HARMS OF GREEDINESS

INTRODUCTION

There is no doubt that all the atrocities and problems we witness in the world today are primarily caused by excessive greed. People become desperate on account of their greed, and thereby commit various crimes and atrocities. However, a greedy person is never satisfied. Once he satisfies his greed for one another, he grows new greed for another thing. This is why every religion, especially Islam, vehemently condemns greed and warns its followers to run away from it. 

In this article, we will be briefly discussing the following issues:

(a)    The meaning of greediness;

(b)   Signs of greediness;

(c)    Causes of greediness;

(d)   Greediness in Qur’an;

(e)   Greediness in the Hadith;

(f)     Harms of greediness;

(g)    Remedies for greediness.

It is hoped that this research will help in disseminating information about the evil and harms of greed, and will thus assist members of the Ummah, and humanity in general, in detaching themselves from it.

MEANING OF GREEDINESS

Greediness according to the Oxford Dictionary simply means being excessively or inordinately desirous of wealth, profit, etc. Meanwhile, according to the Islamic point of view, greed is any condition which makes man dissatisfied with whatever he possesses and makes him yearn for yet more. Greed is one of the most destructive vices, and is not limited to worldly possessions. Rather, it covers other desires of mankind like food, sex and similar things.[1]

SIGNS OF GREEDINESS

Greed appears in various shapes. In most cases, it is in these forms:

(i)      Excessive or uncontrolled desire for possession or pursuit of money;[2]

(ii)    Insatiable and intemperate desire for more (see Qur’an 102:1-2);

(iii)   There is a perpetual feeling of being poor, even one own the whole world. The greedy man never becomes rich (whether spiritually or materially);[3]

(iv)  A greedy man humiliates and lowers himself before the wealthy and powerful people, as Amir al-Mu’minin (a.s) said: "A greedy man will always find himself in the shackles of humility”.[4]

(v)    A greedy man sometimes presents himself as a slave and as asserted by Amir al-Mu’minin (a.s): "Greed is a permanent slavery or a greedy man is bound by disgrace.”[5]

(vi)  A greedy man has great fears about his future and seeks to accumulate endless wealth in preparation for it. He is so afraid that he sacrifices his today for tomorrow. But, the morrow never comes.[6]

We should take note of these signs and strive to avoid them. If we do, we will not fall into the traps of greed and its harms.

CAUSES OF GREEDINESS

The root cause of greed is psychological addiction to material possessions. Excessively greedy individuals derive their main feelings of pleasure from the accumulation of money and material possessions. For the greediest individuals, there is no endpoint to the gathering of wealth, and no set amount of money can ever be satisfactory. Gaining wealth creates a release of dopamine in the brain, causing these individuals to relentlessly desire more money and more possessions.[7]

A tradition from Amir al-Mu’minin Ali (a.s) also says: "Two things have killed people: the fear of poverty (which forces man to gather wealth by any means and in any way), and demanding pride.”[8]

The Imam also said: "Material inclination arises from uncontrollable greed”[9]

Hence, once a believer starts to notice that he is becoming too attached to this world and its glitters, he should take several steps backwards and remember Allah and the Hereafter.

GREEDINESS IN QUR’AN

Allah, the Most Wise, has warned against the dangers of greed in several verses of His noble Book. Some of those verses are:

1.       "Abundance diverts you, until you come to the graves”.[10]

2.       "Surely man is created of a greedy temperament being; greatly grieved when evil afflicts him, and niggardly when good befalls him, except those who pray….” [11]

3.       "And yet he desires that I should add more”.[12]

4.       "And you love wealth with exceeding love”.[13]

5.       "And verily, he is violent in the love of wealth”.[14]

6.       "Surely man is created of a hasty temperament”.[15]

Allah’s strong disapproval of greed is very clear in these verses.  

GREEDINESS IN HADITH

In the same vein, greed has been condemned and discouraged in the traditions of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and the Imams (peace be upon him). The Noble Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: "(As) man becomes old, two attributes in him turn young - greed and lofty aspirations.”

Amir al-Mu’minin (a.s), peace be upon him, also said as follows: "Greed is a motive for evil.”[16] "He who adopts greed as a habit devalues himself; he who discloses his hardship agrees to humiliation; and he who allows his tongue to overpower his soul debases the soul”.[17] "One whose greed increases, his wretchedness (also) increases”.[18]

Imam Abu Ja'far al-Baqir (a.s) said: "The greedy man in his love of the world is like the silk-worm: the more it wraps itself in its cocoon the less chance it has of escaping from it, until finally it dies of grief.”

