning of key words, including Islam
itself, were misunderstood by Muslims. As a result, books, dictionaries, and
exegeses of the later era explained many key words in the Qur’┐n by the new
meanings that were prevalent then, rather than their original Arabic meanings.
Maul┐n┐ held that in the language of the Qur’┐n, the word d┘n means ‘state’ or
‘government’ and represents a complete order, which is constituted by four
elements: (divine) governance and supreme power; human submission to this
sovereignty; that system of thought and action which is formed under the
influence of this sovereignty; and reward and punishment meted out by the
Supreme Power for submission to or rebellion against this order. 29
By contrast, Modern Capitalism is constituted in his view by seven
principles (private property, free enterprise, the profit motive, competition,
preferential rights of capitalists over labourers, reliance on “natural”
development, and minimal state intervention). These are in his view “natural”
principles that underlie the social arrangements by which human livelihoods
have been provided everywhere since time immemorial. 30 However, four
problems — an exaggerated extremism in the pursuit of some of these natural
principles, the omission, and negation, of others, and the inclusion of some
non-natural principles, by the bourgeoisie — led to dysfunctional results in the
28
See Chapter 5, The Difference between Islam and Capitalism (Isl┐m aur Sarm┐yahd┐r┘ k┐
Farq), which was entitled Isl┐m┘ Na╘m-i Ma‘┘shat k╚ Buny┐d┘ Ark┐n (The Basic Pillars of Islamic
Economic Organisation), in Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Na╘ar┘┐t, 97–118; and Isl┐m┘ Na╘m-i Ma‘┘shat
aur us k╚ Ark┐n (Islamic Economic Organisation and its Pillars), in Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, S┴d, Rev.
Ed. 1961, 26–45; both from the earlier Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, S┴d, 1: 16–26. The books, Na╘ar┘y┐t
(Ideologies), and S┴d (Interest; Lahore: Islamic Publications, Rev. Ed. 2004/1961), are
rearrangements, with some overlap and editorial changes, of the author’s major economic work,
S┴d (Interest), 2 vols. (Lahore: Maktabah-i Jam┐‘at-i Isl┐m┘ P┐kist┐n, 1948, based on articles
written mainly in 1936–37, & 2: April 1952).
29
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Ch┐r I╖═al┐╒╚n (Four Terms), op. cit., 124-5:
‫ت‬ ‫ى ت‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ز‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ت‬
‫۔ وہ‬۳ ‫ �� و ا��۔‬ ّ ‫۔‬۲ ‫۔ ح��تىّت اور ا�ا ِر ا�۔‬۱ ‫ �� ر ب ا�راء � �� ۔‬
‫ �� ۔ � � ر‬
‫ ا� �رے �م � �� آ‬ ‫�رآ� ز آ�بن � � د� ى‬
‫ت‬ ‫ث‬ ‫ى ت‬
‫۔ ��ت � ا�ا ِر ا� � �ف � اس �م � و�دارى و ا�� ى�ا �� و �وت � پ�اداش � دى ��۔‬۴ ‫ِ ا� �۔‬
‫ �� ز�ى ر ر‬
ّ ‫�م � و � � اس‬ ِ
Later, on page 132, Maul┐n┐ writes that: “[The Quran] uses the word d┘n as a comprehensive
term… To some extent the word ‘state’ … has come close to it, but it needs to be extended
further for it to encompass the entire semantic field of the word ‘d┘n’.” Elsewhere, that: “d┘n
means government, shar┘‘at is the law of this government, and ‘ib┐dat is the observance of its
law and rules.” Isl┐m k┐ Maqs┴d-╚ Haq┘q┘ (The Real Objective of Islam), in Khu═b┐t (Sermons).
30
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Jad┘d Ni╘┐m-i Sarmayahd┐r┘ (The Modern Capitalist Order), in S┴d
(Interest), Maud┴d┘, 2: 11–26, reprinted in Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Na╘ar┘┐t (Ideologies), 21–42; not
included in the selections in the book.

