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 Ghulamhusein
was a popular social figure and a keen host of guests coming to
him from distant lands. He lived in Moshi, a beautiful small
town at the foot of Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. He was generous
and hospitable to one and all. One of his hobbies during leisure
hours particularly on Saturdays and Sundays was to play the game
of cards with his friends. For hours they used to get together
where they enjoyed the game. It was not with the aim of gambling
but rather just for pleasure and pass time.Once in the midst
of a lively game of cards, his servant came to inform him that a
guest of his was seriously ill at the guest house and needed his
immediate attention. He sent the servant back saying he would
come soon. But he was so much engrossed to withdraw from it. So
he continued to play with keen interest.
After a while, his servant came again to report that the
condition of the guest was deteriorating and needed his urgent
attention as there was no one else to attend. But Ghulamhusein
was so deeply engrossed in the game that he did not want to be
disturbed. As such, again he sent the servant back promising to
come soon.
By the time he could be free from the very mind captivating
game of cards, the servant came for the third time. But this
time he reported that the guest of his a poor traveler from
distant lands -had already died. This news gave a shock of his
life to Ghulamhusein. It convinced him of the evil and harmful
effect of such an indoor game. There and there he vowed never to
indulge himself in such a game.
Is this not an eye-opening example of an intoxicating and
mentally distracting game of cards, commonly played today either
as a pass-time or for gambling purposes? Perhaps it also
explains the philosophy behind absolute Islamic forbiddance to
play or watch such a game, even without the chance of gaining or
losing money. It is meant to be prevention than a cure, lest man
is one day tempted to use the game for gambling purpose.
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| With regard to the wisdom
behind this prohibition, any wise person will see that there
are many reasons for it, including the following: 1.
Gambling makes a person rely on accidents, luck and wishful
thinking for his earnings, instead of hard work, the sweat
of his brow and paying respect to the ways prescribed by
Allah.
2. Gambling destroys families and causes the loss of
wealth through unlawful (Haraam) means. It makes rich
families poor and humiliates proud souls.
3. Gambling results in enmity and hatred among the
players, because they are consuming one another's wealth
unlawfully and getting wealth unlawfully.
4. Gambling turns people away from the remembrance of
Allah and from prayer, and pushes the players to have the
worst of attitudes and habits.
5. Gambling is a sinful hobby that wastes time and
effort, and makes people get used to laziness and idleness.
It stops the ummah from working and producing.
6. Gambling pushes people to commit crimes because the
one who is penniless wants to get hold of money in any way
he can, even if he has to steal it or take it by force, or
through accepting bribes and cheating.
7. Gambling causes stress, illness and nervous
breakdowns. It breeds hatred and in most cases leads to
crime, suicide, insanity and chronic illness.
8. Gambling pushes the gambler to bad behavior such as
drinking alcohol and taking drugs. The atmosphere in which
gambling takes place is dimly lit and filled with cigarette
smoke; people talk in hushed voices and whispers, and sneak
in and out as if they are up to no good. They come in
hesitantly, filled with suspicion, and gather around the
green table, breathing uneasily and with their hearts
pounding. They are supposed to be friends playing a game,
but in reality they are enemies, each of them lying in wait
for the other and trying to make gains at the expense of the
other and his children. The owner of the place tries to numb
the feelings of all participants by offering dreamy music,
fallen women, all kinds of drinks and cigarettes. The green
table is surrounded with cheating and deception. The waiters
and girls may tell one player about another player's cards,
helping one player to beat another by means of nods and
whispers. Sometimes they achieve a kind of balance to make
sure the game carries on and people stay for longer. No
doubt everyone loses in the end; they lose the money they
spend on drinks and cigarettes, the money they give to the
waiters, the money they spend on drinks for the girls, and
all kinds of other losses. Even the one who wins all or most
of the games loses all or most of his winnings, and the
loser loses everything. And at the end of the night, they
all sneak away; showing the signs of depression and
humiliation, and the loser warns the winner to look out the
next day. |
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| Caliph Haroon Rashid desired
that any one who had seen the Holy Prophet (SAW) in his lifetime
be brought before him. After some time a very old woman was
brought before the Caliph. The Caliph asked the old woman, "Did
you see the Prophet yourself?" She said, "Yes! Oh Sir." The
Caliph then asked her if she remembered any narration from him.
She said yes and said, "When old age comes two things become
young, one is hope and the other is greed." The Caliph
thanked her and gave her one hundred dinars. The woman thanked
the Caliph and she was taken back. Half the way some thought
passed through her mind and she desired to be brought before the
Caliph once more. When she was shown in, the Caliph asked,
"Well, why have you come back?" She said. "I just came to
inquire whether the monies you gave me were once for all or is
it to continue every year?"
The Caliph thought. "How true is the Prophet's word?" she has
hope of life even now and she has greed for money too. The
Caliph said, "Don't worry; you will be paid every year." She was
taken back but on the way she breathed her last. |
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| Once upon a time, there was a
selfish man. He liked everything to be his own. He could not
share his belongings with anyone, not even his friends or the
poor. One day, the man lost thirty gold coins. He went to his
friend's house and told him how he lost his gold coins. His
friend was a kind man.
As his friend's daughter was coming from an errand she found
thirty gold coins, when she arrived home, she told her father
what she had found. The girl's father told her that the gold
coins belong to his friend and he sent for him. When the selfish
man arrived, he told him how his daughter had found his thirty
gold coins and handed then to him. After counting the gold coins
the man said that ten of them was missing and had been taken by
the girl as he had forty gold coins. He further commented that
he will recover the remaining amount from him (the girl's
father). But the father refused.
The man left the gold coins and went to the court and
informed the judge there about what had taken place between him
and the girl's father.
The judge sent for the girl and her father, and when they
arrived asked the girl how many gold coins did she find. She
replied thirty gold coins. The Judge that asked the selfish man
how many gold coins did he lose and he answered forty gold
coins.
The judge then told the man that the gold coins did not
belong to him because the girl found thirty and not forty as he
claimed to have lost and then told the girl to take the gold
coins and that if anybody is looking for them he will send for
the girl.
The judge told the man that if anybody reports that they have
found forty gold coins he will send for him. It was then that
the man confessed that he lied and that he lost thirty gold
coins but the judge did not listen to him.
This story teaches us to be always honest as dishonest
never pays.
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| What is Greed? Greed
is the excess fondness of money and fortune. It is one of
the bad manners that draw to various evils and sins.
Disadvantages of Greed:
Greed enslaves man and causes him grief. The greedy cares
only for collecting fortunes without stopping at any limit.
Whenever he achieves a goal, he works for achieving another
and, so, he becomes the slave of avidity until death strikes
him. He, also, exerts laborious efforts for collecting
riches, but he is the less beneficiary. He tires for gaining
fortunes, but death comes unexpectedly upon him to deprive
him of enjoying that fortune. The heirs, then, enjoy his
fortune very easily. Furthermore, greed takes to the slips
of sinful matters that produce problematic situations in the
world to come. It also hinders from doing charity.
Amir ul-Mu'minin (as) 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."
Imam Ali (as): A greedy man will always find himself in
the shackles of humility.
Imam al-Baqir (as) said: "In his love for the world, the
greedy is like the silkworm: the more it wraps in its
cocoon, the less it has of escaping from it, until it dies
of grief." |
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