The advent of Islamic Economics directed the attention of scholars towards the economic thinking of the Muslim thinkers in the past, of which the works on history of economic thought had taken no notice at all, with the sole exception of a casual mention of Ibn Khaldun in Schumpeter’s compendium.

Besides the economic thinking of the early jurists and the great philosophers in the later Abbasid period, attention has been paid to such writers as Abu Yusuf, Abu Ubaid, Yahya Ibn Adam, Qudama bin Ja’far, Ibn al-Muqaffa. al-Jahiz, al-Mawardi, Ibn Hazm, Ibn Taimiyah, Ibn Qayyim, Shatibi, Dimashqi, Ibn Khaldun, Tusi, Ghazali, al-Hariri, Ahmad Ali al-Dalaji and Shah Waliallah al-Dehlavi.

A: Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406)

Ibn Khaldun has rightly been hailed as the greatest economist of Islam. Besides Ezzats doctoral thesis (655 and Nasha’t’s work (659) we have contributions by Rosenthal (661), Spengler (664), Boulakia, Ahmad Ali (656), Ibn al Sabil (192), Abdul Qadir (651 ; 652), Rifa’t (660), Somogyi (650), Tahdwi (77), T. B. Irving (657) and Abdu Sattar (654).

Ibn Khaldun has a wide range of discussions on economics including the subjects of value, division of labour, the price system, the law of supply and demand. consumption and production, money, capital formation, population growth, public finance, trade cycles, etc. He discusses the various stages through which societies pass in economic progress. We also get the basic idea embodied in the backward-sloping supply curve of labour (664: 303). Spengler (664: 293) compares and contrasts his cycle theory of civilisation with Hicks theory of trade cycles and Abdus Sattar ascribes to him the theory that, economic development passes through stages (654).

We get the macro-economic view that "income and expenditure balance each other in every city ... and if both income and expenditure are large ... the city grows". He also noticed, in the Keynesian sense, the importance of the demand side, particularly government expenditure, in avoiding business slumps and maintaining economic development (654: 161). T. B. Irving also notes that according to Ibn Khaldun "taxes have a point of ,diminishing returns and pump priming is important to keep the business running smoothly" (657: 32).

Abdul Qadir (651: 438) notes that labour has the central place in Ibn Khaldun’s theory of value, and Abdus Sattar ascribes a labour theory of value to him (654: 164). Somogyl (650) rightly points out that Ibn Khaldun anticipated Adam Smith on several points, and Abdul Qadir regards him as a precursor of the mercantilists, because of his views on the importance of Gold and Silver (651: 439). He highlights Ibn Khaldun’s emphasis on economic factors in the interpretation of history and his effort to relate economic progress with political stability (651: . 434, 441). Ibn al-Sabil regards Ibn Khaldun a precursor of Proudhon, Marx and Engels on basis of his views on poverty and its causes (192: 154).

Rifa’t refers to Ibn Khaldun’s discussion on utility which anticipates later analysis (660: 26). To money, he ascribed the two roles of standard of exchange and store of value (654: 165).

Rifa’t compares his theory of population with that of Malthus and finds a number of common points, though Ibn Khaldun did not mention preventive cheeks (660: 26).

In his exhaustive discussion on Ibn Khaldun, Tahawi (77, I: 473-603) explains how population and economic progress are related to one another in his model. Ibn Khaldun also warned against state intervention in the economy and thought that a free market ensured proper distribution (77, 1: 633). Tahawi summarises Ibn Khaldun’s views on determination of prices by the forces of supply and demand, money, its values and its functions and the principles of taxation and government expenditure.

Boulakia notes Ibn Khaldun’s emphasis on the importance of social organisation of production whose main factor is human labour. Then comes the role of international division of labour which is based more on the skill of the inhabitants of various regions than their natural resources. "His theory constitutes the embryo of an international trade theory, with the analysis of terms of exchange between rich and poor countries, of the propensity to import and export, of the influence of economic structures on development and of the importance of intellectual capital in the process of growth". After surveying the wide-ranging contributions of Ibn Khaldun on money, prices, distribution, public finance, trade cycles and population, Boulakia concludes that "Ibn Khaldun discovered a great number of fundamental economic notions a few centuries before their official birth. He discovered the virtue and the necessity of a division of labour before Smith and the principle of labour value before Ricardo. He elaborated a theory of population before Malthus and insisted on the role of the state in the economy before Keynes. But much more than that, Ibn Khaldun used these concepts to build a coherent dynamic system in which the economic mechanism inexorably led economic activity to long-term fluctuations......" Boulakia can, therefore, feel more than justified in affirming that "His name should figure among the fathers of economic science".

B: Ibn Taimiya (1262-1328)

Ibn Taimiya’s economic views have been discussed by Muhammad al-Mubarak (134), Sherwani (667), llyas Ahmad (665), Kahf (666) and Siddiqi (221, II: 189-203).

Kahf discusses his notion of "price of the equivalent" and the complementary concept of "fair profit". Ibn Taimiya wanted to investigate what the price would be if there were no imperfections in the market. He held that the price of labour was determined in the same way as the other prices (666). Siddiqi has discussed Ibn Taimiya’s view on price control at some length (221, 11: 189-203).

He justified state intervention in the market on account of monopoly, monopsony, hoarding and speculation. Mubarak (134) discusses his work on Hisbah. Maintenance of fair competition and honest dealings were to he ensured through enforcement of the Islamic code of conduct,)n producers, traders and the middle men. Mubarak has also highlighted Ibn Taimiya’s views on other responsibilities of the state., including that of ensuring fulfilment of the basic needs of the people by organising production and distribution (134: 106-127).

