Environmental Protection and Islam: A Forgotten Duty II
Key Takeaways
While Allah (SWT) has appointed humanity as Khalifah (Caretakers) of the Earth, the present state of the world reveals how far short we are falling of our role.
Our consumerist lifestyle is contributing to pollution and climate change, leading to increased natural disasters that are disproportionately affecting the Muslim world. Millions of lives are at risk.
One of the most prominent examples of our destructive ways is our animal-product-dominated food system. Not only is it one of the major drivers of climate change, it is also an offense to Islam.
PART II: The State of the World
In the first of this two-part series, we discussed the responsibility placed on human beings as Stewards (Khulafah, singular: Khalifah) of the Earth in light of the teachings of Islam. The next step is to pause and ask ourselves: Have we lived up to our divine responsibility?
A glance at the present state of the world reveals how far short we are falling of our expected role as caretakers of the planet and its different species.
Rampant consumerism, wastefulness, and climate change
The exorbitant consumerism that marks the present-day lifestyle goes completely against the Prophet’s (SAW) teachings of simple living.
Not only is it against the teachings of Islam, but the excessive waste produced as a by-product of this lifestyle is polluting the land and sea, contributing to climate change, and is a threat to the diverse forms of life that Allah (SWT) has beautified this world with.
Increasing natural disasters due to climate change
The effects of human-induced climate change are everywhere. With rising global temperatures, melting ice caps, and rising sea levels, natural disasters such as droughts, heatwaves, storms, and floods are on the rise around the globe.
Many Muslim countries are facing the brunt of these climate change-induced disasters. A prime example of this is the 2022 floods in Pakistan. Described as one of the worst in the country’s history, the floods were brought on by exceptionally high monsoon rains, which resulted in the deaths of almost 2,000 people, and impacted a total of around 33 million people.
Unless a concentrated global effort is organized to lower greenhouse gas emissions, we’ll continue to face further climatic change and natural disasters.
The modern animal agriculture industry: An affront to Islam
The animal-product-dominated global food system is inefficient, wasteful, and one of the major drivers of climate change.
Image Credit: Our World in Data
Additionally, the animal agriculture industry is also an offense to Islam, as underneath the halal labels, which themselves are subject to fraud and controversy, lie stories of injustice, cruelty, and suffering.
The character of the Prophet (SAW) was such that he could not bear to see a mother bird in distress as she was separated from her two baby chicks [1]. Yet we, his followers, stand by and support industries such as the dairy industry which forcibly impregnates cows and then separates them from their calves for their milk. Would the Prophet (SAW) ever approve of such abominable behavior towards Allah’s (SWT) innocent creation?
With studies consistently linking animal agriculture with climate change, the clear and incontrovertible advantages of plant-based diets, and the injustice and cruelty inherent in the animal agriculture industry (including the halal industry), we as followers of Islam have no grounds, empirical or moral, to support the global food system as it stands.
Reviving our forgotten duty
While our collective actions have led us to difficult and overwhelming circumstances, this is not a call to feel guilt and distress. Rather, this should serve as a wake-up call to do better as caretakers of the Earth.
In order to live up to our role as Khulafah, we must return to the Prophetic example. His life was the embodiment of conscious, sustainable, and ethical living, of mercy and compassion towards all living beings. That is what we must embody.
If you’re ready to revive this forgotten divine duty and take steps toward a more ethical and sustainable life, see our Green Living Guide today.
[1] Abdullah reported: We were on a journey with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and he went out to relieve himself. We saw a red sparrow that had two chicks with her and we took her chicks, so the sparrow started to flap her wings. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came to us and he said, “Who has upset her by taking her children? Give her children back to her.” (Sunan Abi Dawud 5268).
