[AbdulAziz_A]

I personally ended up paying my zakat in paper money, as my bro went for hajj and i told him to distribute it to the poor in the holy cities of makkah and madina. I don't think its practical enough to give it in gold as yet. The poor wouldn't have anyway of utilising it whereas if i gave paper money they can. Although i believe steps should be take for the return for gold.

[IrfanibnIsmail]

Why sound money matters

What’s Wrong with Our Money?

Printing Money Only Prolongs The Pain


Flawed Federal Reserve Policy Puts Paper Before Gold

Paper Money and Tyranny

Ron Paul seems to be a expert on paper money.

This post has been edited by IrfanibnIsmail: 18 December 2008 - 10:58 AM

[IrfanibnIsmail]

RIBA AND PAPER MONEY

more articles here:

http://www.lariba.co...icles/index.htm

[Hamoudeh]

IrfanibnIsmail, on Dec 18 2008, 11:52 AM, said:

Ron Paul seems to be a expert on paper money.

Right ... certainly not an expert on Islam however. What is the point of all these links, first to Shaykh `Imran, then to a bunch of non-Muslims, and then to an institution that provides Islamic Banking and Financing and which has a Fatwa section for Shaykh Taqi Usmani and Shaykh Yusuf al-Qaradawi. Propaganda? Why not participate in the discussion instead?

As for the last source, I don't know who wrote that article but they forgot to turn the caps off. On a more serious note though, the article is filled with claims without further reference or proof; there is a reference to Ron Paul though. An example relevant to the discussion:

Quote

SOME JURISTS SAID IT IS ABSOLUTELY UNLAWFUL TO DEAL WITH PAPER MONEY BECAUSE IT RESEMBLES THE SELLING OF DEBTS OR RECEIPTS OF DEBTS. (ON THE ISSUING BANK)"

Who are these 'jurists'?

Wassalam

[IrfanibnIsmail]

Hamoudeh, on Dec 19 2008, 09:16 PM, said:

What is the point of all these links, first to Shaykh `Imran, then to a bunch of non-Muslims, and then to an institution that provides Islamic Banking and Financing and which has a Fatwa section for Shaykh Taqi Usmani and Shaykh Yusuf al-Qaradawi. Propaganda?

Quote

one sentence that describes it in essence “….since Paper Money is essentially based on Farud and Legalized Theft; A wealth created out of nothing and something which denies God any role in Wealth Creation which essentially constitues Secularism, are enough proofs to declare that Paper Money is Haram.” Of course the charge sheet against paper money is pretty long but this will suffice.

Now when the Money is Haram to start with, how can we ever Islamise it? Its just like Islamising Theft and Robbery and Fraud! Ever heard of an Islamic Theif? or an Islamic fornicator?

http://www.sunnahmon...-to-start-with/

heres more:

Quote

Even when we consider abuses in the system, it does not mean that modern currencies are a bad idea, let alone Haram. Be careful in declaring something Haram; not every mufti is correct in their 'verdicts'.

Most modern money is created by banks. Banks create money by making interest-bearing loans. Interest is haram. A monetary system that is based upon interest must therefore also be haram. Be careful not to declare it halal.

http://www.islamic-f...m/item104_f.htm

http://www.islamic-f...m/item101_f.htm

http://www.fdrs.org/...y_creation.html

http://www.bogvaerker.dk/fatwa.html <---fatwa-nameless- the site contains translated works
of abdsammad clarke.

[Said Bak]

As-salamu 'alaykum,

Was a reference ever given for the fatwa of kufr on Muhammad 'Abduh by Shaykh 'Illish? Someone is asking me for it...

[faqir]

Here Shaykh Abdal Qadir introduces PAPER MONEY:
http://www.shaykhabd...icCurrency.html
Now I would like to know what is the paper money's value - is it intrinsic or backed by gold somehow?

[Abul Layth]

faqir, on 09 June 2010 - 06:29 PM, said:

Here Shaykh Abdal Qadir introduces PAPER MONEY:
http://www.shaykhabd...icCurrency.html
Now I would like to know what is the paper money's value - is it intrinsic or backed by gold somehow?

So for the last 20 years this man has been preaching that gold and silver should be the currency, and then he comes up with paper money - a representation in his view of gold and silver - which was no different than the original American dollar.