There is a tradition in al-Kafi, reported on the authority of Talhah ibn Zayd, from Abu ‘Abdallah, Imam al-Sadiq (a.s) that he said: "The example of the world is that of sea water; the more a thirsty person drinks from it, the thirstier he becomes until it kills him.”[19]

Imam Hasan Mujtaba (a.s) said: "The annihilation of people lies in three things: Arrogance, Greed and Envy. Arrogance causes destruction of the religion and because of it Shaitan (Satan) was cursed, and greed is the enemy of one’s soul, and because of it Adam was expelled from Paradise, and envy is the guide to wickedness, and because of it Qabil (Cain) killed Habil (Abel) - the two sons of Prophet Adam (a.s).”

Thus, the words of the Infallibles (a.s) also support the position of the Qur’an. They condemned greed in the strongest terms and warned us against its evils. It is best if we can follow their directions.

HARMS OF GREEDINESS

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) explained the afflictions and calamities which arise from greediness. He said: "A greedy person faces seven acute problems:

1.       Worrying, which harms his body and is disadvantageous to him;

2.       Depression, which is endless;

3.       Exhaustion, from which death is the only relief-and with that relief the greed shall be more exhausted;

4.       Fear, which uselessly disturbs his life;

5.       Sadness, which uselessly disturbs his life;

6.       Judgment, which does not save him from Allah’s torture unless Allah forgives him;

7.       Punishment, from which there is no escape or avoidance.”[20]

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and family) also said:  "Refrain from greed for those who were before you perished as a result of greed. Greed commanded them to be stingy and they obeyed: it ordered them into alienation and they obeyed; and it commanded them to sin and they sinned.”[21]

Imam ‘Ali (a.s.) also pointed out the misery which results from coveting when he (a.s.) is quoted as saying: "Greed pollutes the soul, corrupts religion and destroys youthfulness.” [22]

Ibn Abi Ya'fur (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I heard Abu ‘Abdallah (a.s) as saying: "Whoever has a heart attached to the world, has three things attached to his heart: unremitting sadness, unfulfilled desire, and unachievable hope.”[23]

On the authority of Hafs ibn Qurt, Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s) is reported to have said: "The greater one’s involvement with the world is, the greater shall be his regret at the time of parting from it.”[24]

Moreover, contemporary scholars and thinkers have equally warned against the evils of greed. For example, Dr. S. M. Caughaust said: "Stealing stems from greed. Thieves steal that which they do not own because they covet it. He who steals a pair of socks from a merchant, or a bicycle entrusted to him, only does so because of the influence of covetousness to possess things. Thus, the thieves’ motive for stealing is covetousness.”[25]

Dr. Mardin also said: "Certain thoughts which arise from greed, covetousness, and all other psychological reactions not only adversely affect the body but also the soul. They, therefore, deprive us of a good living and change the path of harmonious living. Greed and covetousness destroy all natural human traits in us.[26]

There is absolutely no doubt, considering all the above, that greed is bad for both our material well-being and our spiritual growth. It is a path to destruction. This is why we must avoid it by all means.

REMEDIES

The follows are remedies recommended by our great Muslim Scholars for this dangerous psychological and spiritual disease:

1)      We must always strive in improving our religious beliefs (i.e. the five principles of Iman [faith]) on a daily basis, because moral maladies usually result from weakness in faith.

2)      We must believe that Allah Alone is the Provider.[27]

3)      We must struggle and fight against our desires and lusts, and we must strive in the attainment of good temper and moral excellence.[28]

4)      We should train ourselves to be moderate in living, not being lazy or greedy. We must take our strength from these words of the noble Imam, al-Sadiq (a.s): "I guarantee for the moderate that he will not see poverty.”[29].

5)      Amirul-Mu'minin (a.s) said: "Know with certainty that you cannot achieve your desire and cannot exceed your destined life. You are on the track of those before you. Therefore, be humble in seeking and moderate in earning because often seeking leads to deprivation. Every seeker of livelihood does not get it, nor is everyone who is moderate in seeking deprived.”[30]