Agriculture is the production of food, feed and fibre
by the systematic harvesting of plants and animals. Agriculture was developed
at least 10,000 years ago, and has undergone significant developments since the
time of the earliest cultivation. Evidence points to the Fertile
Crescent of the Middle East as the site of the earliest planned
sowing and harvesting of plants that had previously been gathered in the wild.
The history of agriculture is a central element of human history, as
agricultural progress has been a crucial factor in worldwide socio-economic
change. Agriculture played a key role in the development of human
civilization-it is widely believed that the domestication of plants and animals
allowed humans to settle and give up their previous hunter-gatherer lifestyle
during the Neolithic Revolution. Until the Industrial Revolution, the vast
majority of the human population labored in agriculture. The development of
agricultural techniques has steadily increased agricultural productivity, and the
widespread diffusion of these techniques has led to new technologies.
Agriculture now encompasses many subjects, its core areas remain:
§ Cultivation (the raising of plants)
§ Animal husbandry (Animal Science)
§ Aquaculture (fishing)
§ Horticulture (science of cultivation of plants)
Each of these subjects includes various disciplines,
for example, cultivation includes both organic farming and intensive farming.
Animal husbandry includes ranching and herding. The development and evolution
of agriculture has resulted in products such as fodder (starch, sugar, alcohols
and resins), fibers (cotton, wool, hemp, silk and flax), fuels (methane from
biomass, ethanol and biodiesel), cut flowers and ornamental and nursery plants.
As of 2006, an estimated 36% of the world's workers
are employed in agriculture.[1] (down from 42% in 1996), making it by far
the most common occupation. However, the relative significance of farming has
dropped steadily since the beginning of industrialisation and in 2006 - for the
first time in history - the services sector overtook agriculture as the
economic sector employing the most people worldwide. Agricultural production
today accounts for less than 5% of world Gross Domestic product (GDP).
History: Islam's enrichment of Agriculture
Many historians consider the global economy
established by Muslim traders across the world, enabled the diffusion of many
crops and farming techniques among different parts of the Islamic world, as
well as the adaptation of crops and techniques from beyond the Islamic world.
Crops from Africa, China and numerous crops from India were distributed
throughout Islamic lands. Some writers have referred to the diffusion of
numerous crops during this period as the Globalisation of crops.[2]
When the Abbasids took over the reins of the Khilafah
in 750 they moved the capital city from Damascus to the Sassanid city of
Baghdad a small town in central Mesopotamia. European towns, cities and
settlements built walls to prevent raids from outlaws and armies but were
typically vulnerable at four points; the corners. If enough pressure was
applied at any of these points the wall would collapse and troops could flood
through the breach. The Abbasids solved this problem by building Baghdad as the
first Circular City.
The Abbasid caliph, Al Mansur (754-75) built the new
capital, surrounded by round walls. Within fifty years the population outgrew
the city walls as people thronged to the capital to become part of the
Abbasids' Civil service or to engage in trade. Baghdad became a vast emporium
of trade linking Asia and the Mediterranean. By the reign of Mansur's grandson,
Harun ar Rashid (786-806), just 10 years later Baghdad was second in size only
to Constantinople.
After the defences of the city were complete attention
turned to how the Abbasids would feed not just Baghdad but the whole empire
considering its enormous population. The development of Agriculture under the
Abbasids was a phenomenon; the scarcity of water had converted the barren Arab
lands into a vast desert, which had never yielded any substantial agricultural
produce. The scattered population always imported supply of food grains to
supplement the dates and the little corn grown in their own lands. Agriculture
in Arabia had been very primitive and was confined to those tracts where water
was available in the form of springs. Medina, with its springs and wells was
the only green spot in the vast desert. The Abbasids dealt with this by first
controlling the flows of the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers. The Irrigation
system in the land was greatly improved by digging a number of new canals, the
largest flowed between the Tigris and Euphrates. This canal was called Nahr
Isa (Isa canal) and was open to ships for transportation between Syria
& Iraq. This led to navigation routes opening to India and Persian Gulf.
