Pure Leadership: The Need for Leaders Free from Greed and Desire

And the advance of the Islamic revolution came to a halt. On October 10, 732 AD, the historic Battle of “Balat al-Shuhada” was fought on French soil. The battlefield lay on the Roman road between Tours and Poitiers. This location was a thousand miles north of Gibraltar, where Tariq ibn Ziyad had landed on April 30, 711 AD. Renowned historians Gibbon and O’Leary believe that had the Muslims won this battle, mosques would have replaced churches in Paris and London, and the great universities of those cities would be teaching the interpretation of the Quran instead of the Bible.

Syed Amir writes, “On the fields of Tours, the Arabs lost a global empire that was within their grasp. Disobedience and internal discord, which have forever been the eternal curse and affliction of Muslim society, caused this downfall. Greed for wealth and internal strife played their role. These very flaws have obstructed the progress of the Islamic nation at various times and inflicted countless wounds. Wherever we faced defeat, upon reflection, we found some of our own hidden in ambush.”

“Greed is such a plague that it doesn’t even allow one the time to think—what use will endless wealth be, especially when it is stashed away in foreign banks in secret accounts? And internal discord was no less severe. Who didn’t stab whom in the back? Both friends and foes—whoever had the chance, attacked those who had once been their benefactors. Power, indeed, is a more dangerous obsession than wealth.”

“As power—whether in the form of a caliphate or kingship—began to weaken, discord and disunity started to rise. Invasions erupted from every side. Small kingdoms began to emerge, resources scattered, and the scope of central governance continued to shrink. The last Abbasid caliph, Al-Musta’sim, and the last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar, both were swept away like straw in the wind. One was trampled under the hooves of the Tartar horses in a state of helplessness, while the other was shackled and exiled to Rangoon, hundreds of miles away from his homeland. Bahadur Shah Zafar was a poet and expressed his sense of defeat and deprivation, lamenting that he could not even find two yards of land in his beloved country to be buried.

The caliph Al-Musta’sim, however, met an even more humiliating end. It is said that after surrendering to the Tartars, he was presented before Halaku Khan. Halaku placed some gold ingots before him and said, ‘Eat this.’ The perplexed caliph replied, ‘Gold cannot be eaten.’ To this, Halaku retorted, ‘Then why did you hoard so much of it? If you had sent it to us, you would be living in comfort today. And if not that, you should have spent it on your defense.'”

“The lust for wealth has wrought many disasters. Greed has no bounds or limits—it is a flame that never stops raging. Man is a bundle of contradictions. While it is natural to be attracted to desirable things, generosity is also a seed that God has implanted in his heart. Which path one chooses is a decision in one’s own hands. As the Almighty has said…”

زُیَنَ لِلنَّاسِ حُبُّ الشَّہَوَاتِ مِنَ النَّسائِ وَالْبَنِیْنَ وَالْقنَاطِیرِاَ لْمُقنطَرِ مِنَ اُلذَّہَبِ وَاُلفِضَّةِ وَاَلْخَیْلِ اَ لْمُسَوَّمَةِ وَاَلْاَنْعَمِٰ وَاَلْحَرْثِ  ذَلِکَٔ مَتَعُ اَلْحَیَوٰةِاَ لْدُّنْیَا ۖ وَاُللّہُ عِنْدَہُ حُسْنُ اَلْمَأب:

Beautified for people is the love of that which they desire – of women and sons, heaped-up sums of gold and silver, fine branded horses, and cattle and tilled land. That is the enjoyment of worldly life, but Allah has with Him the best return.

The real wealth is Allah’s pleasure and “Ridhwan.” Whoever is fortunate enough to attain this treasure has succeeded in both worlds, but whoever is deprived of it has lost everything. The veil will soon be lifted, and then the very gold and silver that they tirelessly hoarded will be used to brand their foreheads. At that moment, they will remember that it would have been far better to spend it in the path of Allah. Perhaps, some Halaku Khan in this very world may ask them to “consume this gold.”

