Between the Honey and the Poison: Corruption and its Panacea in Islamic Hermeneutics

Abstract

The author of this article addresses the issue of corruption from a perspective that exceeds the usual discussion surrounding embezzlement in corporate life and alike. Referring to the original meaning of the Arabic word for ‘corruption’ (al-fasad) and to its opposite al-salah - ‘righteousness’, ‘accountability’, ‘probity’ and ‘piety’ - he argues that talking about fasad would not make sense without addressing the issue of the ‘corrupted’ (mafsud) and the ‘cause for corruption’ (mafsadah). In his view, proceeding from Islamic hermeneutics would be a better remedy than pure reference to ‘human legislation’.