Capitalists took their economy as Ilah besides Allah (swt)

And, verily, We did destroy the places of which you see ruins about you, and We showed them Our signs in diverse ways that they might turn (away from their wrong ways to Us). So why did not those whom they had made their ilahs, and presumed to have access to Us, help them in their hour of doom? Far from helping, they abandoned them and made themselves scarce, exposing the hollowness of their falsehoods and fabrications.

(46 : 27, 28) Surat Al Ahqa'af

Now more than ever, this COVID 19 pandemic has exposed man’s inherent vulnerability and sheer helplessness before Allah (swt). It has also exposed the weakness of the Ilah (false deities) known as Capitalist economies: built by the kufaar to showcase their prowess, strength, dominance and arrogance and what they believed to be their superiority. They can make new tanks, new fighter jets and build as many military bases as they want wherever they want but they still cannot escape from Allah (swt). Centuries of medical knowledge and the latest technological advancements are still playing catch up.

Say (O Prophet) :"Do you see what it is you invoke besides God ? Show me what it is they have created on earth, or have they a share in the heavens ? ... And who is more astray than one who invokes besides God such as will answer him not (though he call to him till) the Day of Judgment"
(46:4,5) Surat Al Ahqaf

Many Muslims assume that these are “Christian” nations, but in recent decades, I have sensed that these nations no longer worship Jesus (as) as Ilah besides Allah (swt)- rather their faith, their ideology, their yardstick for deciding what is right and wrong is more steeped in the concepts of “rugged individualism” (work for what you get and leave no room for welfare or compassion in governance), “survival of the fittest” (and let the weaker ones in society flounder, become demonised as a burden on society and die) and the unspoken rule of “life’s purpose is to prop up our economy no matter what the cost”. This is why the governments in both Britain and America reacted to the pandemic with statements like “take it on the chin” and pushed for the economy to be the highest priority over and above the health and wellbeing of the general population and this is why they were initially quite happy with the idea of letting elderly (so called “inactive” or “unproductive) people die to avoid having to pay pensions. It was only when large numbers of young and working age people became sick and overwhelmed the hospitals that these governments took the pandemic more seriously- otherwise they would’ve been happy to let it run its course and to bump off as many elderly, sick and disabled people as possible to alleviate what they’d call a “burden on society” or “bed blockers”.

These ideological concepts are heavily pushed by both the mainstream (and hard right wing) media, big businesses and the governments in America, Britain as well as Hungary, Brazil and some other countries. Gradually France, Germany and Austria seem to also be heading in the same direction in recent years.

Have you noticed the men who has made his selfish desires his ilah ? Can you assume any responsibility about such a one?
(25:43) Surat Al Forqa'an

“Here we have yet another concept of ilah... Here there is no element of the supernatural. The ilah here is some human being, or man's own selfish ego or selfish desires. No prayers are offered to it, nor is it regarded as being in a position to will any harm or benefit to someone nor is it looked to for help or succor. It is an ilah in the sense that its dictates are accepted and obeyed to such extent that that which it declares to be permitted or prohibited is treated as such, and it is deemed to have an inherent right to make us do or not do certain things, with no higher or superior authority whose approval might be necessary for its orders or which might be appealed to against them.”- Maulana Mawdudi

In this context, “Ilah” does not even refer to someone who is prayed to, but rather someone or some thing that is given supreme authority to make life and death decisions and whose judgement is taken as criteria for defining right and wrong, even when it is known to be inconsistent, contradictory and wrong. This should serve as a wake up call to all those Muslims who were mesmerised by the West and taught to replace their reverence for the ideology of Islam with reverence for the nations who posed as role models of Capitalist democracies. They sold a lie that if the general public poured life long efforts into serving and dying for this golden calf known as “the economy”’, that it’ll pay them back dividends in the form of a better life for their children- only to discover that in return for all their efforts, higher education has become unaffordable, the NHS is being sold off and outsourced like a golden arches franchise, affordable housing is increasingly out of reach and even before this crisis, over a million people in Britain were in “food poverty” (ie too poor to afford food) and one in four children in London were turning up to school hungry. These numbers of desperately poor and hungry people will rise exponentially under the lockdown and homelessness will rise even more when the lockdown is lifted.

We’ve been conditioned to ASPIRE to a way of life like that. People are crying out to RETURN to that when we know full well the evils of Capitalism has not only caused harm and misery to the lives of millions of their own citizens, it has also caused misery to millions in the Muslim world being bombed daily. It has also caused misery to millions in developing nations in South America, Africa and Asia. The Primark factory fire in Bangladesh should have been a wake up call that Unfair trade and exploitation are the default standards under Capitalism around the world and examples of this can be found everywhere. Child labourers are used to find minerals in Africa for our mobile phones and slave labour is being used in the chocolate industry. Isn’t it time we broke the shackles of our conditioning and unlearned those values to make room in our minds and our hearts for what the Creator (swt) ordained for us? And who can know better as to which way of life, which economic and justice system, which values, which criteria for right and wrong is best for creation other than the One who created us?

And He alone is the Ilah in the heavens and the Ilah in the earth; and He alone is the all-Wise, the all-Knowing (that is, He alone possesses the wisdom and the knowledge required for governing such a Domain).
(43:84) Surat Az Zukhruf

Can He Who creates, and he who does not, be alike ? Have you not sense to realize this simple fact ? ...And those whom the people pray to other than Allah, do not create anything and are themselves created ;your ilah is only one Ilah.(16 : 17-20) Surat Al Nahl

O mankind: Call unto mind the grace of God unto you; is there any Creator besides Allah, to give you sustenance from heaven or earth ; there is no ilah but He; how, then, are you deluded from Truth ?
(35 : 3) Surat Fatir

Permission to share. I also recommend reading this article by Mawlana Maududi discussing the meaning of “Ilah”: https://www.islam101.com/tauheed/ilah.htm

(Originally posted in May 2020 during the Covid 19 pandemic lockdown)