By Mohammad Saifullah
Occurrences of theft in the university campus seem to be so rampant these days. Recently an incident that took place was rather unique because it followed a ‘confession’ by the thief on the IIUM Online Facebook which was viewed by many as controversial, questioning the thief’s real motive for doing so.
The online confession read, œI am suffering from poor situation and I am ashamed to ask for help from others thats why I took to stealing.”
When this confession appeared insensible students raised the question “why didn’t the person beg or ask for help to ease her financial difficulty instead of committing such a sin (stealing)”?
This stealing brings another big issue that this is an Islamic university and everyone should think highly of its institution. Stealing shouldn’t happen in a university that teaches good values to its students. It is therefore important to educate the campus community how serious this problem should be viewed.
Stealing is forbidden in Islam. When someone faces the situation that he/she doesnt have money to buy food what should this person be willing to do? Begging or stealing? But there is severe punishment for stealing in Islam and Islam doesnt allow its believers to resort easily to begging without making effort to earn an honest living.
Islam is a religion that commands and motivates working and views it as a high virtue; it forbids and disapproves laziness and begging.
The duty of a Muslim is to offer food to the poor and give someone who asks for something. Yes. Meanwhile, begging which may reduce a persons honour and virtue in a community, also creates bad feelings between people engaged in it.
Now, the question raised here is that if someone badly needs something, then what should this person do? For this situation, Islam gives us a solution; there are situations where one can ask for something from others.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) stated: œIt is permitted to ask for something for only three categories of people. They are as follows: the people who are indebted because of acting as a guarantor for a person or a community and cannot pay their debts; people all of whose property was destroyed in a disaster; and people who became destitute and whose poverty is acknowledged by people who know them. It is not regarded permissible for people other than those who have a days food and the strength to work for livelihood to beg. (Muslim, Zakat, 109).
This hadith clearly says about begging and explains under which situation one can beg.
Let’s now move on to stealing that everybody needs to know about.
Stealing is wrongful or wilful taking of anything belonging to someone else, with an intention to deprive the owner of its use or benefit, either temporarily or permanently. It also means taking another persons things without his/her permission or without a legal right to do so. And the person who steals is called a thief.
Stealing is a sin, a big sin in Islam. How big a sin can be understood by the following verse of Quran:
œAnd (as for) the male thief and the female thief, cut off (from the wrist joint) their hands as a recompense for that which they committed, a punishment by way of example from Allah. And Allah is All-Powerful, All-Wise. (Surah Al-Maidah vers:38).
The punishment for a thief is to cut off his/her hand according to this ayah. So, a Muslim should stay away from stealing and should forbid others to commit stealing.
All in all, society has a responsibility to help others as he/she will not beg or prevent him/her to commit stealing. This kind of work can be done by taking care of neighbours and keep informing them about the view of Islam.***