The Abbasids reconstructed the existing canals, lakes, and reservoirs, which
were first built under Hajjaj Bin Yusuf in 702. After this the swamps around
Baghdad were drained, freeing the city of malaria. Muslim engineers perfected
the waterwheel and constructed elaborate underground water channels called qanats.
Requiring a high degree of engineering skill, qanats were built some
fifty feet underground with a very slight inclination over long distances to
tap underground water and were provided with manholes so that they could be
cleaned and repaired.
The result of this was the Abbasids set in motion an
agricultural revolution, this stimulated development in other parts of the
economy. Most of the Abbasid wealth was generated from taxation on land alongside
trade. Commercial activity flourished under the Abbasids, which stimulated many
developments in other fields the demands on trade generated the development of
crafts. From Baghdad's large urban population, craftsmen developed such as
metalworkers, leatherworkers, bookbinders, papermakers, jewellers, weavers,
druggists, bakers, and many more. As they grew in importance to the economy
these craftsmen eventually organised themselves into mutual-benefit societies,
which to later led to the Western guilds.
The development in agriculture led to the development of horticulture. Within 100 years Bagdad and its surroundings presented the appearance of a veritable garden, the region between Baghdad and Kufa came to be covered with prosperous towns, flourishing villages and fine villas. The staple crops of Iraq were barley, rice, wheat, dates, cotton, sesame and flax. The production of fruit was pursued as a science and several new fruits were introduced in varying climates.
The Mediterranean Sea during the Abbasids had virtually been converted into an Islamic lake. The Mediterranean, which on three sides was surrounded by Islamic lands as well as its important islands like Sicily, Crete, Cyprus and the Baleric islands, all were governed by Walis. The Abbasids venture to the West led to Tunis, Alexandria, Cadiz and Barcelona becoming famous ports, which handled flourishing trades.
Islamic Contribution
The Muslims introduced what was to become an
agricultural revolution based on four key areas:
§ The development of a sophisticated system of irrigation using machines
such as norias, water mills, water raising machines, dams and reservoirs. With
such technology Muslims managed to greatly expand the exploitable land area.
§ The adoption of a scientific approach to farming enabled them to improve
farming techniques derived from the collection and collation of relevant
information throughout the whole of the known world. Farming manuals were
produced in every corner of the Muslim world detailing where, when and how to
plant and grow various crops. Advanced scientific techniques allowed scientists
such as like Ibn al-Baitar to introduce new crops and breeds and strains of
livestock into areas where they were previously unknown. Numerous
encyclopaedias on botany were also produced, with highly accurate precision and
details. The earliest cookbooks on Arab cuisine were also written,
such as the Kitab al-Tabikh (The Book of Dishes) of Ibn Sayyiir
al-Warraq (10th century) and the Kitab al-Tabikh of Muhammad bin Hasan
al-Baghdadi (1226).
§ The Islamic rules on land ownership and labour rights, alongside the
recognition of private ownership and the introduction of sharecropping created
big incentives to engage in agriculture. Whilst at the same time Europe struggled
under a feudal system in which peasants were almost slaves with little hope of
improving their lot by hard work.
§ Under the Khilafah new crops were introduced which transformed private
farming into a new global industry, which exported everywhere, including
Europe, where farming was mostly restricted to wheat strains obtained much
earlier via central Asia. Islamic Spain exported much to Europe this included
many agricultural and fruit-growing processes, together with many new plants,
fruit and vegetables. These new crops included sugar cane, rice, citrus fruit,
apricots, cotton, artichokes, aubergines, and saffron. Muslims also brought to
Europe country lemons, oranges, cotton, almonds, figs and sub-tropical crops
such as bananas and sugar cane.
The Muslim world today
Population under the poverty line, World Bank 2006
§ Bangladesh 50%
§ Iran 40%
§ Pakistan 33%
§ Jordan 30%
§ Indonesia 27%
§ Turkey
20%
§ Egypt
20%
§ Syria
12%
Whilst the Islamic world has a history of being at the
forefront of technology and catering for its citizens needs. The Muslim world
today unfortunately represents some of the poorest nations in the world. The Muslim
world does not even have the necessary infrastructure to fulfill the basic
needs of its people. Wealth in the Muslim world suffers from huge
misdistribution; the Middle East may have some of the largest oil reserves in
the world however very little oil revenue actually trickles down to the
population. In the Arab world one in five Arabs still live on less than $2 a
day. And, over the past 20 years, growth in income per head, at an annual rate
of 0.5%, was lower than anywhere else in the world except sub-Saharan Africa [3]. In Pakistan 40% of land is in the hands
of 23 families.[4] Government investment in
infrastructure and public services is minimal considering the large population
of the Muslim world.