316 ARSHAD ZAMAN
capitalist order which, if corrected, would result in a wise balanced order: the
economic order ordained by Islam. 31
Islamic law and morals, transform the laissez-faire (b╚ qaid, tr. unfettered)
capitalist economy to a free (┐z┐d) Islamic economy by five corrections:
placing a set of legal restraints on land ownership, on labour relations, on
finance (prohibition of ‘interest’), and on government intervention, while
providing for the collection of poor dues (zak┐h). 32 Maul┐n┐’s Islamic
economic order, in other words, is a more perfect capitalism, defined by
modifying the seven natural principles of capitalism, by these five limits and
regulations — thus establishing the four pillars that define it: free economy,
but subject to a few legal and organisational limits and regulations; obligatory
zak┐h; enforcement of the inheritance law; and the prohibition of interest. 33
With minor reclassification, rearrangement, and renumbering, this scheme is
reflected in the six selections in the first part of the book.
Policy Issues
In the second part, also consisting of six chapters, some specific policy issues
are addressed in the light of this economic philosophy. Where the first part
deals with the formulation of Islamic ideology and principles of policy — a
comparatively more stable narrative, the second, provides Maul┐n┐’s views on
their application, which evolved over time. The writings in this section date
from the 1950s and 1960s, when Maul┐n┐ was a leader of a major political
party in Pakistan, and it fell to him to represent Islam in the mother of all
battles in post-colonial national politics in the Muslim world — for Islam
against ideological Modernity. The choice of problems dealt with in this part
also seems to follow his method of constructing the ‘Islamic’ by diagnosing
and perfecting the existing order; in the economic field, capitalism. We review,
selectively, his treatment of private property and finance. 34
31
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Na╘ar┘┐t (Ideologies), 27–28, and 119–141, of which pp. 119–138 are pp.
66–77 of Tashkh┘╖ aur ‘Il┐j (Diagnosis and Treatment), in Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, S┴d (Interest),
2: 61–77; not included in the selections, but see chapter 1 (from 1941).
32
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Isl┐m┘ ╓al (Islamic Solution), in Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Na╘ar┘┐t (Ideologies),
127–138.
33
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Na╘ar┘┐t, 16–42, and 127–141; the ‘seven plus four’ formulae is on p. 138:
ِ �‫د‬
� ‫ � اس‬،� � � ‫ �م �� دارى‘ � �ابب � � �ن‬ ‫’’� �ود و �ا� اور � ا�� ا� � � ان �ت �ى ا��ں � �� دى �� ’ ج� ى د‬
‫ت‬ ‫ت‬ ‫خ‬
� ‫ دو�ں � � �ل‬،‫ �� ا�ادى آزادى اور ا�� ح‬ ‫ ا� ا� �ازن �م � � آ‬ ‫ �ا�ں � �ّ آ�بب � آ‬
‫ �� اور ى‬ ‫��دارى اور �� دارى � �م ر‬
‫ت‬ ‫ت‬
‘‘‫ � اس � � ��دہ � ا�ب � ر� ِر �ر� � ّ ذرہ � � � آ� پ�آ�۔‬،� � � ��
34
The remaining chapters are on zakah; Islam and social justice; issues relating to labour,
insurance, and price control; and some practical difficulties in re-codification of economic laws.

