Establishing Justice in Everyday Lives

By: Nadira Ansari

Insimple words, justice is defined as fairness and peace. A person who embodies justice treats everyone fairly, just as they would like to be treated. On a larger scale justice is dispensed by a Court of Law. Social justice as upheld by a just court is grounded on the notion that everyone deserves equal economic, political, and social opportunities, irrespective of race, gender or religion. There are four types of justice: commutative, distributive, social and legal.

If you observe the system of the earth, you will find that the Creator of the universe has founded it upon justice. The infinite stars and planets that revolve in space, the magnificent forces that are working this world, and the uncountable beings and things that are found on this Earth - among all these there is a high standard of justice and balance. Without these, the world would cease to function. The nature of this requires that the inhabitants of this world stay within their limitations and do not disturb this balance. Allah SWT in Surah Ar-Rahman says, “The sun and the moon [move] by precise calculation, And the stars and trees prostrate. And the heaven He raised and imposed the balance. That you not transgress within the balance. And establish weight in justice and do not make deficient the balance,” (Qur’an, 55:9).

There is a wonderful law that the stars and planets follow that allows them to rotate without collision. The system of the world is set in a way that time, date, days, crops, weather, and the rising and setting of the sun and the moon are all following the same pattern and there has been no change since the beginning of time. The infinite life that is prevailing only exists because the distance between the earth, the sun, and the moon has been set to a certain distance, and the increase and decrease in these have all been pre-measured and fixed in a way that any slight variation in them would make life impossible. The balance Allah has created allows the world to function seamlessly and demands the same from us in order to make sure we minimize suffering and chaos and to make sure everything continues to function in balance.

One of the jobs that Allah SWT appointed to the Prophet Muhammad SAW was to establish social justice among humans. It was done in a way that the oppressed poor, elderly, slaves, women and children, shall be treated kindly and not oppressed. This included the rich merchants and travelers on whom limitations were set to deal fairly with their customers. Slavery was abolished, and usury was banned and declared as a war against Allah. Just rulers and merchants were also promised their rightful places in Jannah. It is said in the Prophet Muhammad SAW’s teachings, “Don’t cheat others into purchases, don’t increase debt, removing items from the market and then selling them at an increased price is forbidden.”

To ensure that justice prevails, we have to establish rules that govern our interactions as well as adhere to fair practices in all aspects of our lives. Here are some practical examples of this in our day-to-day experiences.

1. Justice at Home

Every good practice starts in the home and we should make a point to be fair to our immediate families. Ask each other for advice, include all members of the family in your decisions. If someone in the family is in any trouble or has made a mistake, we should listen to them. We should not insult and punish them immediately. A mother at home should treat her kids equally; boys should not be preferred over the daughters or one daughter or son over the other. The Prophet also said, “Treat others how you would like to be treated.” When we like the best for ourselves, we should also want that for others. Behave well, speak well, and treat others with respect and kindness.

2. Justice in Play

Teaching children to play fair is an important step to building character. They should be shown how to play by the rules, await their turns and accept wins and losses. Even in board games like Chess and Life, cheating should be avoided because these wins are unjust. We should always remain fair because those who are unfair in these small matters can fall to the same habits in bigger matters and we should try to establish this at a young age.

3. Justice Towards Plants and Animals

Cruelty towards animals is considered a major injustice in Islam. Using them for playing and entertainment like in bull fighting or horse racing, in which the animal is kept hungry and then forced to run for entertainment, is unacceptable. Though they do not speak, they are living things and they feel pain too. The Prophet SAW once saw a camel in Madinah and the camel looked at him and started crying, and so the Prophet SAW told the owner not to over-work the camel and feed him well. Therefore, if someone has pets, they should give them food and water at the right times and any medications needed should be given when they’re ill. If they are meant to be slaughtered, it should be done painlessly with a sharp knife. They should not be kept locked up all the time or kept in too hot or cold temperatures.

Similarly, plants should also be cared for as they provide for us in the form of fruits, vegetables and flowers that beautify our surrounding. We should take good care of them. Watering them, fertilizing them, protecting them from cold and insects where necessary to help them grow is important.

4. Justice towards the less fortunate

If someone is unemployed, it is important to go beyond simple monetary charity. We should also try to provide the less fortunate with means to earn a living, such as learning new skills. In this way, they can earn on their own and try and become productive members of society. For example, some poor families in Mexico had their own land but could not afford to cultivate it so some American families provided them with the funds which allowed them to cultivate it and create produce from which they earned money. This helped create jobs for many other people to flourish.

5. Justice in the Community

If some kind of incident occurs in a community, sides should not be taken because there isn’t just one point of view; instead, both sides should be listened to. The truth should be considered in forming opinions rather than taking your friends’ side.

Don’t play favorites, even when Nonmuslims are involved. This can be understood by the following incident. Once there was a trial in which a case was presented of a fight between a Hindu and Muslim in which the Hindu claimed that the Muslim man owed him money, but the Muslim man denied any such claim. Along with the Muslim was an imam of a masjid. The Hindu would agreed to drop the charge if the imam told the truth, but the imam took his friend’s side and lied, which forced the Hindu to leave court. Eventually, the imam regretted his lie and returned to tell the truth in court. It was an injustice done by the imam.

6. Justice in the Workplace and Trade

Regardless of what field you work in, it should be done with honesty. Employees should not try to cut corners or be lazy, while employers should offer fair wages and not overwork their staff. If someone is a teacher then they should be

attentive and affectionate towards all their students equally. Doctors should check their patients just like their own family members, not prescribe them too much medication and not diagnose them with unnecessary illnesses. Think of your own families and treat them the same.

7. Justice in the Court of Law

A country creates laws to ensure justice for its inhabitants, but written laws alone are not enough and wisdom in their interpretation is also needed. This is where good judges are important. For example, in California, a shopkeeper handed a 15-year-old boy over to the police with an accusation of theft. The judge asked the boy what he stole and the boy replied saying, “Bread and cheese.” The judge asked him, “Why didn’t you ask someone for money instead?” And he said, “I stood for hours but no one did.” Then he asked, “Why don’t you work?” To which he replied, “I used to clean cars but one day my mom was sick and I was taking care of her and when I didn’t show up for work they fired me.” The judge then ruled his decision that this young boy is not the criminal but rather everyone else in the courtroom shared in the blame. He fined every person in court 10 dollars and put his own 10 dollars on the table. Then he fined the shop owner $1000 and said if he did not pay his shop would be sealed. He gave that boy the money and told him to help treat his mother and promised him a job. This goes beyond the written law towards true justice. We need more such judges in our society.

Justice is important. It makes life possible in our complex civilized society. Characteristics of justice include impartiality, consistency, standing up for the weak, and trustworthiness. Such principles are supposed to ensure procedures that generate unbiased and reliable decisions. Any society whether the family or community, a nation or the world, benefits from having justice as a prevailing virtue. Such a society is dedicated to the notion that all of its members should benefit and no one person or a group should have a greater benefit or rights over others.