Khutba on the Essential Nature of the Market

الحمد لله، الحمد لله الذي جعل صحةَ الإنسان وحياةَ المجتمعِ في إصلاح المعاملة، وحفِظها في المدينة المنورة، نحمده تعالى ونستعينه، ونشكره تعالى ونستغفره ونستغيثه، نعوذ بالله من شرور أنفسنا ومن سيئات أعمالنا، من يهد الله فهو المهتد ومن يضلل فلن تجد له وليا مرشدا، ونشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له، له الملك و له الحمد، يحيي ويميت، بيده الخير، وهو على كل شيء قدير،  ونشهد أن سيدنا و مولانا محمداً عبده ورسوله، وحبيبه وصفيه، بلغ الرسالة وأدى الأمانة ونصح الأمة، النبي الأمي الذي أرسله الله بالهدى والدين الحق، بشيرا ونذيرا بين يدي الساعة، صلى الله عليه وسلم وعلى آله وأصحابه ومن تبعهم بإحسان إلى يوم الدين. أما بعد! فيا عباد الله اتقوا الله حق تقاته ولا تموتن إلا وأنتم مسلمون. يأيها الذين ءامنوا اتقوا الله وقولوا قولا سديدا يصلح لكم أعمالكم ويغفر لكم ذنوبكم. ومن يطع الله ورسوله فقد فاز فوزا عظيما. اتقوا الله فيما أمر وانتهوا عما نها عنه وزجر.

Following this mosque’s initiative in establishing a weekly market following the Jumua, I thought I would remind ourselves of the place of the marketplace in the general order of things. For it is a far more important part of the life of the Muslim that many realise. Too many focus almost exclusively on acts of worship, and almost completely disregard it. Walking in the market-place, whether to buy or to sell, is a vital part of being alive, a basic need of the human creature, up there with eating and drinking. Allah says,

وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا قَبْلَكَ مِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ إِلَّا إِنَّهُمْ لَيَأْكُلُونَ الطَّعَامَ وَيَمْشُونَ فِي الْأَسْوَاقِ

the translation of which is, “We never sent any Messengers before you who did not eat food and walk in the market-place.” The humanness of the best of humanity is proved by their engaging in this act, and there was not a single one of them to whom this did not apply. Their presence in these places affirms their centrality and importance, as does the example of the best umma to follow them, the Companions of the Messenger of Allah. They established their market in Madina next to the mosque and kept it running continuously, from that time until the present day. And in that, they were following the Sunna of their Messenger, for one of the very first things he did upon arriving in Madina, after overseeing the building of the mosque, was to set up a new market for the Muslims.
Money is the life-blood of any society, and if that wealth is not free to flow through all the veins and arteries of that community without blockage or impediment, then the only way for it to survive is through outside intervention. And in exchange for that ‘help’, the outside agencies syphon away all that is of value and turn that society into a subservient vassal state, working almost exclusively on their behalf, its inhabitants slaves in all but name. This is the model that was used by the colonial powers, especially here in the African continent. Instead of each nation’s wealth circulating amongst its people and enriching them as a community and society, it flowed outwards in an always continuous stream. And from being vibrant hubs where everything that you need could be found, markets were diminished to purveyors of curios and crafts.
This corrosion of markets was one of the steps colonialists took in undermining the faith of those they encountered. First, they undermined the markets, and separated them in people’s eyes from their worship, and then they cut off worship and hence Islam almost completely from anything outside of the zone of the mosque. Make it secular and rob it of its potency and capacity to bring about social regeneration and change. Take away the tools of your opponents and make them reliant on you. Rid a city of its market and it becomes poor and ripe for the taking. This was the blueprint they used first on their own societies and then transferred to others. For it was not just Muslims who recognised the vital nature of the market-place. The most important part of any city, alongside its central place of worship, was always the market-place – this was as true in medieval Christian Europe as it was in the Muslim lands. And it always enjoyed pride of place, next to the main centre of worship or the city hall, as we saw with the positioning of the market of Madina. Indeed, many cities developed around market-places, rather than market-places being added to a city. The market-place provided autonomy and independence, so the swiftest way to foster dependence is to get rid of it or make it a side-show, or introduce so many checks, laws, measures and taxes that the only ones who benefit financially from them are the lawmakers and central authorities.
This was the case with the market that was present in Madina before the advent of the Messenger of Allah. It was run by the Banu Qaynuqa’, one of the three Jewish tribes living in Madina at the time, and they used to levy taxes on the traders, set up monopolies, rent out spaces and engage in all manner of usurious transaction, thereby syphoning off a good portion of the wealth of the city into their coffers and impoverishing the rest of its inhabitants. So the Messenger of Allah freed the people by freeing the market, by establishing a new market that was free of all such measures and impediments.
And again, today, we find ourselves in the same boat. We find ourselves oppressed and overtaxed and forced to use venues and institutions that contradict the very principles of our deen. Riba has wormed its way into almost all of our tradings and dealings. Indeed, it has replaced trade – for the word ‘trade’ or bay’ in Arabic implies equitable transaction where both parties get what they want from the deal rather than one party screwing the other one. Nobody wants to pay two and a half million for something worth a million, and yet that is what most people are compelled to do if they want to own a house. One party gets all that it wants while the other is forced to accept their terms. So what is the solution? Allah says,

