بِرَآدِّى

24:23; 30:29.

Commentary:

This verse contains another very important argument in favour of Divine revelation. The object and purpose of Divineguidance, it says, is not only to bring about reformation in religious beliefs and doctrines but also to maintain a just balance in the distribution of material wealth and political rights and power. It is a divine law that in every age some individuals or nations, by their superior intellect and harder work, come to acquire ascendancy and control over other individuals or nations. This is neither unfair nor unjust so long as proper opportunities are not denied to the less fortunate peoples also to make proper use of their talents and intelligence for earning the good things of life. But the "haves" have always set their face against all attempts by the "have-nots" to better their material condition and to have a share in the power and privileges the "haves" enjoy. The only way to save the world from the tyranny of those in possession of power and privilege and to open the doors of progress and advancement to real merit and talent and thereby to rehabilitate justice and equality among mankind is that God should send His Messengers. Their advent heralds a new era and the dispossessed and the "have-nots" have their rights restored to them.

So when people become separated from the era of a Prophet by a long time and vested interests grow and become entrenched and power and privileges flow from father to son and common people are denied all share in the government and even so-called religious leaders come to trade upon the superstitious fears of their followers and monopolize all religious authority and common men are not even considered competent to be consulted on religious or secular matters, God raises a Prophet who wages a relentless war against this tyranny and untruth and the so-called leaders who held the reins of power in their hands on the plea of supposed superior abilities are dethroned and man begins to breathe in an atmosphere of true freedom.

Briefly but very beautifully the verse has laid down the Islamic law with regard to private ownership. Whereas on the one hand Islam has recognized the right of private ownership by emphasizing the word their in the expression, "of their worldly gifts", it has, by using the words "will restore" (برادی) also accepted the principle of the collective ownership of all things by all human beings as such, because only that thing is "restored" to another person which belongs to him. In fact, Islam has accepted the principle of dual ownership of everything—the right of possession of a property by the person who earns it and the right in the possession of that property of all human beings as human beings. Moreover, by its institution of Zakah, the prohibition about hoarding wealth and taking and giving of interest, Islam has sought to prevent the accumulation of wealth in a few hands and thus by its free circulation has kept the avenues of progress equally open for all men. Islam, in reality, neither believes in the right of unrestricted private ownership nor in complete and unreserved possession of wealth and the means of its production by the State. It adopts the middle course.

Ordinarily, the words "whom their right hands possess" mean slaves, and in the Quran these words have generally been used in this sense; but they possess a much wider significance and include all persons under one’s control such as private servants, subordinates, labourers, ryots etc.