Welfare
Imam Ali’s strict redistribution of treasury funds (Bayt al-Mal) as a model for addressing extreme inequality today
The writer, Ayyad Dilawar Padhani is in Marketing at his family optical practice. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management, Marketing and related support services. He has been rendering community services from a very early age.
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The story we all know of when Talha and Zubair, seeking out discussions with Imam Ali (as) with potential political aspirations, while he was at the treasuries office performing his official tasks. When they sat down, Imam asked whether it was an official matter or a personal discussion, their response to it being a personal one brought Imam Ali (as) to take a monumental and highly instructive lesson for us all. He proceeded to turn off the office candle, and turned on a personal one, so as not to utilise official resources for personal matters.
One may wonder, these types of precautions are very high level, and are only carried out by the Imams as a standard lesson, and not necessarily to be followed to the Tee as they have done, perhaps because they are perfect and we are not. However, I would like to share that we can indeed reach such a level of weariness and vigilance in our lives in relation to all other trusts that are upon us.
Other trusts include but are not limited to the things that do not belong to us, items people give us for safekeeping, the stories people tell us to unburden and confide in us, respect toward co-workers and or employees, the rights of our families, people’s time in general, but also respecting our own time by utilising it wisely. In today’s efficiency driven world, you may be hard pressed to believe you need to optimise your time perfectly and use every minute towards doing something to make you money, but that is not close to the truth. Leisure, exercise and resting time are a necessary part of rejuvenating one’s body and mind while being vigilant of not wasting it carelessly, we can therefore add it to our list of trusts we must attend to.
How then, can we reach a point where we can be confident and can make spiritual progress in our lives such that we believe we are capable of turning off the candle. And yes, we should first mention that all the previous spiritual advice we have heard from the mosques, imambarghas, and Youtube lectures and workshops are all well-founded and credible, a non-exhaustive list below:
- Praying our Salaat on time
- Reciting Qur’an daily
- Praying Salaat al Layl
- Daily Adhkar of Tasbeehaat
- Daily Istighfar and Shukr
- Giving Charity to the needy, and/or a good cause
- Ensuring to earn a halal income and therefore eating halal foods
- Improving our character and Akhlaq in how we deal with others, especially our families and close relatives
- Seeking Knowledge through Books, Lectures, Courses and Discussions with Scholars
- Daily Muhasaba (taking account of one’s own deed) and Remembering Death
Imam Ali (as), in his handling of the Bayt al Mal, did not see public wealth as something to be used for influence or favour. It was a trust, and it had to be given out with justice. He did not accept the common practice of giving higher stipends to those with status, history, or political weight. Instead, he moved towards a system where people were treated more equally, and where access to public funds was not shaped by privilege or closeness to power.
This approach meant that redistribution was direct and fair. What entered the treasury was not allowed to sit and build advantage for a few, but was distributed back to the people in a way that reflected fairness and need. There was a clear resistance to creating layers of economic hierarchy through public money. Even when this stance came at a political cost, he did not shift from it. He did not give preference to influential figures, nor did he bend the system to secure loyalty. Justice remained the priority, even if it meant losing support.
In this way, governance became more than administration. It became an exercise in responsibility. Wealth was not seen as a reward system for power, but as something that had to circulate fairly. A means of protecting balance in society, and ensuring that no group could quietly build advantage over another through the very system meant to serve all.
How then, you ask, can we contribute toward reducing the extreme inequality in the world today? It is through turning one smallcandle off at a time. Refusing to misuse any minute property or information in a way that would be looked down upon by our Imams, and by avoiding the seemingly small breaches, we can strengthen our confidence when we are faced with bigger infractions.
Through increasing our sensitivity to the properties, the trusts, the feelings of others, the boundaries people set, a level where we respect even the nature around us, showing kindness to animals and trees, we become more of the person that is strong against injustice and misuse of property that belongs to the public. Our decision to actively avoid overstepping anyone’s rights, will make us more just, more trustworthy, and more grounded in ethical responsibility, shaping us into individuals who uphold fairness, protect shared resources, and act with restraint even when no one is watching.allow us to reach the highest level of paradise.
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