In the Society: From Economics to Politics

The Natural Roots of Ownership

Personal ownership arises out of four main roots:

1-Instinctive roots: Some thinkers believe that ownership is deeply rooted in man's instincts, and cannot be removed. In other words, man has "the tendency to gain power, authority and free will in progressing the life he desires or get total authority to gain the things or material he wants." 

2-Purely mental roots: Some people believe that man's possession over his belongings is a side-effect of his possession over himself. When man owns something, he feels it is part of him, and those who believe man's mental possession over things is equal to his possession over himself are making a big mistake, for on one hand, possession of external objects is something conventional which occurs based on social credit, and on the other hand, any observable or non-observable thing man possesses can be transferred to others, whereas the human character cannot be transacted or traded. The thing in common between man's possession over himself and over things is that since both take place due to God's will, God has set certain instructions for making use of things and ourselves. For example, with regard to his possession over himself, man must adjust his own character and avoid ruining it. Man must not oppose his own or others' characters; he must not disturb others' personalities. About possession of things, man has been ordered not to become enslaved by the things he possesses. 

3-Purely natural roots: Some believe that man has to gain certain things and materials and use them in order to survive. He cannot use natural materials without making effort, and when he uses his physical or mental strength to do so, he feels he owns the materials. 

4-The necessity for realizing and identifying situations:  If man does not have ownership over things, his relationship with them will wither, and no individual's standing in the society can be strengthened. 

Possession is an instinctive issue, and by instinct here we mean man's tendency toward gaining authority and freedom in order to achieve an intelligible life. Man innately feels that he has to make effort and endeavor in order to survive and go on with his life. Thus, the first and third of the reasons mentioned above are in fact the same, and the fourth is nullified. 

In fact, the tendency to gain power and authority and the freedom to use it is deeply rooted in man. Many thinkers have also emphasized on this point; however, they have not realized that such a tendency is two-sided – there is no certain, clear-cut factor in man that can create the same effect in all circumstances. In fact, this tendency pertains to man himself. In other words, the effects this tendency can make are related to the two contradictory selves (egos) in man – the natural and the ideal.

If a desired life is regarded as solely being accounted for according to the "natural self," the above mentioned tendency will be moving toward gaining better possessions for the purely natural life. Not only possession, but even thought, reasoning and all of man's external and internal activities will be at the service of the natural ego. 

When making use of power and authority in regard to natural life, man faces two kinds of activities:

a)activities that pertain only to man – personal activities. One may use his power and free will to become a good poet, for example. He will drown in his own thoughts and imaginations, and his poetry will only serve to satisfy his natural ego. 

b)kind of activities pertains to others; they may even endanger the life or freedom of other people, like using power and authority in order to dominate others. 

If man's life becomes gaining possession of everything – in other words, if the ideal of his natural self is set as expanding his belongings – he will endanger others' lives and freedom. If man has an ideal self (ego), however, all of his external or internal activities will become the means instead of being the end; for such a man, ownership will only serve as the means to gain his requirements in life. Those who focus upon ownership as the goal are not owners; in fact, they are enslaved by what they possess. 

The Limitation of Personal Ownership

There are three reasons why personal ownership is limited:

1-God has created whatever there is in the universe for man, and has also instructed man how to make use of it. Of course, what God has created belongs to all people, and man can learn to use it only through work and effort. And since each individual's work and effort is limited, man's possession will also be limited.

2-Not only does the principle of work and endeavor prove that man's ownership is limited, even if man or a society succeeds in possessing all the usable material in the world, it would require some people to stay alive and some others to die, or the lives of some to be at the mercy of few others, which leaves no choice but to accept limited ownership.

3-Religious commands ordering man not to disturb others' lives, avoid co emption or being usurious, prohibit the production or trade of harmful goods, prohibit monopoly, avoid making a corner in gold or silver, and control the society's economy. 

Also, the Koran tells us to safeguard values from absolute destruction, whether regarding work or goods; this again shows that possession is limited. 

و لا تبخسوا الناس اشيائهم

"Do not decrease the value people's work really has."

    (Hood 11:85, The Battlements 7:85, The Poets 26:83)

 

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