You start a pharmacy. The business operates normally—sales happen, rent and salaries are covered, but there isn’t much left in terms of profit. After struggling for some time, a new idea emerges. A clinic is set up next to the pharmacy, and a doctor is hired. There is nothing inherently wrong with this arrangement.
With a doctor present, patients start coming in. The number of customers at the pharmacy gradually increases. A pattern becomes clear: for medicine sales to grow, more patients are needed. And for patients to increase, the spread of illness is necessary. Some discreet strategies take shape—nothing that can be publicly admitted due to legal constraints. Soon, cases of diarrhea, stomach pain, vomiting, and jaundice begin to rise in the area. Patients queue up outside the clinic, and business flourishes.
But is there something wrong? Absolutely.
The world is full of unseen, parallel economies operating in the shadows. There are those whose only concern is their business and their profits, indifferent to how their actions affect others. Even if destruction is the price, they insist that profit must flow uninterrupted. The arms trade and the narcotics market stand as stark examples of this mindset—alongside the organ trade.
Weapons, of course, have their uses. A thief breaking into a house at midnight may need a knife to cut through an obstacle. Soldiers guarding a border require guns and ammunition. Weapons must be produced and supplied as needed. But what happens when, like pathogens being secretly spread to increase pharmacy sales, wars are deliberately encouraged to sustain the arms industry? What kind of depravity does it take to ensure that at least one part of the world is always teetering on the brink of conflict? Every year, the global arms trade amounts to billions. How many innocent lives are sacrificed to sustain this market? The philosophy behind it is clear: human lives may be lost, but profits must remain intact, and business must boom.
Consider the drug trade. Some substances, even in small amounts, can push a person into addiction. Drug cartels have long infiltrated schools and colleges, searching for new markets. The youth—the very future of humanity—are targeted without hesitation. The greed for profit has corrupted society to the extent that even the well-being of children is disregarded.
Trade is one of the primary engines of wealth accumulation. Agriculture, industry, manufacturing, and services all ultimately converge into commerce. A harvested crop does not generate income until it is sold. Manufactured goods are of no use until they enter the market. Today, in one way or another, every individual participates in commerce. This makes it essential to reflect on the ethics of trade, particularly the vision that Islam puts forward.
The organ trade, for instance, thrives on human helplessness. Criminal networks exploit the vulnerable, harvesting and selling their organs for enormous sums. Even institutions meant to protect health quietly support this black market in some cases. The question arises: how far has humanity fallen?
The obsession with wealth can intensify into greed, and greed can descend into cruelty. Because humans are inherently weak, they often succumb to these impulses. This logic extends into their trade practices as well, sometimes leading to moral collapse. Yet, from a purely materialistic viewpoint, none of this appears problematic. The individualistic mindset— “my comfort, my profit”—prevails, disregarding the well-being of others. However, from the perspective of Islamic thought, ethical guidelines exist to counteract this degradation.
The Holy Quran provides repeated warnings about unrestrained greed. It acknowledges that humans are drawn to fleeting pleasures and that they are often too weak to resist them. But it also makes it clear that deviation from justice and ethical conduct will have severe consequences.
Greed for wealth is dangerous. It creates the illusion of invincibility, making a person believe they are beyond accountability. This mindset justifies any method of profit-making, no matter how corrupt. The Quran issues a stern warning against this.
Trade (tijara) in the Quran is always discussed alongside taraadhi—mutual satisfaction. The root of taraadhi is ridhwaan, meaning contentment. Trade, in the Quranic view, must not be a one-sided gain; it must involve complete satisfaction for both parties.
A dishonest trader sells rotten fish after masking its stench with chemicals. He showcases beef while secretly selling buffalo meat. He polishes stale oranges to make them look fresh. His pockets fill with money. He feels satisfaction—two kinds of it. First, from having made a sale. Second, from deceiving the buyer.
But this is one-sided satisfaction. The Quran insists that it is not enough. True trade requires satisfaction on both sides.
When a customer returns to a shop not out of regret, but out of trust—when they bring their friends along because they were genuinely satisfied with their purchase—that is the mark of ethical trade. Reflecting on past transactions, one can recall moments of mutual satisfaction and, conversely, times when one felt deceived. This is why a trade culture rooted in transparency and ethical reciprocity is necessary.
Only then can commerce become an honorable pursuit rather than a corrupt enterprise driven by unchecked greed.