وَأَحَلَّ اللهُ الْبَيْعَ وَحَرَّمَ الرِّبَا

the translation of which is, “Allah has made trade halal and made riba haram.” The answer to freeing ourselves is true trade, usury-free and equitable to both parties. Trade where traders, the buyers and the sellers, meet and agree transactions between themselves. The zones for this are known – the markets and caravans, and they need to be brought back, for such things are few and far between. That is the reality of ‘free trade’, not the abomination it has become. For all the while the usurers and their stooges oppress us, they tell us that this is the natural consequence of ‘free trade’, as clear an example of doublespeak as you can find, for it in fact means the very opposite of what it says. Indeed in 1853, Henry Carey, the chief financial adviser of Abraham Lincoln, equated it to slavery and exploitation, saying in his book, The Slave Trade: Domestic and Foreign, “By adopting the ‘free trade,’…we place ourselves side by side with the men who have ruined Ireland and India, and are now poisoning and enslaving the Chinese people.”
Re-establishing zones and venues wherein we can recover our financial independence and our dignity is a must, and this mosque market is, and will be, inshallah, one such zone. It may only have a few dozen stalls, but it is always from such small and humble beginnings that great things grow, the mighty oak from the acorn, the mightiest khilafate and empire from a few dozen people gathering in a house in Makka. It is a template that other mosques may follow. Lend your support, back this endeavour and help us reclaim the market-place and reunite ibadat and muamalat.

أقول قولي هذا وأستغفر الله لي ولكم ولسائر المسلمين من كل ذنب فاستغفروه إنه هو الغفور الرَّحيم.

الحمد لله الحمد لله رب العالمين، وأشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له وأشهد أن محمداً عبده ورسوله، صلى الله وسلم وبارك عليه وعلى آله وصحبه، والتابعين وتابعي التابعين ومن تبعهم بإحسان إلى يوم الدين. أما بعد! فيأيها الذين ءامنوا اتقوا الله ما استطعتم واسمعوا وأطيعوا وأنفقوا خيرا لأنفسكم. يا عباد الله أوصيكم وإياي بتقوى الله وطاعته وأحذركم وإياي عن معصيته ومخالفته

There are a number of basic principles upon which a true free market is run. The first is the freedom of opportunity. Everyone, no matter how little they wanted to sell, was free to use the market whenever they wanted – there was no requirement for a trader’s permit, license or anything else. It is narrated that Ali ibn Abi Talib, said, 

سوقُ المسلمين كمصلَّى المصلّين، فمَن سبق إلى شيء فهو له يومَه حتى يدعه

“The markets of the Muslims are like their places of prayer – whoever gets first to any part of it, then it is his for that day until he leaves it.” In other words, just like mosques, and just like bridges, roads and public gardens, everyone should have an equal right to use and benefit from markets. So, whoever gets a place in the market first, it is his to use, regardless of who had been using the place the previous day. First come, first served. Nobody had the right to pre-book a spot, as is shown by the following account of Umar ibn al-Khattab.

