Ubudiyya or True Kingship

Islam’s Vision of Business Ethics with Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad


“Islam’s Vision of Business” Ethics is a talk given by Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad of the Cambridge Muslim College on his visit to South Africa in 2018. The talk and visit were sponsored by the Islamic Forum organization and Awqaf SA.

The Spirit of Achievement

Shaykh Abdal Hakim begins by asking what it is about the Revelation of Islam that produced such excellence across so many fields of human endeavor. Fields as diverse as trade, education, governance, jurisprudence, the arts and architecture, finance and more.

In its time, Medieval Muslim trade outshone all other forms of trade in the world. A world in which a contract or financial document drawn up in one end of the world is honored in the opposite end.

The Mercantile Calling

The Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, began as a merchant. He, Allah bless him and give him peace, was in business as a merchant and employed by a woman, our lady Khadija al Kubra, Allah be well pleased with her.

Over generation after generation, Islamic mercantilism has been at the forefront of development, civilization and innovation in many fields and institutional structures.

A New Islamic Economic Vision

It is this engagement based on a balance between the worldly and the higher spiritual aims of Islam that has brought about such advancements for the benefit of all peoples who came in contact with Islam. And many who subsequently came into the fold of Islam itself.

These considerations should inspire us, as they inspire Shaykh Abdal Hakim, to look again at our heritage and seek to bring these concepts and practices back to life for the benefit of our times.

To hereby gain a deeper understanding and to formulate a comprehensive and practicable Ethics of Business.

With gratitude to our content partner: Cambridge Muslim College.