A talk by Masood Rezvi at the Imam Ali International Conference, India Islamic Culture Center, Lodhi Road, Delhi on 18 August, 2019.

1. The Alavi

2. We will talk about:
 A sketch of Hazrat Ali’s (a.s.) economic standards
and objectives.
 How the present-day money differs from the
money of his days?
 Need to research, develop, elaborate, and present
the Alavi economics in the context of the present-
day economic theories, methods, and techniques
vis-à-vis production functions, markets and
distribution of wealth, scientifically.
 If you are inspired by his economic ideas and
objectives and want to pursue them; what should
you do now, at your level as an individual?

3. A constraint, and my apologies
 Satisfactory treatment of the topic begs at least
two full sessions in a day, and thus, what I am
trying to compress in 15 – 20 minutes might not
do justice with the subject, for which I apologize
sincerely.
 I will try my best to provide a few signposts and
point to the sources, for a sincere student of the
subject to research it further on his or her own.
 I am sure that my learned audience here has a
very good understanding of the life of Hazrat Ali
(a.s.), and the fundamentals of the present-day
economics and the talk is based on this
assumption.

4. My sources
 Letter - of guidelines for governance - given to
Malik al-Ashtar on his appointment for the post of
Governor of Egypt.
 Letter of censure that he wrote to Uthman ibn
Hunaif, Governor of Basra, on getting the news of
his presence in a dinner party hosted by a rich
man of the city.
 A few reports about Hazrat Ali’s (a.s.) life-style
and his actions and remarks.
 An analysis of the present-day monetary
mechanism.

5. He endorsed
 Right-to-property for individual private citizens.
 A free market populated with private business.
 The priority of welfare of taxpayers over tax
collection.
 Responsibility of the government to provide
complete social security cover to all those who
lose their livelihood and their rehabilitation.
 Responsibility of the chief executive to live at the
standard of the lowest economic stratum, in the
society.
 Nondiscrimination based on faith.

6. He disapproved
 Monopolisation of business resources.
 Externalisation of costs and internalization of
benefits, by private parties.
 The concentration of wealth, in a few hands.
 Nexus of the executive with the rich, which
might result in crony capitalism.
 The extravaganza of the state machinery
resulting in a lavish lifestyle of the public
servants, on taxpayer’s money.

7. A Few Glimpses … 1
He advised the 2nd Caliph on Distribution
of Conquered Land in Iran:
“Leave the land and cultivators as it is so
that it becomes a permanent source of
economic gains to the masses. If the land
is distributed amongst the army
personnel, it will remain consolidated in
some hands forever”.
The Caliph agreed.

8. A Few Glimpses … 2
He used to take very simple food.
Ibn Abi Rafay asked: "Has God
prohibited you to eat better food?
He replied: "No, but I want to eat the kind
of food which the poorest of the realm
can afford at least once a day.
I shall improve it after I have improved
their standard of life. I want to live, feel,
and suffer like them...”

9. A Few Glimpses … 3
 “Remember Malik that amongst your subjects
there are two kinds of people:
1. those who are having the same religion as
yours and they are brothers unto you, and
2. those who have other religion than yours and
yet they are human beings like you.
People of either category suffer from the same
weaknesses and disabilities that the human flesh
is heir to; let your mercy and compassion come
to their rescue and help in the same way and to
the same extent that you expect God to show
mercy and forgiveness to you.”

10. A Few Glimpses … 4a
The welfare of the taxpayer more
important than the collection of taxes:
 “So far as the collection of land
revenues and taxes are concerned you
must always keep in view that the
welfare of taxpayers is of primary
importance than the taxes themselves”

11. A Few Glimpses … 4b
The welfare of the taxpayer more important
than the collection of taxes:
 “More importance should be attached to
the fertility of land than to the collection of
taxes because the actual taxable capacity
of people rests upon the fertility of the land.
The ruler who does not pay attention to the
prosperity of his subjects and fertility of
land but concentrates only on the
collection of revenue lays waste the land,
ruins the state and brings destruction to
creatures of God. His rule cannot last for
long.”