مر عمر بن الخطاب على باب معمر بالسوق، وقد وضع على بابه جرة ، فأمر بها أن تقلع، فنهاه عمر أن يحجر عليها أو يحوزها

Umar ibn al-Khattab once passed by the Gate of Ma’mar in the market-place and saw that a jar had been placed by the gate, so he commanded it to be taken away. Umar forbade anyone to put any stones on a place or lay claim to it in any way.
And that is because the suq is a public space, not belonging to anyone. Ibn Zabala narrated that Muhammad ibn Abdallah ibn Hasan said, 

أن رسول الله تصدق على المسلمين بأسواقهم

“The Messenger of Allah gave the Muslims their markets as a sadaqa.” And as a consequence of this, they must be free to use – no rent can be charged for their use. Umar ibn Abdal-Aziz said,

إنما السوق صدقة فلا يضربن على أحد فيه كراء

“The market is a sadaqa, so no one should be charged rent in it.” This is a fundamental principle of the market, for if there is a necessity to pay rent then it prevents the very poor or those who only have a small amount of goods to sell from using it. And this principle has largely been forgotten by the Muslims today with many of the Islamic markets that are set up charging the traders astronomical rents, sometimes thousands of rands. And often those rents, they say, are necessary to pay for the costs of flying in superstar Muslim speakers from all over the world to speak at those events. So putting the deen into practice is put aside in favour of talking about how to put it into practice. Mashallah, what a world we live in.
Another principle of the market was that it was prohibited for taxes to be levied on it – when the Prophet first came to the market of Madina, he struck the ground with his foot and said,

هذا سوقكم فلا يضيق ولا يؤخذ فيه خراج

“This is your market – it is not to be constricted nor may a tax be taken in it.” There is no income tax in Islam, and it is not for the Sultan to levy such a tax on his citizens and those who make use of the market. The only thing that should be paid on one’s trade is zakat. 
And nor may any buildings or permanent structures be erected in the market-place, because that is a way of constricting the space and restricting access. The Prophet said, 

هذا سوقكم لاتتحجروا ولا يضرب عليه خراج

“This is your market-place. Do not build anything in stone in it and do not let any tax be levied in it.” It is a publicly-owned space. You would not go to the mosque and build yourself a special prayer room, so nor should you do the same in a market. That is not to say that shops or storehouses are forbidden for they are not. It is perfectly acceptable to build yourself a shop on your own land, or even rent one from someone else. But not in the market-place. It needs to be kept empty and free so that anyone and everyone can come and use it an any time. That is the way to encourage trade and encourage the circulation of wealth, for if there was no available venue, then there would be no incentive for traders to set up caravans and travel to far-off cities to sell their wares.
Another principle of the market is that there can be no monopolies. And monopolies come about when one permits capital to command the price, so there is no wholesale price and retail price. A person is not permitted to undercut his competitor simply because he is wealthier and able to buy more stock. Umar ibn al-Khattab passed by a man selling raisins, two mudds for a dirham, so he said to him,

زد في السعر وإلا فاخرج من سوقنا

“Either raise your price or leave our market.”
All of these principles are to ensure freedom of opportunity and guard against monopolies or the cornering of the market. And that is essential to preserving the health of a society and preserving equity. Every urban area needs such a market, just as every urban area needs roads, highways and places of worship. Without it, everyone is soon converted into wage slaves for the giant monopolies and corporations that take their place. And all human dignity is lost. 
This market is the free step towards the establishment of such a zone – it will give us a taste of what a real market can be like. But it is still the courtyard of the mosque, and so some of these principles will not yet be applicable, for the hayba/ the awe-inspiring nature of the mosque must be maintained and chaos and disorder cannot be allowed to form in front of its doors. So a certain amount of planning and structure has been necessary, and a certain care in the selection of what is to be sold. Do not let any of that put you off. For as Allah says in the hadith qudsi,

