Reimagining Economic Wellbeing and Justice: The Wasaṭiyya Framework in Islamic Economics

Anggi Azzuhri*  -  Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia, Indonesia
Haidar Masyhur Fadhil  -  Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia, Indonesia

(*) Corresponding Author

This article explores the foundations and instruments of Islamic economics, with a focus on the wasaṭiyya (moderation) mindset. The concept of Iqtiṣād, which signifies balance and fairness, lies at the core of Islamic economic principles, as reflected in the Qur’ān and developed by scholars such as Al-Ghazālī, Ibn Khaldūn, and Bāqir Al-Ṣadr. Bāqir Al-Ṣadr positions Islamic economics as a middle path between capitalism and socialism, advocating an ethical system that promotes justice and sustainable growth. The study examines key financial instruments—zakāt, waqf, kharāj, jizya, and sukūk—which are designed to reduce poverty, promote wealth circulation, and ensure fair resource distribution. It also addresses challenges such as economic crises, regulatory failures, and societal greed, which threaten the sustainability of wellbeing. Through an analysis of primary Islamic texts and the works of major scholars, this article compares Islamic economic thought with capitalist and socialist models, highlighting its unique approach to wellbeing and justice. Modern scholarly contributions further enhance the discussion, providing insights into the practical applications of these principles today. Ultimately, the wasaṭiyya framework is shown to offer a balanced and resilient framework for addressing contemporary economic challenges, positioning Islamic economics as a viable alternative to conventional systems in the pursuit of human wellbeing and economic justice.

