For Video Lecture, see:

bit.do/azisu

Lecture 1 :
Introduction
Series: Islamic Economics

Dr. Asad Zaman

 In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

This series of lectures is a part of an ongoing endeavor to spread knowledge and

awarenes about Islamic Economics
In doing so this series questions the worldview created by western economic
theories

ABOUT DR. ASAD ZAMAN

CURRENTLY: Vice Chancellor, Pakistan
Institute of Development Economics
PREVIOUSLY: Director General,
International Institute of Islamic
Economics, International Islamic
University Islamabad
Email: asadzaman@alum.mit.edu

You can discover more about Islamic Economics, Dr. Asad Zaman and get free access to all his
lectures and writings here: http://asadzaman.net/

The overall guide to topics covered by Dr. Asad Zaman can be found here::
https://sites.google.com/site/asaduzaman/
 Delivered by:
Dr. Asad Zaman
Venue: Imam Sadiq University Tehran
To watch 75minute lecture on You Tube:
Islamic Economics: Lecture 1
(Imam Sadiq University, Tehran)
Shortlink: bit.do/ytisu
 Part - 1

Western thought
and Islam…
The conflict at the
conceptual level…
 Western
Knowledge?
or widely believed ignorance….

and what does Islam offer?

 “
Actions are based on intentions.

What’s the price of your intentions?

The power
of belief in
Allah
 Worth and positioning of humans

Best of forms Worse than beasts

A human is inherently A man falls in the trap of
priceless, and all the his nafs and is illusioned
material things in the by the glitter of the
world are no match for world. He would sell
his worth, unless…. himself at a small price
 All that
glitters…
 Worth and positioning of humans

Targets
Worldly
Small
Enhance the
potential

Reduce the
capacity
Bigger
motives
Everything
has a fair
price?
 The labor market – two contrasting views…

Capitalism Islam

A man is not worth more Every individual is unique- a

than marginal producy of his treasure in himself
labor

Selling time and actions in Every action is Ibadah

return for money

Service is provided as a Money is earned as a means

means to earn money to provide service “al-
khidmah”

Decisions are based on the Decisions are based on the

basis of amount of money basis of nature of service
Seeing through the tunnel vision of western paradigm…

◈ Is money the main determinant of

success?
◈ what is the value of God-
consciousness and internal peace?
◈How nations are ranked and viewed?
◈How state department of economics
approaches problems?
 Part - 2

The post-colonial
world…
And the rise of the thought
of Islamic Economics
 How to switch-over?

Revolution Evolution

Surrender?
The second generation of thinkers confused…

second

first last

between

Physical Economic
Science vs Sciences

Normative vs Positive
Inserting
the
Islamic
gear
 The task for the present-time thinkers

What How Why

To deal with the flawed Using modern Concretely responding
theories which have mathematical and to widely held
turned into widely held econometric analysis misconceptions is the
beliefs need of time
 Part - 3

Was the battle

long lost…
How did Islamic systems
fade away long ago?
 Confusions over hierarchy of human knowledge

Wahy

Human reason

Derived
philosophies

When muslims were impresed from greek philosophies

they conflicted whether human reason can take the same
place as divine knowledge. Time revealed that human
reason is vulnerable to flaws…
 And even the memories vaporised…

Because we do not have a purely Islamic system for a long

time, we have difficulty seeing how substantially different
system Islam offers in all spheres of life, including:

System of governance
Social system
Economic system
Educational system
And so on…
 We had traces of Islamic institutions prior to colonization

Example 1 Example 2
Auqafs: These were used to Justice was not expensive. There
educate and heal free of charge. was a notion of free justice

Institutions are organized to fulfill the needs of society. But

institutions built by the colonizers also had to fulfill their
needs
 Part - 4

The way forward

and the right approach…
 Approaching the solution

Brainstorm

Understand the Islamic spirit- and do not compromise on it

Let the body and the form evolve into a creature which can
survive against the modern capitalism

Keep refining: accept what is compatible with Islamic spirit

and reject what is unislamic
 The difference between right and wrong

Wrong way Right way

Pick a typical interst based
financial arrangement and find
a way in sharia to create an
arrangement with similar
payoffs.
Find possible good purposed
which are currently served by
financial arrangements and fulfill
those purposes in truly Islamic
ways

Focus on Maqasid-ul-sharia

Do not think too low. We do not need to catch up with the

west, we need to improve over them!
 How not to go about it?

Islamic Posibble
Typical compromise good/
Instrument with similar permisible
payoffs objectives

Supporting
Bond Sukuk
widows

Automobile Cooperative
Takaful
Insurance risk pooling

Provude
Mortgage/
Musharika homeless a
Finance Lease
home
 Prerequisites

Ijtihad, barinstorming and research

Seeds of ideas to be grown into practicle forms

Focus on Maqasid-ul-sharia

High thinking. We do not need to catch up with the west,

we need to improve over them!

Astuteness. One correct step at a time

Patience and resillience

Question session

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