317
Land Reform
With the creation of Pakistan, effective political power shifted to large
landlords, especially in West Pakistan, who sought to resist calls for land
reform and the betterment of living conditions for peasants, who in many
places were living no better than serfs. In the opening chapter of this section,
based mainly on the principles laid down his 1950 book, 35 Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘
comes down firmly against popular and progressive opinion on land and
tenancy reforms, and supports in principle both unlimited private land
holdings, and the landlord’s freedom to rent or share-crop.
Maul┐n┐’s views attracted criticism for allowing his perceived aversion to
communism and socialism, and his unfamiliarity with the reality of customary
commons in rural areas, to influence his interpretation of the Qur’┐n; and by
taking the permissible (j┐’iz) to be obligatory (w┐jib) — for which, rightly or
wrongly, he was often criticised — ruling out anything other than exclusively
private property. 36 By 1962, however, he held that “wherever there is injustice
and high-handedness, the Islamic government is legally bound to intervene and
let the law take its course to provide justice to the aggrieved” (E: 242; U: 390).
By 1969, departing from established opinion, 37 Maul┐n┐ found, on the analogy
of interest, even the rental of land to be against Islamic law and considered
only share-cropping legitimate (E: 154, n. 3; U: 243, n. 1). Taken together,
Maul┐n┐’s final position seems to have favoured private property as a rule,
while allowing limited exceptions in the public interest.
Islamic Banking
While there is scope for disagreement on land tenure under Islamic law, the
strong unequivocal prohibition of rib┐ (commonly translated as ‘usury or
On zak┐h the statement in the 1957 work (Khu═b┐t; E: 198, U: 317), better represents the correct
position than that in the 1948 speech (E: xlii, U: 25).
35
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Mas’alah-i Milkiat-i Zam┘n (The Question of Land Ownership; Lahore:
Islamic Publications Limited, 1950).
36
For a representative view, see Shaikh Ma╒m┴d A╒mad, Mas’alah-i Zam┘n aur Isl┐m (The
Question of Land and Islam; Lahore: Id┐rah-i Thaq┐fat-i Isl┐miyah, 1955), 157–166, & 175–208.
For a more sympathetic view of socialism, see Maul┐n┐ ╓if╘ al-Ra╒m┐n Seoh┐rv┘, Isl┐m k┐
Iqti╖┐d┘ Ni╘┐m (The Economic Order of Islam; Lahore: Id┐rah-i Isl┐miy┐t, 1981/1938).
37
For a brief but comprehensive review, see Muft┘ Mu╒ammad Shaf┘‘, Al-Qawl al-M┐╔┘ f┘ A╒k┐m
al-Ar┐╔┘, ya‘n┘ Isl┐m k┐ Ni╘┐m-i Ar┐╛┘, ma‘ Fut┴╒ al-Hind wa A╒k┐m-i Ar┐╔┘-i P┐kist┐n-o
Hind┴st┐n (The Conclusive Statement on Land Laws, i.e. The Land System of Islam, with The
Conquest of India, and Laws of the Lands of Pakistan and India; Karachi: Id┐rat al-Ma‘┐rif,
Undated; c. 1963).

