Riba Islamic law and interest (Ph.D. Dissertation)

This dissertation assesses the relevance of Islam to the socio-economic order by analyzing the regulation of acquisition, ownership, and usufruct of wealth in the context of shari`a. The prohibition of riba in Islam represents a foundational element of social ethics, in this case to create economic justice. Controversy arose among jurists over the distinction of interest from usury, both of which are termed riba, and legal interpretations that follow. Prohibition must have aimed at a socio-economic system radically different from that of capitalism. Islam's purpose for the economic order is an interest-free society. This study analyzes the role of interest in production and consumption, its exploitation of the poor as well as of the entrepreneur, and its necessary result in accumulating wealth in a few hands--all deviations from the ideal social justice envisioned by the shari`a.