Sherwani (667) focuses his attention of Ibn Taimiya’s views on the concept of ownership in Islam, emphasising the right of the state to abridge or abrogate this right in certain circumstances.

Tahawi (77, I: 455) regards Ibn Taimiya’s emphasis on the state’s responsibility to ensure the fulfilment of the basic needs of the people as his unique contribution.

C: Abu Yusuf (731-798)

Abel Yusuf’s main subject was taxation and the economic responsibilities of the state. His contribution lies in demonstrating the superiority of proportional taxation over the system of fixed levy on land, both from the viewp91nt of revenue and equity. In his discussion he also refers to the other canons of taxation: capacity to pay, a consideration for the convenience of assesses in fixing the time of collection and its mode, and centralisation of decision making in tax administration. Siddiqi (671: 83-84) discusses these points along with Abu Yusuf’s emphasis on public works especially irrigation facilities and highways. He also urges upon the ruler to take other measures to ensure the development of agriculture (671: 89).

Siddiqi notes that Abu Yusuf’s brief comments on the relation between the supply of goods and their prices do not go deep enough and his advice to the ruler against price control is not accompanied by a thorough discussion on the subject (671: 78-79).

D. Nasiruddin Tusi (1201-1274)

Tusi’s contribution has been discussed by Rifa’t (679), A. Mannan (13.2: 8), Anzarul Haq (678) and Habibul Haq Nadwi (235). Tusi discussed the revenue and expenditure of the household as \veil as those of the ruler. He emphasised saving and warned against extravagance and expenditure on unproductive assets such as jewellery and uncultivable land (679: 124).

He accorded supreme importance to agriculture giving trade and other vacations a second place (235: 148). He also discussed exchange and division of labour. His brief work on Public Finance has been reviewed by Rifa’t (679) wherein he disapproves of certain taxes which had no sanction in Islam.

Jalal al Din al Dawwani (678) closely follows Tusi in his discussion of the household and the public treasury.

E: Shah Waliullah (1702-1763)

A resume of Shah Waliullah’s broad sweep on the subject has been given by Tufail Ahmad Qureshi. He regarded economic well-being to be a prerequisite of a good life and proceeded to discuss needs, ownership, means of production, co-operation, distribution and consumption with remarkable insight. Discussing the evolution of society from the primitive stages to the affluent culture of his day he points out the decadence that sets in with the growth of conspicuous consumption. In his discussion on means of production he tends to place a number of natural resources in the public sector. He condemned hoarding and profiteering on economic as well as social grounds.

The economic philosophy of Shah Waliullah had been earlier interpreted by Ubaydullah Sindhi (688). Ibn al Sabil compares Wahullah’s analysis of the decline of the Mughal with Marx’s critique of capitalism (192: 51). Wallullah’s Hujjatullah al-Balighah offers a wealth of material on the subject that awaits the attention of economists.

F: Other Thinkers

Kifayatullah has recently reported on a work by Imam Muhammad Ibn Hasan al Shaybani (750-804) entitled "The Earning", which discussed what is right and what is wrong in ways of earning and spending. He regarded agriculture as the noblest of all professions because it is the most useful for the entire society, a view which sharply distinguishes Imam Muhammad from most of his contemporaries who preferred trade and commerce over agriculture.

Tahawi (77, I: 151-154) takes some notice of those Islamic thinkers who paid special attention to eradication of poverty and to ensuring social justice. He mentions Abu Dharr Ghifari (d. 654), Ibn Hazm (d. 1064) and Ahmad Ali al Dalaji (d. 1421). Ibrahim Labban (614) also discusses the views of Abu Dharr Ghifari and Ibn Hazm.

It could not be possible for the present writer to consult the numerous works on Ghazali, Farabi, Tusi, Ibn Qayyim, Shah Waliullah and others for brief references to their economic views. Nor could he do justice to the works on the few thinkers discussed in this section. Here is a field that awaits the attention of researchers in Islamic Economics. But the material listed in our own bibliography should he sufficient to refute the thesis recently propounded by Meyer (648) that the "Arabic, Turkish and Persian speaking East has experienced no continuity of economic ideas such as those which come from the Judeo-Christian West". The West experienced systematic economic thinking since the time of the Renaissance and Economics came into its own in the wake of the Industrial Revolution - a period of history in which the East was sliding down the scale of decadence. The ascendancy of the Islamic civilisation and its dominance of the world scene for a thousand years could not have been unaccompanied by economic ideas as such. From Abu Yusuf in the second century to Tusi and Waliullah we get a continuity of serious discussion on taxation, Government expenditure, home economics, money and exchange, division of labour, monopoly, price control, etc. Unfortunately, no serious attention has been paid to this heritage by centres of academic research in Economics.

The variety of subjects discussed by Islamic economists and their distinctive approach to some of the economic problems Is brought out in our survey of the literature presently available. The new approach has a clearly defined frame of reference and there are certain common premises shared by all writers on the subject. The issues raised and discussed by them are relevant to the human situation and have a direct bearing on contemporary life. These discussions have a special significance for the Muslim countries and communities. but their relevance for a comparative study of economic systems and philosophies is universal and general.

To the students of Islamic economics in particular and the Muslim students of economics in general the survey provides an opportunity of stock-taking and programming for further research. Both Islam and economics would be benefited if closer attention is paid to an approach that seeks to relink economics with moral values and to evolve a framework in which mans quest for Justice achieves fulfilment while ensuring Maximum efficiency and satisfying the will to economise.