318 ARSHAD ZAMAN
interest’) 38 poses the most formidable problem for any practical programme of
Islamic economic reform. Like many modern Islamic scholars, Maul┐n┐ had
come to view banks not as essentially evil (malum per se), but as essentially
good, but afflicted with (one or two) accidental faults: interest, and the
consequent concentration of wealth. 39 To correct these, he suggested that
banks hold demand deposits in trust (as am┐nah) and use them to provide
interest-free short-term loans and to discount bills; and accept longer-term
deposits either as interest-free loans (qar╔) from depositors seeking security of
their deposits, which the bank would invest, or as capital, for investment on
capital-labour participation (mu╔┐rabah) basis. In this way depositors would
also get dividends, like the bank’s owners, rather than interest. (E: 184–6,
U: 291–5) As for concentration of wealth, the government should establish by
law such control over banks as would empower them to prevent this outcome.
While differing significantly in details, it was a similar design that was
implemented in Pakistan in the 1980s. Early hopes, however, that banking
would be conducted on a “profit-and-loss sharing” (mush┐rakah) basis could
not be realised. Instead, what the jurists allowed temporarily, under duress —
cost-plus resale, with payment of higher price in instalments (bay‘ mur┐ba╒ah
mu’ajjal) 40 — has become the foundation of ‘Interest’-Free banking. 41 In this
way, banks replace forbidden usury by a permitted higher resale price (of the
38
Rib┐ includes but is wider than both usury and interest. Technically, usury (the lender’s
gain — never considered permissible by Christians/Moderns) differs in kind, not just in degree,
from interest (from L. interesse, the lender’s loss — to which, in time, Christian/Modern law
conceded an expanding extrinsic title to compensation: (1) first, for damnum emergens, lit. loss
occurring, or actual loss — “al-╔arar al-w┐qi‘ fi‘l-an” of the official Islamic Jurisprudence
Academy (Majma‘ al-Fiqh al-Isl┐m┘), which in 1988 exempted it from rib┐, going down the first
of the two major steps by which interest became permissible among Christians/Moderns; and
eventually also for (2) lucrum cessans, lit. profit ceasing, or potential loss (opportunity cost) —
“al-╔arar al-w┐qi‘ quwat-an” which so far the Academy has not allowed but some Islamic banks
collect, in assessing damages for delayed payment by reference to profits on deposits during the
period of delay). See Majma‘ al-Fiqh al-Isl┐m┘ al-Du’al┘, al-munbathiq ‘an Muna╘╘amat al-
Mu’tamar al-Isl┐m┘, Al-Dawrah al-Kh┐misah, Kuwait, 1–6 Jam┐d┘ I, 1409/1988 December 10–15,
Qar┐r Raqam 5/2, 5/3 (Al-Waf┐’ bi ’l-Wa‘d, wa ’l-Mur┐ba╒ah li ’l-└mir bi ’l-Shir┐’), Mujallat al-
Majma‘ al-Fiqh al-Isl┐m┘, 2: 5, 754, 965.
39
Two faults, in Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, S┴d, Rev. Ed. 1961, 166–70. The selection, an edited version
of this, speaks of “a single Satanic element,” interest, but cites concentration of wealth in the
hands of capitalists, in the “two drawbacks” of banking. (E: 184–5, U: 291–2).
40
This combines two permissible sales transactions (cost-plus sale, bay‘ mur┐ba╒ah, and sale on
credit, bay‘ mu’ajjal).
41
While Muslim jurists, especially in their academic writing proper, tend to be careful in
speaking of “interest-free” banking, the banks themselves and their promoters call it “Islamic”
banking.

319
goods sought by the borrower, who buys them from the bank). 42 But Maul┐n┐
did not consider a cash-credit price differential permissible, 43 essentially closing
the door — we may say with the benefit of hindsight — to the practical
possibility of Islamic banking. Naturally, with only a change in contractual
form, most of the observable consequences of banking on which so much was
written, so warmly, for so long, also result from modern ‘Islamic’ banking.
Clearly, Maul┐n┐’s hopes in this area have not yet been realised. 44
The Birth of Islamic Economics