What is so shocking is the fact that Turkey is the world’s
10th largest agriculture producer ($40 billion), Pakistan is the world’s
15th largest producer ($15 billion), Iran is the world's 21st
largest producer ($21 billion) and Bangladesh is the world’s 27th
largest producer, producing over $13 billion of agricultural products a year.
Below is a list of commodities the Muslim world is the world's largest producer
in:
§ Algeria - Green beans
§ Bangladesh - goat milk
§ Egypt - Dates
§ Indonesia - Cinnamon, coconuts, cloves, nutmeg, maze and cardamoms’
§ Iran - berries and pistachios
§ Malaysia - Duck meat
§ Pakistan - clarified butter (Ghee)
§ Saudi Arabia - Camel Milk
§ Sudan - Camel meat
§ Turkey - hazelnut, fig, apricot, cherry, quince and pomegranate
[5]
If such counties look back at their histories they
would realise that Islam offers an efficient system of distributing such
resources and goods and how Islam made poverty history in the past.
Is Islam outdated?
The Muslim world has made very little contribution to
science and technology for the last 150 years. Whilst the Western world
industrialised the Muslim world remains largely backward and unable to match
the progress made by the Western world. In this vain many academics have argued
that the Shari’ah only worked well when the world economy was based upon
agriculture, however it has been unable to do well in the modern industrial
world. They have argued that Islam has no place in the modern world and
continues to hold the Muslim world back.
There is no doubt Islam progressed in the past and has
been credited for being the world superpower for nearly four centuries in the
past. The expansion of the Khilafah resulted in the development of agriculture,
which was the central sector in most economies in the past. What is noticed
however is the absence of Islam during the industrial revolution and after in
the Islamic lands. The implementation of Islam was the trajectory, which led to
the Khilafah to excel, whilst under the Ottomans the understanding of Islam
declined which resulted in the Muslim world viewing technology incorrectly.
This proves that it was not Islam that held Muslim
back but rather the absence of Islam is what created the problem and continues
to hold Muslims back. Islam is not against modern development and is more than capable of
dealing with modern technology and scientific advancements.
Islam views all the material matters which include the
sciences, technology and industry, as merely the study of the reality and a
study of how matter can be manipulated to improve the condition and living
standards of humanity. This is the view of Islam on science and all its
branches. The Shari'ah addressed this via numerous verses
"It is He Who created for you all that is in the earth." [TMQ Al-Baqarah: 29]
"Do you not see how Allah has made serviceable to you whatsoever is in the skies and whatsoever is in the earth, and He has loaded you with His favours, both the open and the hidden." [TMQ Luqman: 20]
"Who has appointed the earth a resting-place for you, and the sky a canopy; and caused water to pour down from the sky, thereby producing fruits as food for you." [TMQ Al-Baqarah: 22]
"And We send down from the sky blessed water whereby We give growth to gardens and the grain of crops. And lofty date palms with ranged clusters. Provision (made) for men..." [TMQ Qaf: 9-11]
These texts allow the general use of objects and
materials that are found on or in the earth. From this is derived the Islamic qaida
(principle): "All objects are allowed unless Shari'ah evidence
prohibits it".
Thus the initial view is that in generality all
objects are permitted however their use has been restricted as all actions
require a Shari'ah evidence. For instance Intercontinental Ballistic
Missiles (ICBMs) are allowed in Islam. However its use would require knowledge
of the Shari'ah rule. ICBMs could be used for reasons ranging from
legitimate deterrent measures to the illegitimate killing of innocent
civilians. Islam permits the study and use of medicine, engineering, math’s,
astronomy, chemistry, physics, agriculture, industry, communications including
the Internet, and the science of navigation and geography. This includes what
results from them such as industry, tools, machinery and factories. Also
included in this are industries, whether military or not, and heavy industry
like tanks, aeroplanes, rockets, satellites, nuclear technology, hydrogen,
electronic or chemical bombs, tractors, lorries, trains and steamships. This
includes consumer industries and light weapons and the manufacture of
laboratory instruments, medical instruments, agricultural tools, furniture, carpets
and consumer products such as the TV, DVD, Play station etc. The point being
illustrated here is that all objects we know of past, present and future are
allowed without restriction unless a Shari'ah evidence exists to
definitively disallow it.
