In this paper, I shall confine myself to the development of a basis for an economic system within an Islamic state. By Islamic state, I mean that state which believes in and applies Islamic injunctions and teachings in all spheres of life. The aim is to formulate a general theory for a system of Islamic economics that, once defined, can help researchers to begin their analytic studies without difficulty.
All Muslims at present are living under governments that do not observe the Shari’ah and whose laws are mainly derived from non-Islamic doctrines. A new awareness however, among Muslims urges them to proclaim the application of their Islam.
Any economic system is derived from the general ideology that prevails in a the society that applies it as a means to achieving the goals promised by that ideology. Accordingly, the realization of the Islamic economic system is dependent on the adoption of an Islamic doctrine (Shari’ah) or ideology in the political, social, and aesthetic spheres of life. All these different spheres of human life are interdependent; it is impossible to complete separate one sphere from the other. To treat one of them on its own is only a means of facilitating the study.
Methodology
Subject
To study Islamic economics, we have to consider two rain issues: (1) the relationship of economics to the other spheres of secular life within: Islamic ideology; and (2) the principles of Islamic economics.
As to the first issue, economics represents the material element that unites with the spiritual to constitute the human being. The classical Muslim jurists cited its contents under the expression mu'dmalat, meaning all material dealings. This encompasses all rules administering the material dealings among