The Foreword quotes Rodney Wilson: “Maud┴d┘ had coined the term
‘Islamic Economics’…”. 45 Maul┐n┐ wrote in Urdu, in which presumably he
would have “coined the term” Isl┐m┘ ma‘┐sh┘┐t (Islamic Economics). 46 Yet,
although the original of the book under review is titled ‘Ma‘┐sh┘┐t-i Isl┐m’ (lit.
Economics of Islam, tr. Islamic Economics), I can’t recall coming across the
word ma‘┐sh┘┐t, much less the term Isl┐m┘ ma‘┐sh┘┐t, in any of Maul┐n┐’s own
exposition of his views. With very few exceptions, Maul┐n┐ invariably used
42
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘,, Ras┐’il-o Mas┐’il (Delhi: Markaz┘ Maktabah, Jam┐‘at-i Islam┘, 1983), 5: 321.
In this way, opening “a back-door” for interest, “a change just in name,” as feared by the
Council of Islamic Ideology, Elimination of Riba from the Economy & Islamic Modes of Financing
(Islamabad: Printing Corporation of Pakistan Press, 2nd Rev. Enlarged Ed. 1991; 1st Ed. 1980),
15–16, 132–3.
43
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, S┴d (Interest), 2: 75. It is possible that Maul┐n┐ changed his position later:
in S┴d (Interest; Rev. Ed. 2004/1961), 111, he writes only that a post-contractual increase is rib┐,
on which there is no disagreement.
44
For his critique of the myopia of juristic approaches to providing solutions, see Maul┐n┐’s
unfinished last chapter, Baink aur Insh┤rens Isl┐m┘ Nuq═ah-i Nig┐h s╚ (Bank [sic.] and Insurance
from an Islamic Point of View), published in Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, S┴d, 1: 159–168.
45
Quoted at (E:xxv-xxvi). Professor Wilson had obtained this information from the late Ahmed
Abdel-Fattah El-Ashker (personal communication). Other echoes of this include: “In addition to
‘Islamic economics,’ Mawdudi coined or popularized many other terms…,” Timur Kuran, The
Genesis of Islamic Economics: A Chapter in the Politics of Muslim Identity, Social Research, 64:
2 (Summer 1997), 304; citing as his source Mumtaz Ahmad, Islamic Fundamentalism in South
Asia: The Jamaat-i-Islami and the Tablighi Jamaat of South Asia, in Martin E. Marty and R.
Scott Appleby, eds., Fundamentalisms Observed (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1991, pp.
457-530), but in fact Mumtaz Ahmad attributes the term “economic system of Islam” (p. 464),
not ‘Islamic economics,’ to Maul┐n┐. Again, in an otherwise insightful analysis, Nasr writes:
“Mawdudi was…renowned for his theory of Islamic economics…,” see S.V.R. Nasr, Mawdudi &
the Making of Islamic Revivalism (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996), 103; and so on.
46
The word ‘economics’ does not occur in his key English language article, Economic and
Political Teachings, op. cit.; in which Maul┐n┐ uses the adjective: economic, to modify the
nouns: principle, scheme, system, problem, values, point of view, welfare, balance, justice, and
field. An Urdu translation of the first half of this appears as Chapter 2 of the original book, and
a re-translation of the Urdu into English, as Chapter 2 of the book under review; the original
source is not indicated in either version.

320 ARSHAD ZAMAN
the adjective ma‘┐sh┘, followed by ni╘┐m (economic order), or the noun

ma‘┘shat, preceded by na╘m-i (organisation of the economy). This is especially
remarkable, as Maul┐n┐ Man┐╘ir A╒san G┘l┐n┘’s book, Isl┐m┘ Ma‘┐shiy┐t
(Islamic Economics), had appeared by 1945. 47
How then did he come to be seen as the father of ‘Islamic Economics’?
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘ was a great man at whose feet by ancient custom many
disciples placed intellectual offerings, which he accepted with good grace. The
origins of his Islamic Economics lie in one such offering: “he has compiled
these articles,” writes Maul┐n┐ about the editor, Professor Khurshid Ahmad in
his one-paragraph preface to this book, “better than I could have done myself”
(E: xxxviii). 48 But clearly Maul┐n┐ did not intend to make a contribution to
Islamic economics — thus, in the extensive subject indices that accompany
each of the six volumes of Maul┐n┐’s thirty-year labour of love, his Tafh┘m al-
Qur’┐n, there are entries on many things Islamic: state, society, social
organisation, ethics, and under Islamic law, social law, and economic law; but
there is no entry on Islamic Economics. 49
It was the genius of Professor Khurshid Ahmad that saw in the raw
material of Maul┐n┐’s scattered writings and speeches the seeds of a new
discipline. A prolific author in his own right, Professor Khurshid Ahmad
more than Maul┐n┐ should be credited with the birth of modern Islamic
economics. He writes that while he had long felt the need for it, with the
introduction of Islamic Economics in the syllabus at two universities, he was
47
Sayyid Man┐╘ir A╒san G┘l┐n┘, Isl┐m┘ Ma‘┐shiy┐t (Haider┐b┐d, Dakan: Id┐rah-i Ish┐‘at-i Urdu,
1945); reviewed in TQ, 33:2 (Sha‘b┐n 1368/August 1949, 144). Emulating the English language,
modern Urdu denotes “the science of” by making an innovative plural of the adjective, ma‘┐shi
(economic), to get ma‘┐shiy┐t (economics), the now established Urdu name of the subject — a
practice consciously initiated and recommended by ‘All┐mah Iqb┐l, in the Preface to his
economics textbook (see footnote 8). Recall also that the expression, Islamic Economic Order
(Ni╘┐m) was the title of Maul┐n┐ ╓if╘ al-Ra╒m┐n Seoh┐rv┘’s 1938 book (see footnote 36). In the
subsequent literature, however, neither book received the attention it deserved.
48
Another example of a similar offering is Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, S┘rat. In his preface to this work,
Maul┐n┐ writes that after completing his Tafh┘m al-Qur’┐n it was his heartfelt desire to write a
book on the life of the Prophet (peace be on him) but having spent thirty years on the first
work, he did not find in himself the strength to start anew; when suddenly to his surprise
╗idd┘q┘ and ‘Alav┘ presented him with this collection from his own works (1: 36):
‫ت‬ ‫جخ ش‬
‫ �ب � �ا‬ ‫ ا� � �س � �� ى‬
‫ �� ب � �� اور �ب �ا�� ع�ووى � �ى � � ��ں اور �� ب‬ ‫”�ے دل � اِس � �ت ى‬
‫�ش‬ ‫ى‬
ّ
“‫��ت �ت � � �� ے �� ر� د ى�ا � د� � � �د � �ان رہ � � اس � ا ساان ��ع � �ى ��ى روں � ا� � �اد ��د �۔‬ ِ
َ
49
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Tafh┘m al-Qur’┐n, 6 vols. (Lahore: Id┐rah-i Tarjum┐n al-Qur’┐n, 1949–72);
see 1: 12. Nor did Professor Khurshid Ahmad have any illusions on this score: “This book is
not, in reality, a book on economic science; instead it is a path-breaking (r┐h kush┐) book on
economic philosophy” (Preface, U: 14). The English translations ‘economic science’ and
‘economic philosophy’ are provided in the Urdu original.

