While comparing present-day man with his ancestors, we find a marked difference in the way of living and being. In the past man’s life was largely simple, unostentatious and dependent on nature. Most people used to live in a rural set-up, close to each other with a passion to help one another. Their life was characterised mostly by ethical values.
In contrast to the past, modern man is largely materialistic. After years of development and growth, he has changed tremendously. He has changed not only in his way of living, but in his thoughts, habits, behaviour, character and outlook as well. Present-day man is more concerned about his material well-being, and acquiring money seems to be the most dominating factor of his existence.
Fondness for money leaves no room for spiritual growth. This has stimulated society and abetted it in living amidst the pandemic of corruption, philistinism and rogue competition. Many of this generation are finding difficulties withstanding the pressure of materialism, thus forsaking what has been valued in the past.
Islam does not disapprove of development and a good quality of life. It encourages and guides us towards holistic development. It wants our today to be better than our yesterday. This means that every individual should develop his material life, alongside the spiritual and ethical sides of human existence. But what is worrisome is the lopsided development of today that focuses only on material well-being. There is a constant slide of essential ethical values, which are supposed to govern the inner and outer aspects of life.
Many want to become rich overnight; they resort to illegal means of acquiring wealth forgetting that the Quran says: “And eat up not one another’s property unjustly, nor give bribery to rulers, that you may knowingly eat up a part of the property of others sinfully” (2:188).
These people do not follow the natural course of hard work, discipline and other social values. They forget the principle which says that success does not come overnight; it comes in instalments, bit by bit until the whole package is given out.
It is very unfortunate that our society is caught in the whirlpool of all-pervading anomie. We find black sheep in the noble professions of doctors, lawyers, teachers, engineers and builders who have made their foremost aim in life to collect as much money as possible by whatever means they can. They ignore the nobility of their professions just for this transient material life. Recently, we heard that many restaurants used outdated and unhygienic material in preparing food for their clientele.
Butchers reportedly sold the meat of dead animals while in other instances students got degrees without appearing in exams and pilots went on strike with some controversial demands. Many businessmen get ill-gotten money through the evasion of taxes, black-marketing, smuggling, and other questionable means. This ubiquitous corruption corrodes the moral fibre of all strata of society.
The excessive fondness for money and heavy attachment with the material world leaves little room for spiritual growth. Nobody finds private moments to pray with concentration. At the social level, this lack of moral scruples undermines the application of Islamic values.
Ill-gotten money disturbs families, societies and communities, creates a gap between husband and wife, causes friction among brothers and demeans the value of self-sacrifice, empathy and altruism. No doubt money is a fundamental requirement of life. No one can live without money but moderation in seeking wealth and living within ethical parameters helps one to be contented, rather than living like a king on a gold throne without inner peace. Money acquired through illegal means cannot provide satisfaction. It soon disappears into the air, imposing immense unhappiness, worry and frustration. It is ironic how wealth can produce dissatisfaction and disillusionment in hearts.
Muslim history proves that the Holy Prophet (PBUH) ruled the state of Madina but lived a life of moderation. He gave us the religion of Islam for all times to come. Its value system is valid for the present, past and future and it is the collective responsibility of society to preach and propagate the eternal values of Islam.
An important Islamic value is that one should not live for oneself alone, but work for the larger good of society. A person works hard for certain purposes — including social and national. This is the commitment one should have to whatever he/she is pursuing. The present generation seems to be a ‘me’ generation working for only oneself and not for others.
This generation needs to be sensible about money and realise it is not the be-all and end-all. One can buy medicines with money, but not health; one can buy goods, but not inner peace, sleep and tranquillity. Similarly one can buy a beautiful home, but not spiritual harmony, love and affinity within the family. So money should not be given value that it does not deserve.
The writer is an educationist with an interest in religion. valianiamin@gmail.com
Amin Valliani, "Materialism’s lure," Dawn. 2015-12-04.Keywords: Social sciences , Social aspects , Ethical values , Social values , Islamic history , Islamic values , Religion-Islam , Holy Prophet (PBUH) , Pakistan , Madina