The Beginning of the Dream
He did not know that what he took for poverty was in truth a fortress from Allah, protecting him from the paths of ruin.
He had recently graduated from university and dreamed, like many young men, of a luxury car, the latest phone, and a respectable, prestigious job at an interest-based bank whose dealings he had known since his early childhood to be forbidden… but the glitter of this world can blind both sight and insight.
The Lure of the Card
He accepted a modest job, and his salary barely covered his needs. Under the pressures of life, he began thinking about getting a Visa card. Some friends advised him to stay away from interest (riba), but the craving for appearances spoke louder in his heart than their advice.
At the office, his colleague Sami sat beside him, a wealthy young man whose luxury car gleamed in the company car park. He said to him jokingly:
“Sami, do you buy everything in cash? Or do you have a platinum Visa like the big shots?”
Sami smiled calmly, as though planting a seed of light in his heart:
“Praise be to Allah… I do not deal in interest, and I do not put myself in debt to anyone. I pay my zakah as it falls due, and I put my money in lawful investments, even if their profits are lower, because the blessing in what is lawful is worth more than any figure on paper.”
But his words did not turn him back. He shrugged, saying to himself: “This one speaks from the tower of wealth… As for me, I have my own way.”
The Door That Opened
He went to the bank. The credit officer mocked his meagre salary:
“You won’t get the card except against a deposit… put the money down first.”
He did not have the amount, so Satan whispered to him: “Borrow… you will become like them.”
So he borrowed. He deposited. He got the card. And the door opened.
A Brief Elation… and a Long Regret
He entered a world he was not made for: dazzling malls, shining shelves, and people dragging shopping bags. He wanted to become like them, so he reached for the card. One payment after another… then an overdraft.
But the moments in which he felt that momentary wealth quickly evaporated. The nights grew heavy on him; he tossed in his bed, hearing in his head the sound of numbers: 3,000… 5,000… 8,000… The debt doubling, the interest multiplying, and anxiety crushing his breath.
He came to hate the ringing of the phone; every unknown call carried a new warning:
“Sir, if you do not pay this month, the debt will double.”
The Moment of Breaking
The verse cried out in his heart every time he opened his wallet: “Allah destroys interest and gives increase for charities. And Allah does not like every sinning disbeliever” (al-Baqarah 2:276).
Until the day he had dreaded came: a demand letter from the bank threatening to seize his salary. He sat in the darkness of the night, weeping bitterly:
“O Lord… cover me and do not disgrace me; save me and do not destroy me.”
A Hand Reaching Out from Light
The next morning Sami came to him, that pious colleague, and seeing him troubled, he asked him what was wrong. He heard the whole story, then smiled and said:
“I will lend you what you need… a debt without interest, without humiliation. This is what our Prophet ﷺ commanded: the goodly loan (al-qard al-hasan). And may Allah forgive you.”
He paid off his debt. He released his deposit. He tore up the interest-based card. And he felt his heart beating anew.
A Late Realisation… but a Rescue
On his way home, he felt the weights falling from his shoulders, as though he had stepped out of a dark room into the light of morning.
He realised, even if late, that true ambition is not a credit card or the décor of a new flat… but a sound heart, lawful provision, righteous companionship, and a path to Paradise.
He saw how Sami had made money a servant, not a master: he paid zakah, gave charity, invested carefully, and lived without fear of tomorrow’s debts.
As for him, he had learned, from his own pain, that interest does not grant comfort, but turns life into a heavy shackle.
And he concluded his journey with a sincere supplication: “O Allah, save us from trials, what is apparent of them and what is concealed.”