321
compelled — just before proceeding abroad for higher studies — to put

together a book (this book) “which would incorporate the essence of the
necessary writings of the respected Maul┐n┐ on different aspects of Islamic
economics (Isl┐m┘ ma‘┐shiy┐t), and allow the complete picture of Islam’s
economic organisation (na╘m-i ma‘┘shat) to be visible at a glance.” 50 So, the
term ‘Islamic economics’ first seems to have appeared in the government
approved syllabus of the University of Karachi, and then of Punjab; Professor
Khurshid then compiled this book, a collection of Maul┐n┐’s works, to give
content to this new sub-field of comparative economic systems, which he
called Islamic Economics (E:xxxiii). As he saw it then, “What is needed now is
for economists possessing technical skills to step forward and present
economic debates, in technical terms, in the light of these principles and
values” (U: 16).
In the event, when professional economists did step forward in the 1970s,
they found much in Professor Khurshid’s construction that they could build
on and much that did not fit in with their conception of economics. During
the same period, Islamic jurists had the same experience in relation to
jurisprudence. As a result, the early work on developing the design of a grand
economic ‘system’ of Islam to combat and compete with the several European
“-isms” of the early twentieth century, in which Maul┐n┐ had pioneered, has
given way to more intensive work by different groups on some key
components of such a ‘system’ and to their operational realisation. In the
1970s, this New Islamic Economics replaced the Old Islamic Economics, to
which this book is a fine introduction. 51 Under either name, Islamic
Economics, more deserving than modern Economics of the original root sense
of the name, continues its quest for a science and art of national economic
management, consonant with the values of Islam.
50
The conception of Islamic Economics as a “system” was due also to a pedagogic necessity:
within the structure of university courses in economics, it could best be fitted in under
comparative economic systems. Professor Khurshid Ahmad writes: “It was in the context of this
national debate [around left wing critiques of then emergent capitalism] that Islamic Economics
moved into the centre of the political discourse. At the University of Karachi, where I was
teaching economics, I took the innovative step of introducing the teaching of Islamic economics
in its courses on comparative economic systems. Subsequently, similar steps were taken at other
universities in Pakistan. This wider interest prompted me to compile selected writings of
Mawd┴d┘ on economic issues in one volume.” (E:xxxii).
51
On the travails of the New Islamic Economics, see Asad Zaman, Crisis in Islamic Economics:
Diagnosis and Prescriptions, Discussion Paper, Journal of King Abdulaziz University: Islamic
Economics, 25: 1 (2012 AD/1433 AH), 147-169, and references therein; and his survey, published
in three parts, “Islamic Economics: A Survey of the Literature,” Islamic Studies, 48: 3 (2009),
395–424; 48: 4 (2009), 525–566; and 49: 1 (2010), 37–63.