Why not simply make the currency gold and silver, since this is what this man has been preaching for years now?

http://www.guardian....wart-capitalism

[Talibah]

Assalamu Alikum,

Abul Layth, on 22 July 2010 - 11:23 AM, said:

Why not simply make the currency gold and silver, since this is what this man has been preaching for years now?

Imam Abdassamad Clarke's clarification on Fulus :

For the modern Arab, fulus, originally the word for small change, is money itself. It relates intimately to the word for a bankrupt, muflis, which either means someone who only has small change (fulus) and no gold or silver, or in the more extreme case, someone who does not even have small change. However, the former understanding would have to be read by a modern Arab as someone who only has ‘money’; i.e. if you only have money, you are bankrupt.

A great deal of modern Muslims’ misunderstandings of money as a subject stem from the fact that when Europeans were dealing with Muslims, during the long centuries of confrontation, trade and imperialism, they introduced their own paper money on the false premise that it was simply fulus. The convoluted history of European money and its infestation with usury, and its long transition from being a receipt for gold or silver deposited for safekeeping with a goldsmith to being an entity invented out of nothing by wealthy private bankers who then charge interest for its use, is probably too long a detour for this essay, and is beginning to be sufficiently well known to be dispensed with. Suffice it to say, that modern money encapsulates within itself enough usury to sink an ummah (which it did), and should definitely not be confused with fulus.

We come now to the students of Shaykh Dr. Abdalqadir as-Sufi, whose long and determined propagation of the (by now better understood) critique of modern money has gained them well deserved affirmation and recognition amongst the few, but amongst the many made them somewhat suspect and, in some quarters, deeply unpopular. That was until the ongoing global financial catastrophe of 2008-2010 in the light of which they began to appear somewhat prescient and more widely appreciated. However, it would now appear that they have re-opened the door to suspicion by calling for the issuance of Islamic paper money, referring to it as fulus, which the great majority of Muslims still understand as money. “Subhanallah! Weren’t they against paper money, and didn’t they publish fatwas against it, declaring it haram?”

Therefore, given the crucial importance of what is at stake, it is imperative at this point that we clarify the matter as best we can.

The Muslims since the time of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and his Companions, may Allah be pleased with them all, used three things in the main for currency: the gold dinar, the silver dirham and fulus, these latter originally being small copper coins of no higher denomination than half a silver dirham. This can be seen in any work of fiqh or history, and is documented in the admirably thorough Mawsu‘ah Fiqhiyyah – Fiqh Encyclopaedia” published as a massive forty-five volume set from Kuwait.

“The employment by the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and his Companions of Roman dinars and Persian dirhams on which there were images of their kings, and they had no other currency except for fulus.”

The values of the gold dinar and silver dirhams depended on their weight and the purity of their precious metals. The value of the fulus, on the contrary, did not depend on the value of the copper, but rather on the number printed on their faces. They were merely tokens for the small transactions for which even small silver coins would be too valuable.

This is a matter that is beyond controversy. The works of fiqh of the madhhabs deal with it in detail, down to whether or not it is assessed for zakat, and whether or not zakat can be paid with it.

When launching the currency, Shaykh Dr. Abdalqadir as-Sufi said, “At a meeting I had with Shaykh Mahmud Effendi of Turkey, the head of the Naqshabandi order, may Allah give him health and a long time with us and protection, Shaykh Mahmud Effendi said, ‘This (the dinar and dirham) is the currency of the Muslims, but you must have the fulus, for two reasons: there is no zakat on fulus because it is not a precious metal, and the widow must be able to buy her bread, a loaf of bread, with an untaxed currency that allows her to be halal in all her transactions.’”

So this is a vital part of Muslim commerce, for Muslim culture very naturally centres around the needs of the poor, contrary to capitalism which caters to the priorities of an oligarchical banking plutocracy, with the disingenuous assertion that wealth will ‘trickle down’ and ultimately reach the poor, which it demonstrably doesn’t do. Capitalism obscenely enriches a very few and reduces the global population to penury and debt-slavehood. The fulus represent the currency that is in daily use in countless transactions by all segments of the society for small everyday items, but of course, it represents the dominant currency of the poor, and as the Shari’a would have it, will in most circumstances be exempt from assessment for zakat.

