Understanding the Islamic prohibition of interest: A guide to aid economic cooperation between the Islamic and Western worlds

As economic interdependence and globalization are ever more expanding, understanding the interest-free system of Islamic banking by banking communities in non-Islamic countries becomes a necessity. This article is an attempt to provide such an understanding by examining the background of Islamic law and Islamic views on banking and finance. Understanding the significance of the crucial governing role of Islamic law in every individual aspect of Muslims lives, and justice, fairness, and societal well-being as opposed to individual wealth maximization as the core Islamic concepts of property and business are the first step towards a clear understanding of Islamic rules of finance and banking. It must be considered, for instance, that The prohibition of riba or interest, which is explicitly stated by Koran in at least eleven instances, is rooted in Islam's recognition of work as the mere source of property. Although Muslim scholars are divided, (with the majority for the former pos