Keeping
Promises

You know, in a land where very few people could read and write,

the Messenger went to Yathrib and set out the the agreement by which the tribes became one ummah

in a written document.

The contract was set in writing.

And in this new ummah business agreements were also to be written down.

What was being promised by whom to whom has to be clear for all to see.

Because the ummah is a community built on trust,

and promises made have to be honoured.

Written contracts take conflict situations within business

and move them from argument into law.

The tribes of Yathrib couldn't argue about what they had agreed to

as it was written down in black and white.

The promises they made were set out plainly,

as was what they could expect.

Businesses depend on those with whom they are doing business

keeping to their promises.

If those who make things don't receive their raw materials on time

their whole business can grind to a halt.

And if someone doesn't pay

whatever money has been agreed for goods or services

at the time that was part of the original agreement

a business can quickly become an ex-business.

And if one business breaks down

due to the broken promises of another,

or is liquidated through lack of money

due to unpaid bills,

that business itself will not be able to keep its promises to others,

and so that first broken agreement

can quickly spread to affect all the businesses in a society.

Not the most efficient or productive of commercial environments.

And just as with peace negotiations between tribes or nations

and contracts between businesses,

so it is with personal promises.

In the Deen it is expected that promises will be honoured.

Of course it can't be expected that every little personal promise should be written down,

as that would make daily life impossible.

But minor promises can also cause personal distress

when they are broken.

Small unpaid debts can be as much of a problem to an individual

as a large unpaid debt to a business.

And arriving late for a planned meeting

can not only mean that other parties are left waiting and wondering

for as long as the latecomer takes to get there,

but can also mean that other appointments they have made

will also end up being delayed.

This kind of behaviour is not only selfish,

but in the case of unpaid debts can be seen as cheating

or even theft,

and a society that doesn't keep its promises

will soon become sick

in a way that affects everybody within it.

If someone regularly turns up late for appointments,

other people will stop bothering to arrive on time themselves,

and it soon becomes a competition

to see who can arrive the latest.

For a society to be successful,

those within it have to be able to rely on a system

in which they can expect that promises made will be honoured.

This is clearly better for all concerned.

What we need is a society based on generosity rather than greed,

on mutual support rather than selfishness,

a healthy society where people trust each other,

and especially when they make promises.

And such a society is one in which

people treat each other with the courtesy of the muslim Adab,

a society that comes when people follow

the way of life we call the Deen.