Islam most certainly is not outdated and if applied
comprehensively it will change the situation of the Muslim world. For a
detailed look at the Muslim world and industrialisation see ‘How will the Khilafah industrialise the Muslim world.'
Understanding the Islamic rules on Agriculture
The economic policy in Islam or the overall direction
of the Islamic economic system is to secure the satisfaction of all basic needs
for every individual completely, and to enable them to satisfy their luxuries
as much as possible. This means economic policies will look to cater for all
rather than just leaving satisfaction to market forces.
Therefore, one will find that the Shari'ah has
secured the satisfaction of all of the basic needs (food, clothing, housing,
health and security) completely, for every citizen of the Khilafah. This is
achieved by obliging each capable person to work, so as to achieve the basic
needs for himself and his dependants; this is based upon evidences which encourage
Muslims to work such as:
"Whosoever sought the life (matters) legitimately (halal) and
decently he will meet Allah (swt) with his face as a full moon; and whosoever
sought it arrogantly and excessively he will meet Allah while He is angry at
him." (Bukhari)
The Prophet (saw) also said: "Do you have, son of Adam, of your
property except that which you ate and consumed, that which you wore and
exhausted, and that which you donated and kept (for yourself)?" (Bukhari)
Allah (swt) also said:
"Don't commit Israaf (spending or going beyond the limits imposed
by Islam); surely He does not like those who condone Israaf." (Al-A'raf: 31)
"But seek the abode of the Hereafter in that which Allah has given
you, and do not neglect your portion of worldly life, and be kind even as Allah
has been kind to you, and seek not corruption in the earth." (Al-Qasas: 77)
Islam requires that the individual secures for himself
and his dependants the satisfaction of the basic needs i.e. adequate
foodstuffs, clothing and housing. Islam then encourages the individual to
secure the luxuries of life as much as he can. If one is unable to then the
state is obliged from Islam to provide for such an individual, the most basic
of needs for all people from the perspective of Islam is their dietary
requirements and this requires the development of agriculture to ensure the
population is fed. In order to facilitate this Islam permitted employment and
landownership.
Employment and Land ownership
Islam outlined very clearly the rules for employment
and landownership which are the most common ways for people to earn a living
and fulfill their basic dietary needs. Islam defines employment as the hiring
of the benefit of a person; this would be one's skill and effort. This
definition requires the employment contract to clearly define the work to be
undertaken, the period of work, the wage and the effort required. Gaining
employment is like any contract in Islam with the key condition for the two
parties being that they must both be above the age of puberty - this will
effectively end child labour.
Islam has also permitted sharecropping. This is where
one person hands over the responsibility for the growing of crops and produce
to another person in order to irrigate them and tend to them in return for a
defined portion of their fruit. Abdullah ibn 'Umar (ra) said: "The
Prophet of Allah (SAW) contracted the people of Khaybar over half of what they
produce of fruit crops and plants." (Muslim)
When it came to landownership the Islamic rules ensure
land is used rather than remain idle. Islam does not view landownership as a
problem as the socialists did but it rather views feudalism which is the
neglect of land and not cultivating it as the problem. This results in vast
amounts of land sitting idle and not contributing towards the economy. Islam
mandates a number of rules which deal with the cultivation of land, these
include:
§ The confiscation of land from individuals who neglect their land for
three years. This is based upon a number narration's attributed to Umar ibn
Khattab (ra) which were collected by the hadith scholars which are considered
Ijma:
"Whoever neglects land for three years then another comes and
cultivates it, it belongs to him."
"Whoever neglected a land for three years without using it and
another person came and used it, it becomes his."