12. A Few Glimpses … 4c
The welfare of the taxpayer more important
than the collection of taxes:
 “If taxpayers complain to you about a
heavy incidence of taxation, of any
accidental calamity, of vagaries of
monsoon, scarcity, and stoppage of the
means of irrigation, of floods or destruction
of their crops on account of excessive
rainfall and if their complaints are true then
reduce their taxes. This reduction should
be such that it provides them opportunities
to improve their conditions and eases their
circumstances.”

13. A Few Glimpses … 5:
No internalisation of social benefits:
 1. Not to give land in permanent lease to
relatives and friends.
2. Sources of water supply should never be
under the custody of private persons.
3. Lands, which have special public utility,
should not be reserved for private use.
Because if a privileged few “get possession of
such holdings they will oppress others to derive
undue benefits and thus gather all fruits for
themselves.”
 “Do not reserve for yourself anything which is
common property to all and in which others have

14. A Few Glimpses … 6:
Rich-Executive Nexus:
 “Ibn Hunayf! I have received information that a
person of Basra invited you to a dinner and
you immediately accepted the invitation. I have
also heard that very sumptuous meals were
served there! Finest varieties of viands were
placed before you in large plates and you
enjoyed them. I am sorry to hear the news. I
never expected that you would accept the
invitation of a person who invites big officers
and rich people and from whose doors poor
persons and hungry paupers are turned away
rudely.”

15. The Money Now, and The Money Then:
A Major Difference
 Money, the medium of exchange and store of
value, the basic subject matter of all economic
studies, however, has changed completely from
what it was at that time.
 The world economy then was on metallic
standard and used coins of gold and silver,
which have an intrinsic value of their own.
These metals were limited in supply and
universally accepted in exchange for goods and
services. Their exchange ratio with real goods,
changed, if at all, at a nominal pace.

16. The Money Now, and The Money
Then
 Now, the entire world uses fiduciary fiat money,
which is pieces of paper carrying a promise to pay
and has no intrinsic value, of its own.
 Its supply can be adjusted to any extent as per the
wish of the rulers of a country.
 Further, a bigger chunk of money (purchasing
power) in circulation, now, consists of the money
“created by the banks out of thin air.”
 Thus, the real goods and services get sucked to
whosoever has access to this money, irrespective
of his or her actual contribution to their production.

17. Alavi School of Economics?
 The Keynesian economics is expansionist,
preaching fuelling of demand through expansion
in money supply, to keep the GDP growing.
 This blind pursuit for growth in monetary terms
compromises justice and actual development.
 Thus, the establishment of an Alavi Research
Centre in Higher Economics, capable of producing
high-class scholarly research based on solid
scientific reasoning, suggesting economic models,
for the necessary pace of economic growth the
world over coupled with social justice, is the need
of the day.

18. Handholding the destitute
 For those who are inspired by Alavi economic
ideals, equally important is the commitment to
adopt at least one destitute family and ensure that
their children are educationally supported, till they
get settled in life.
 Such an exercise should be a one to one effort. It
need not be an organization based activity.
 You can always look around and find a family in
need of help. Just adopt at least one capable child
in it and support him or her, not only financially but
also emotionally, and by way of providing
guidance and counseling as you do for your child.

19. Further Reading
 Nahj-al-Balaghah
 The Origins and Early Development of Shiite
Islam by S. H. M. Jafri
 Promise to Pay (Vol. I): Banks, Battles &
Bellies by Masood Rezvi

20. Thank you so much!
 Email: masoodrezvi@gmail.com
 Twitter: @RezviMasood
 You can search “Masood Rezvi” on Google or
on Amazon to find my books.
 You can find my articles and essays on my
Facebook page: @MasoodEssays