إذا تقرب العبد إلي شبرا تقربت إليه ذراعا وإذا تقرب مني ذراعا تقربت منه ‏باعا‏ ‏وإذا أتاني مشيا أتيته هرولة

“If you move an inch closer to Me, I will move a cubit closer to you, if you move a cubit closer to Me, I will move a span closer to you, and if you come to Me walking, I will come to you running.” Each step we take towards Him, each time we put some of His teachings into practice, the more of those teachings He places within our grasp. This market is the first step in the establishment of the free market-place. Our steps and our intentions will be rewarded, and if we make a success of this, our Lord will give us the tools to take it to the next level. We ask Allah to make this endeavour a success, and help us re-establish the markets and recover our lost dignity and economic freedom. We ask him to make us traders the like of those described by Ibn Abbas, when he said,

أوصيكم بالتجار خيرا فإنهم بُرُدُ الآفاق وأمناء الله في الأرض

“I advise you to be good to the traders, for they are the cloaks that guard against calamity and Allah’s trusted ones upon the Earth.”

إِنَّ اللهَ وَمَلَائِكَتَهُ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ، يَا أَيُهَا الذِينَ آمَنُواْ صَلُّواْ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلِّمُواْ تَسْلِيماً. 

اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ وَسَلِّمْ وَبَارِكْ عَلَيْهِ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ  أَجْمَعِينَ. وَارْضَ اللَّهُمَّ عَنِ الْخُلَفَاءِ الرَّاشِدِينَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرَ وَعُثْمَانَ وَعَلِيٍّ، وعن أم المومنين عائشة التي أمرنا الله في سورة النور أن ندافع عنها، وَعَنْ سَائِرِ الصَّحَابَةِ أَجْمَعِينَ، خُصُوصاً اِلأَنْصَارَ مِنْهُمْ وَالمُهَاجِرِينَ، وَعَنِ التَّابِعِينَ وَتَابِعِي التَّابِعِينَ وَمَنْ تَبِعَهُمْ بِإِحْسَانٍ إِلَى يَوْمِ الدِّينِ.

اللَّهُمَّ اهْدِ وُلَاةَ أُمُورِ المُسْلِمِينَ لِمَا يُرْضِيكَ وَلِاتِّبَاعِ سُنَّةِ نَبِيِّكَ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَثَبِّتْ أَقْدَامَهُمْ عَلَى الصِّرَاطِ المُسْتَقِيمِ، وَأَصْلِحْهُمْ يَا رَبَّ الْعَالَمِينَ. 

اللَّهُمَّ بَارِكْ عَلَى شَيْخِنَا، وَعَلَى أَمِيرِنَا، وَعَلَى جَمِيعِ أُمَرَاءِ وَزُعَمَاءِ المُسْلِمِينَ. 

اللَّهُمَّ بَارِكْ عَلَى المُسْلِمِينَ فِي هَذِهِ المَدِينَةِ، وَوَفِّقْهُمْ لِمَا تُحِبُّهُ وَتَرْضَاهُ يَا أَكْرَمَ الأَكْرَمِينَ. 

اللَّهُمَّ أَعِزَّ الإِسْلَامَ وَالمُسِْلمِينَ، وَاخْذُلِ الْكُفْرَ وَالْكَافِرِينَ، وَانْصُرِ المُجَاهِدِينَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللهِ. وَاجْعَلْ كَلِمََتَكَ هِيَ العُلْيَا وَكَلِمَةَ الْكُفْرِ هِيَ السُّفْلَى. 

رَبَّنَا ءَاتِنَا فِي الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً وَفِي الآخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً وَقَِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ. 

إِنَّ اللهَ يَامُرُ بِالْعَدْلِ وَالإِحْسَانِ وَإِيتَاءِ ذِي الْقُرْبَى، وَيَنْهَى عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالمُنكَرِ وَالْبَغْيِ، يَعِظُكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَّكَّرُونَ، وَلَذِكْرُ اللهِ أَكْبَرُ وَاللهُ يَعْلَمُ مَا تَصْنَعُونَ. وَقُومُواْ إِلَى صَلاتِكُمْ يَرْحَمُكُمُ اللهُ.