Category: Economics

Economics

Economics of the individual: Unpacking homo economicus and islamicus

Essayem Amal “Science is essentially a problem-solving activity.” This is how Larry Lauden begins his well-known book Progress and Its Problems[1]. While this is not an article on epistemology, this quote is a good place to start thinking about how theories do not always reflect reality. Science ultimately aims to explain and control the natural world by the resolution or clarification of problems. Scientists, through knowledge, seek … Continue reading Economics of the individual: Unpacking homo economicus and islamicus

The Qarawiyyin Project1 Comment
Economics

Towards an Islamic Discourse of Development

Competition in [worldly] increase diverts you, until you visit the graveyards. [102:1-2] While working towards the tazkiyyah of a society fraught with economic exploitation and hedonism, it is futile to try and combat these symptoms without interrogating the conditions from which they arose. Unfortunately, much of the discussion on Islamic economics has been relegated to Islamic finance and banking—in other words, a discussion on how … Continue reading Towards an Islamic Discourse of Development

The Qarawiyyin Project1 Comment
Economics

“Did non-Muslims pay more taxes?”

Nura S. On Saturday, I was visiting the Art of Qur’an exhibition at the Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Museum in Washington, DC. It was the last day of the exhibition and it was packed, you could probably find the largest concentration of the Muslims in the city in and around the building on that day. Expectedly, there were non-Muslims who were also visiting, and I noticed … Continue reading “Did non-Muslims pay more taxes?”

The Qarawiyyin Project1 Comment