Umar (ra) narrated that "a fencer has no right after three
years"
§ Islam mandated a method for the working of land; Allah (swt) explicitly
defined the method of working with land. The person is compelled to manage its
utilisation by themselves, thus the land owner is obliged to farm his/her land
with their tools, seeds, animals and workers, employing them to work in
exchange for a wage. Islam expressly prohibited the leasing of land where the
owner has a manager who employs people to work on the land and a portion of the
profits are then given to the landowner. This is because Muhammad (saw) said:
"Whoever has land let him plant upon it or grant it to his brother.
If he declined let him hold his land." (Bukhari)
"The Messenger of Allah (saw) forbade a rent or a share be taken
for the land." (Muslim)
"The Messenger of Allah (saw) forbade the leasing of land. We said,
'O Prophet of Allah, can we then lease it for some of the grain." He (saw)
said, ‘No.' we said, ‘we used to lease it for the straw.' He (SAW) said, ‘No.'
we said, ‘We used to lease it in return of that on the irrigating Rabee'a
(Small stream). He (saw) said, ‘No, plant it or grant it to your brother." (Sunan of An-Nisai)
Foodstuffs
Islam has detailed laws on which types of foodstuff
can be consumed and which cannot. Islam considers food as vegetation and
animals. The meat of certain animals has been forbidden which exist on land
with some which live in water. Amongst the prohibited types of food are some
which are forbidden in origin and some which are forbidden if certain
conditions occur. These are ten in total which were outlined in the Qur'an as:
"Forbidden to you are the flesh of dead animals and blood and the flesh
of swine, and that which has been dedicated to any other than Allah, and that
which has been killed by strangling or by beating or by falling or by being
gored, and that which has been (partly) eaten by a wild beast except that which
you make lawful by slaughtering (before its death), and that which has been
sacrificed to idols...." (Al Mai'da: 3)
From this ayah it is deduced that all food is
permissible unless there is a text to prohibit it. No fruits or vegetables were
expressly prohibited in the above ayah hence they are all permissible to
consume.
Islam enjoins Muslims to treat animals with compassion
and not to abuse them. The animals, together with all the creation, are
believed to praise Allah (swt). There are over two hundred verses in the Qur'an
that deal with animals and six suras of the Qur'an are named after animals. The
Qur'an explicitly allowed the eating of the meat of the animals with the
exception of certain animals e.g. the pig. The Animals whose meat is halaal
must be slaughtered in a particular manner; one is required to sharpen the
blade and then with a swift, deep incision with a sharp knife in the neck,
cutting the jugular veins and carotid arteries of both sides but leaving the
spinal cord intact.
This ensures a relatively painless death and also
helps to effectively drain blood from the animal.
This method ensures the blood of the animal is never
consumed as this is forbidden in Islam. While the blood is draining, the animal
is not handled until it has died.
Taxes
Islam mandated a number of taxes upon land and its
produce. The Kharaj tax is levied on crops raised throughout the year.
The Khaleefah stipulates when the tax is collected in the year and from the
types of crops produced. The tax does take into account the burden it places on
owners. Landowners are obliged to pay this tax when it is due, even if they
have not used their land. If landowners are not able to use their land, they
will have to sell it, or employ others to work on it, rather than pay taxes on
land producing no income. This will generate employment and also bring more
land onto the market for those who have the skills to work on it. If the land
is not used for three years then it will be confiscated.
Islam also mandated the Ushr tax, which is levied
on the actual production from a land, which forces one to use it otherwise
after three years it will be confiscated. The rate of tax is based upon how it
is irrigated. Land which is irrigated with technology has a lower rate than the
land which is irrigated naturally through rainfall.
[1] International Labour Organization, Key Indicators of the Labour Market
2007, chapter 4, p6, retrieved 21st Jan 2008, http://www.ilo.org/public/english/employment/strat/kilm/index.htm
[3] The Economist (2002), Self doomed to failure, Arab Development, Special
report, July 4th 2002, print edition, accessed 26th July
2006, http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=1213392
[5] United Nations Food and Agricultural organisation, Statistics division,
Food and agricultural production, 2005 figures, retrieved 22nd Jan
2008, http://www.fao.org/es/ess/top/topproduction.html?lang=en
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