322 ARSHAD ZAMAN
The Political Context of Old Islamic Economics

In deference to the subject of the book, this Review has abstained from
addressing Maul┐n┐’s political thought, although his views on the state and law
are the heart of his spiritual, intellectual, and physical endeavours, of which
his economic thought is at best an auxiliary component. 52 Without the context
of his political thought, his economic order is indeed equivalent to a
differentiated capitalism, as this Review has pointed out. Yet, since it would be
wrong to leave the reader with this view, without qualifications, a barebones
sketch of this political context is pointed to, before closing.
Maul┐n┐ held that Sh┐h Wal┘ All┐h had identified two root causes of
Muslim disrepair: the early transfer of authority from caliphate to (Umayyad)
‘monarchy’ and the later demise of the spirit of independent juristic reasoning
(ijtih┐d). 53 This provided the cornerstone of Maul┐n┐’s political philosophy.
Like the Moderns, he opposed monarchy; but unlike them, based on the
Qur’┐n, he located sovereignty not in the People under Natural Law, but in
God and the divine law (shar┘‘ah) that He had revealed. 54 In his view, the
shar┘‘ah (Lex Divina), of which the state ought to be a creation (and not vice
versa) and to which it should be subject, defines the lawful and the prohibited
but leaves open a large field of the permissible (mub┐╒) in which the state, with
due consultation, is free to exercise independent reasoning and make positive
law. It is in this context that Maul┐n┐ addressed the state’s responsibilities and
rights in the area of financial and economic laws, which he called the Islamic
‘economic’ order. While this does not begin to do justice to the subject, to say
more would take us further afield from our subject, Maul┐n┐’s Islamic
Economics, than we already are.
52
“He wrote about economics often, although not as the systematizing of a scientific discipline
or for classifying Islam’s teachings on economics, but as a corollary to his discussion of the din
and teachings of the Islamic state.” S.V.R. Nasr, Mawdudi & the Making of Islamic Revivalism,
103.
53
Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Tajd┘d-o I╒y┐’╚ D┘n (Renewal and Revival of Islam; Lahore: Islamic
Publications, 2010/1940), 71; citing mainly Sh┐h Wal┘ All┐h’s Iz┐lat al-Khaf┐’ (Barayl┘: 1286 AH,
Part VI, 122–158).
54
For comparative developments in mediaeval and post-mediaeval Europe, see Otto Gierke,
Political Theories of the Middle Age, tr. F. W. Maitland (Cambridge: University Press, 1987/1900).
This is a translation of Otto Friedrich von Gierke (1841–1921), Die Publicistischen Lehren des
Mittelalters, a section in vol. 3 of Das Deutsche Genossenschaftsrecht (Berlin: Beidmannsche
Buchhandlung, 1868–). See also, E. H. Kantorowicz, The King's Two Bodies: A Study in Mediaeval
Political Theology (Princeton: University Press, 1957), and E. S. Morgan, Inventing the People:
The Rise of Popular Sovereignty in England and America (New York: W. W. Norton, 1988).