The fundamental difference between a small person and a great one is that the small person is trapped in the “love of desires,” while the great person is striving to achieve higher objectives. The former is utterly devoted to wealth and status, yearning to gather all the world’s riches and attain the highest positions. If he achieves this, he lives in constant fear of losing it. He seeks permanence in his power and wealth and will stop at nothing to ensure it. Law, ethics, religion, humanity—whatever stands in the way must be crushed. Every possible tactic is considered fair game to prolong his rule and increase his wealth. Unfortunately, in today’s world, power and wealth have become inseparable.

Many politicians now see it as an undeniable fact that without the treasures of Qarun, gaining power is impossible. This assumption leads to a highly dangerous game. It sparks an endless, ruthless race where everything is justified to achieve the goal. Corruption, bribery, black-market dealings, theft—these evils rise like a flood. The country, and even society, becomes unstable. In their anxiety, people begin to scatter, searching for places to hide their illegitimate wealth. The money earned through illegal means can no longer be kept where it was acquired; it must be moved. Like migratory birds, this wealth flies off in search of safer, more pleasant environments. When shadows begin to fall over the “owners” of this wealth, they too flee to foreign lands. Meanwhile, the homeland grows poorer and poorer, turning into a land of looters, with many seeking to become billionaires overnight. Those in power stop at nothing to seize every opportunity, day or night.

Some of those who come to power are so eager to outperform one another in this act of plunder that they openly discuss in private gatherings who has “won” and who has “lagged behind.” Ministries and portfolios are auctioned off, and those who are favored receive lucrative positions—like cows that yield milk. Those who do not have the art of pleasing the “Shah of the time” are deprived of royal favour. And if circumstances force them to offer something, it is often a meaningless position that makes no significant difference whether it exists or not.

Politics was once like a flowing river, so pure that the trees standing on its banks would bend to see their reflections in its clear waters. Back then, honest and dignified individuals who cared about their honour would enter politics to serve the country and its people. Integrity, dignity, public welfare, and a desire for reward from God were their guiding principles. They spent from their own pockets. Even if they were not wealthy, they were rich at heart. Their self-respect wouldn’t allow them to accept any financial compensation or benefit in exchange for their service to the people. They were highly honourable and pure-hearted individuals. May Allah have mercy on those great personalities who blessed the nation with the gift of freedom. If they had not broken the chains of greed, they would have been sold long before they reached their destination. Even back then, there was no shortage of buyers, just as there is no shortage of them today. When something is for sale, there are always many customers. And there were plenty of those who sought to intimidate, just as there are today. Even though the American empire is still in its infancy, the world trembles before it in submission. However, Quaid-e-Azam and his companions faced the British Empire, where the sun never set. Despite their civility, the British had their prisons too. The rulers did not show love and affection toward the freedom-seeking politicians. Those who demanded Pakistan were like thorns in the side of many. Had our benefactors been afraid or, God forbid, sold out, Pakistan would never have come into existence. The protection of this sacred land requires the same spirit. This land can only remain prosperous and thriving if leadership at every level breaks the chains of greed and fear so decisively that their sound echoes throughout the world. May Allah grant us the ability to do so! Hear how my Allah SWT is leading:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَأْمُرُكُمْ أَن تُؤَدُّوا الْأَمَانَاتِ إِلَىٰ أَهْلِهَا وَإِذَا حَكَمْتُم بَيْنَ النَّاسِ أَن تَحْكُمُوا بِالْعَدْلِ۔ إِنَّ اللَّهَ نِعِمَّا يَعِظُكُم بِهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ سَمِيعًا بَصِيرًا(النساء:58)

Indeed, Allah commands you to render trusts to whom they are due and when you judge between people to judge with justice. Excellent is that which Allah instructs you. Indeed, Allah is ever Hearing and Seeing.

وَمَا هَٰذِهِ الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا إِلَّا لَهْوٌ وَلَعِبٌ ۚ وَإِنَّ الدَّارَ الْآخِرَةَ لَهِيَ الْحَيَوَانُ ۚ لَوْ كَانُوا يَعْلَمُونَ(العنکبوت:64)

And this worldly life is not but diversion and amusement. And indeed, the home of the Hereafter – that is the [eternal] life, if only they knew.

Glory be to my Lord, who knows the state of hearts.