Keywords: wasatiyya; islamic wellbeing; Quranic economics; ethical economy

  1. Al-Daghistani, S. (2021). Ethical Teachings of Abū Ḥamid Al-Ghazalī: Economics of Happines. Anthem Press.
  2. Al-Gazali, A. H. (1971). Ethical Ghazali’s Book of Counsel for Kings: = Naṣīḥat al-Mulūk. Edited by Ǧalāl-ad-Dīn Humāyī. Repr. University of Durham Publications. Oxford University Press.
  3. Al-Gazali, A. H. (2008). Ihya Ulum al-Din. Dar al-Ma’rifah.
  4. Al-Nasafi, A. H. U. (1990). Madarik al-Tanzil wa Haqaiq al-Ta’wil. Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyah.
  5. Al-Sadr, M. B. (1981). Iqtisaduna (Our Economics). Dar al-Ta’aruf.
  6. Al-Sallabi, M. (2016). Al-Wasatiyya fi al-Qur’an al-Karim. Maktabah al-Sahabah.
  7. Al-Zuhayli, W. (2013). Tafsir al-Munir. Gema Insani.
  8. Baloglou, C. (2016). Review of ARISTOTLE’S ECONOMIC PHILOSOPHY, by Theodore P. Lianos. History of Economic Ideas, 24(2), 207–212.
  9. Bennabi, M. (2017). Surut al-Nahda. Dar al-Fikr al-Mu’asir.
  10. Boettke, P. J., & Heilbroner, R. L. (2024, September 12). Capitalism. Britannica AMoney. https://www.britannica.com/money/capitalism
  11. Crespo, R. F. (2006). The Ontology of ‘the Economic’: An Aristotelian Analysis. Cambridge Journal of Economics, 30(5), 767–781.
  12. Ead, H. A., & Eid, N. H. (2014). Between Ibn Khaldūn and Adam Smith (Fathers of Economics). IOSR Journal of Business and Management, 16(3), 54–56.
  13. Firdaus, M. I., Pradhana, T. A., & Nasution, S. (2020). The Concept of Money According to the Thought of Ibn Taymiyah and Imam Ghazali and its Impelemation in the Economic Field. Al-Iktisab: Journal of Islamic Economy Law, 4(2), 120–134.
  14. Gaudiosi, M. M. (1998). he Influence of the Islamic Law of Waqf on the Development of the Trust in England: The Case of Merton College. University of Pennsylvania Law Review, 136(4), 1231–1261.
  15. Habakeneh, H. (1996). Al-Wasatiyya fi al-Islam. . Muassasa al-Rayyan.
  16. Haneef, M. A., & Furqani, H. (2009). Contemporary Islamic Economics: The Missing Dimension of Genuine Islamization. Thoughts on Economics, 19(4), 29–48.
  17. Ibn Ashur, M. T. (1980). al-Tahrir wa al-Tanwir. Daral-Tunisiyya.
  18. Ibn Khaldun. (2015). The Muqaddimah: An Introduction to History (N. J. Dawood, Ed.; F. Rosenthal, Trans.; Abridged Edition). Princeton Classics.
  19. Islahi, A. A. (2015, December 13). Economic Thought of Muhammad Abduh: An omitted aspect of his biography. RePEc: Research Papers in Economics. https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/68363/1/MPRA_paper_68363.pdf
  20. Khan, M. A. (2018). Methodology of Islamic Economics: From Islamic Teachings to Islamic Economics. Turkish Journal of Islamic, 5(1), 35–61.
  21. Kuran, T. (1995). Islamic Economics and the Islamic Subeconomy. The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 9(4), 155–173.
  22. Kuran, T. (2010). Islam and Mammon. Princeton University Press.
  23. Marx, K., Engels, F., & Jones, G. S. (2022). The Communist Manifesto. Penguin Classics.
  24. Masyita, D. (2015). Why Do People See a Financial System a Whole Very Important? Journal of Islamic Monetary Economics and Finance, 1(1), 79–106.
  25. Peri, O. (1992). Waqf and Ottoman Welfare Policy. The Poor Kitchen of Hasseki Sultan in Eighteenth-Century Jerusalem. Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, 35(2), 167–186.
  26. Sakai, M. (2008). Community Development through Microfinance. In G. Fealy & S. White (Eds.), Expressing Islam: Religious Life and Politics in Indonesia (pp. 267–285). Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.
  27. Saracoglu, S. (2016). Economic Interventionism, Islamic Law and Provincial. In S. Saracoglu, K. F. Schull, & R. Zens (Eds.), Law and Legality in the Ottoman Empire and Republic of Turkey. Indiana University Press.
  28. Shihab, M. Q. (2019). Wasatiiyah: Tentang Moderasi Beragama. Lentera Hati.
  29. Siddiqi, M. N., & Ghazanfar, S. M. (2001). Early Medieval Islamic Economic Thought: Abu Yusuf’s (731-798 AD) Economics of Public Finance. History of Economic Ideas, 9(1), 13–38.
  30. Skousen, M. (2007). The Big Three in Economics: Adam Smith, Karl Marx, and John Maynard Keynes. M.E.Sharpe.
  31. Splengler, J. J. (1964). Economic Thought of Islam: Ibn Khaldūn. Comparative Studies in Society and History, 6(3), 268–306.
  32. Zikwan, M. (2022). Wasathiyyah Al-Iqthisadiyyah : Interegrasi Nilai Moderasi pada Ekonomi Islam. Proceedings of Annual Conference for Muslim Scholars, 1058-1–68.

Open Access Copyright (c) 2022 Economica: Jurnal Ekonomi Islam

Economica: Jurnal Ekonomi Islam
Published by the Institute of Islamic Economic Research and Development (LP2EI), Faculty of Islamic Economics and Business Universitas Islam Negeri Walisongo Semarang
Jl Prof. Dr. Hamka Kampus III Ngaliyan Semarang 50185
Phone: +62 858-7654-4666
Website: https://febi.walisongo.ac.id/
Email: economica@walisongo.ac.id

ISSN: 2085-9325 (Print)
ISSN: 2541-4666 (Online)
DOI: 10.21580/economica

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Get a feed by atom here, RRS2 here, and OAI Links here.

apps