323
Conclusion
In fine, this is an important book. For it provides a look not only at some of
the foundational texts of Islamic Economics, but also at the mature economic
thought of one of the most influential Muslim figures of the twentieth
century. It was Maul┐n┐’s stature and advocacy (and Professor Khurshid
Ahmad’s skilful contributions) that placed Islamic Economics on the map of
contemporary Muslim thought and laid the foundations of modern Islamic
banking. While professional economists and jurists have erased and re-drawn
many of the details in the grand vision that he had sketched over three
decades, the terms in which Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘ defined the problems faced by
the post-colonial Muslim community and the directions he had identified in
which solutions may be found, have been accepted, whether they intended it
or not, by his supporters and critics alike. His real contribution then lies in
setting the agenda for Islamic Economics within which even contemporary
debates take place. There can be no better guide to that agenda than this book.
In closing, some suggestions are offered for the next edition. Above all,
the reader would benefit from the inclusion of the editor’s preface to the Urdu
edition, in addition to the current preface. Also, full bibliographic details
might be provided, on a consistent basis, on all the sources of the texts
translated, taking care to provide dates of first and successive publication. 55
This would help the reader not only to provide historical context to the
selected material, but to distinguish Maul┐n┐’s earlier views from his later
positions. Finally, the book can benefit from some editing to remove a
number of minor blemishes that remain.
∗ ∗ ∗
55
References to original sources of the text are often inadequate, and in three cases, missing. A
note is usually provided in a footnote on the first page of each chapter, but is not in the form of
a complete bibliographical reference, even in the list of works provided at the end of the book
(E: 284). No source is listed for chapters 2, 3, and 6. While not indicated, either in the original
or in the translation, for the reader’s benefit: Chapter 2 is an updated version of the first part of
Maul┐n┐, Economic and Political Teachings of the Qur’┐n, in M. M. Sharif, Ed., A History of
Muslim Philosophy: With Short Accounts of Other Disciplines and the Modern Renaissance in Muslim
Lands, 2 vols. (Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, I, 1963; II, 1966), I: 178–198; and Chapter 3, of
“Buny┐d┘ Ark┐n” (Basic Pillars), in Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘, Na╘ariy┐t, 97–141, based on idem, S┴d
(Interest), 1: 16–26. Chapter 6, according to the Urdu original, is based on Maul┐n┐ Maud┴d┘,
Tafh┘m al-Qur’┐n (only 4 of 6 vols. had appeared by 1969); sections, by source: §6.1 2: 564–6,
§6.2 3: 757, §6.3 3: 139, §6.4 1: 590 (footnote omitted at end of the section, 1: 498–9), §6.5
(footnote omitted at end of the section, 3: 463–4), §6.6 (footnote omitted at end of the section,
1: 498–9), §6.7 is new, as is Chapter 4; neither appear in the Urdu original. It might be helpful to
include these kinds of detail in any revised edition.


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Islamic Studies 50:3-4 (2011) pp.

Sayyid Ab┴’l A‘l┐ Maud┴d┘ on Islamic Economics

In the course of a distinguished career as a writer, scholar, public intellectual,

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2225711

Comparative Table of Contents

The Economics of Islam First Principles of Islamic Economics

Translation is an impossible task, in which a Solomonic choice has to be

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2225711

Words: Economic, and System

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2225711

Both the conception of economics as an integral part of politics, and of

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

While translations continued apace, in 1904, Shaikh Mu╒ammad (later,

scope of this science, the name that

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

complained that “books with high-sounding jargon and terms dedicated to

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

scientific way that a “system” is

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

In the book under review, therefore, the reader should understand

The Idea of an Islamic Order (Ni╘┐m or Na╘m )

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

Perfecting the Faith means making ِ � �‫د� � � � د� � �اد ُاس � ى ا‬

necessary to go outside it to obtain

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

entire ni╘┐m of life that they had

then it is not permissible to suspend

Secondly, in Maul┐n┐’s insistence that it was incumbent on Muslims to

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

a good government is a means for

The idea of an Islamic order then seems to be more an anti-imperial

in the book under review but in the discourse of Islamic Economics, in

The Islamic Economic Order

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

derives his ‘order’ by defining the principles of capitalism, identifying its

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

The Birth of Islamic Economics

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

the adjective ma‘┐sh┘, followed by ni╘┐m (economic order), or the noun

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

compelled — just before proceeding abroad for higher studies — to put

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

The Political Context of Old Islamic Economics

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

Forthcoming: Pre-Publication Draft (15 Feb 2013)

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