Now, critics of modern money, rail against the retention by private banks, hidden behind names such as The Federal Reserve resonant with the sense of their being national institutions, of the power to invent new credit out of nothing and insist that such a right belongs only to the state. This is an echo of an earlier much more fundamental duty of the sovereign to authorise the minting of currency according to known purities of the precious metals and known weights and dimensions, stamping his name and, sometimes, his image on the coins in verification of that process and in acknowledgement of his responsibility in this regard. This was the case in the east and the west, in Christian lands and in the lands of Islam.

These monetarist reformers, however, being enthralled by the power of credit creation and the consumer society it has spawned, are reluctant to see this power to create money by fiat abolished; they want it retained by the state. They fail to see that the implications of this power are equally devastating no matter whose the hand that wields it. However, they are correct in identifying the ruling authority as responsible for the issuing of currency, but this should be in the sense of the authentication of the currency’s actual value, not the licence to create it at will out of thin air.

But what about the fulus? For here we have something of no intrinsic value, but rather something whose value is determined by the numbers minted or printed on it. As we said, its issuance belongs to governance and to no one else. Its value, however, is very limited; it is small change, and thus its effect on the economy ought, in the regular run of things, to be minimal. We note with caution that Muslim rulers at various points did wreak some havoc by an over-abundant supply of fulus.

Some confusion has arisen over the fact of the traditional minting of fulus as copper coins and this recent printing of fulus as paper; ought we not to follow the traditional mode? We were fortunate recently in Norwich to hear a remarkable discourse by Dr Muhammad Ghanem on “The Islamic Concept of Money,” which is also the title of his PhD thesis. Apart from being devastatingly forthright in asserting that modern paper currency is the very essence of usury, he also made very clear that while the usage by the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and his Companions of gold dinars and silver dirhams means that it is inconceivable that any Muslim ruler should ever prevent the usage of gold and silver as currency (even though all so-called ‘Islamic’ polities do in fact outlaw their use), it does not mean that we are obliged only to use them and no other currency.

The same principle applies to fulus; the fact of their historical use as copper does not preclude their being printed on paper. This is a specific application of a general principle; the fact that something was not done in the time of the salaf does not mean that it is not allowed to do it, nor does it mean that when it was done in their time in a specific way, that other ways of doing things are thus prohibited. Only a specific prohibition means that something is prohibited.

So, there is no reason for fulus not to be printed on paper, and very good reasons today why it should be, given the general acceptance of paper money by the global population. Interestingly, whereas with the dominant usury-based finance, minted coins are small change and paper is reserved for the larger denominations, with our Islamic currency the process is reversed and the gold dinar and silver dirham represent the larger denominations and paper currency represents the small change. This is really as it should be, because the global usury-driven finance system is based on a currency that is in every sense a walking debt, moreover a debt that is growing exponentially in a completely unstoppable way.

Now, the proposition that someone is muflis or bankrupt if they only have ‘money’ and have no gold or silver has become self-evident to a much greater number of people than could have been hoped for even a decade ago. It is time for the Muslims to restore a genuine currency with its gold dinar and silver dirham, which have proven to be non-inflationary over millennia, and the vital fulus for the small change that is used for the huge majority of daily transactions.

This post has been edited by Talibah: 14 August 2010 - 10:05 PM

[absalih]

According to Shafi'i scholars, the 'illat' for considering Gold and Silver as 'Naqd' is 'their ubiquitous price (Universal value) and Not their weight. though both are naqd by creation.Now ,as paper money had become ubiquitous, it attains the grade of naqd and so the rulings of Zakat and Usury are applicable to them.This is also applicable to 'Fulus', as zakat should be paid with it and for it in case it becomes the 'Universal Money' and otherwise not.There are many proofs.Just one will be enough:
Imam Ibn Ziyad.(Rah) wrote:

Quote

"In case transactions occurs with fulus as with Gold and Silver, it would be ideal to give the zakat of merchantdise with fulus rather than by goods.Because if so Fulus's grade has become higher from just goods to naqd.It is what is inferred from Imam Nawawi(Rah)'s and Imam Rafi'i(Rah)' words and made clear from the words of Imam Mahalli.(Rah)"

[Gaya:p112]

This post has been edited by absalih: 01 September 2010 - 09:48 AM

[absalih]

This post may be unrelated, but useful:

Quote

Zakaah

Zakaah is one of the most obvious merits of Islaam, because it reflects the extent to which Islaam takes care of those who accept and practice it; it is vital due to the great benefits it contains and the dire need of the poor for it.

The benefits of Zakaah are many. The following are some of them:
• Assuring the feeling of harmony between the rich and the poor in the community, since man by nature becomes inclined towards those who are kind to him.
• Purifying the soul, elevating its rank, and thwarting stinginess from the soul. This is indicated by the saying of Allaah what means, "Take Sadaqah (alms) from their wealth in order to purify them and sanctify them with it." (At-Tawbah: 103).
• Getting the Muslim accustomed to generosity and mercy towards the needy.
• Causing one to become worthy of the blessings of Allaah, Who increases one's provision and replaces what one spends. Allaah says what means, "And whatsoever you spend of anything (in Allaah's Cause), He will replace it. And He is the Best of providers." (Saba': 39). The Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam said that Allaah said, "O son of Aadam! Spend (in charity) and I will provide for you." (Al-Bukhaari & Muslim).

Allaah gave a severe warning to those who become stingy and refrain from paying out their due Zakaah. Allaah says what means, "And those who hoard up gold and silver (Al-Kanz: the money, the Zakaat of which has not been paid) and spend them not in the way of Allaah, announce unto them a painful torment. On the Day when that (Al-Kanz: money, gold and silver, the Zakaat of which has not been paid) will be heated in the fire of Hell and with it will be branded their foreheads, their flanks, and their backs, (and it will be said unto them): `This is the treasure which you hoarded for yourselves. Now taste of what you used to hoard.'" (At-Tawbah: 34-35).

Any person who amasses wealth and does not pay its due Zakaah, will be punished by his wealth on the Day of Resurrection. The Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, "No owner of a treasure (of gold or silver) who does not pay Zakaah will be spared, for his treasure will be heated in the Fires of Hell and then made into plates. His flanks and his forehead will be branded with them until Allaah pronounces judgment on His servants during a day lasting fifty thousand years." (Muslim).

The Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam also mentioned the owner of cattle who does not pay its due Zakaah, "Whoever is made wealthy by Allaah and does not pay the Zakaah of his wealth, then on the Day of Resurrection his wealth will be made into a bald-headed, poisonous, male snake with two black spots over his eyes. The snake will encircle his neck and bite his cheeks and say, 'I am your wealth, I am your treasure.'" Then he sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam recited the saying of Allaah which means, "And let not those who covetously withhold of that which Allaah has bestowed on them of His Bounty (wealth) think that it is good for them (and so they do not pay the obligatory Zakaat). Nay, it will be worse for them; the things which they covetously withheld shall be tied to their necks like a collar on the Day of Resurrection." (Aal 'Imraan: 180) (Al-Bukhaari).

____Zakaah is the right of Allaah which should not be taken lightly; it should not be given to those who are not eligible; a person should not pay it in order to bring benefit unto himself or to prevent harm from befalling him, rather it should be paid to a deserving category of people regardless of whether or not it brings benefit to him. It should be paid willingly and with sincerity to Allaah in order to receive the reward from Allaah and fulfil one's obligation concerning this pillar.

Allaah explained in His book the categories of people who are deserving of Zakaah; Allaah says what means, "As-Sadaqaat (here it means Zakaat) are only for the Fuqaraa' (poor), and Al-Masaakeen (the poor) and those employed to collect (the funds); and to attract the hearts of those who have been inclined (towards Islaam); and to free the captives; and for those in debt; and for Allaah's Cause (i.e. for Mujaahidoon ـ those fighting in a holy battle for the sake of Allaah), and for the wayfarer (a traveller who is cut off from everything); a duty imposed by Allaah. And Allaah is All-Knower, All-Wise" (At-Tawbah: 60). Allaah concluded this verse with two of His Great Names to bring to the attention of his slaves that He is All-Knowing of the affairs and dealings of His slaves, and of who is worthy of taking Zakaah and who is not; and that He is All-Wise in what He legislates and what He decrees, and that he would not prescribe anything unless it is suitable, even if people do not fully realize the benefit and wisdom behind the legislation.

[islaamweb]