"Verily! Allâh commands that you should render back the trusts to those, to whom they are due; and that when you judge between men, you judge with justice." ( Quran 4: 58)

The Broader Sense of Trust

Islam expects of its followers that they will be masters of a sound heart and a good conscience, which would ensure the protection of the rights of God and humanity and which would also protect their actions from the commitment of excesses. Therefore it is necessary that every Muslim should be trustworthy.

Some people tend to take the idea of trust in a very limited sense and consider it to mean the protection of someone else's property, although in Allah's religion "trust" is used in a very broad and unlimited sense.

This word, trust, contains an ocean of meaning, but underneath it all is the sense of responsibility, the sense of having to appear before Allah and to account for one's actions, which is illustrated in the Hadith (Prophet Muhammad's sayings):

"Every one of you is a guardian and everyone will be asked about how well you looked after your subjects. The Imam (king or leader) is a guardian. He will be held accountable to the welfare of his people. A man is the guardian of his household. He will be held accountable to the welfare of his wife, children and servants. A woman is the guardian of her husband's house. She will be held accountable to the welfare of her husband, children and servants. The servant is the guardian of the property of his master. He will be held accountable to the safeguarding of his master's property."

Appointment to High Offices and Posts is a Trust

There is also another sense of trust: everything should be placed at its proper and deserving place. An office or a post should be offered only to the deserving person; and responsibility should be given only to that person who is able to shoulder it and who has the capability to do justice to the trust placed in him.

Governorship, responsibilities towards the party or country, which are granted by placing confidence in the persons concerned, are trusts, and they will be held accountable to these responsibilities that were placed in their hands with trust.

That being said, we must be careful about whom we entrust the responsibilities of office. It is a fact that mere excellence of education or experience does not make a person most suitable for some office. It is also possible that a man may have good moral character and be a righteous person, but he may not have the capabilities to fulfill the responsibilities of a certain office.

Trust demands that we should entrust such responsibilities and posts to such individuals as would be able to run them properly. If through bribery, nepotism and for some other reason we deviate from this principle and we select an unfit person for some office, then since we have ignored a fit person and have appointed an unfit and undeserving person, we have committed open misappropriation and have miss-used our trust.

Performance of Duty is also a Trust

This sense is also included in the meaning of trust that the man to whom the responsibility has been entrusted should have the sincere inclination of satisfactorily fulfilling those responsibilities and that he should devote all his energies for doing justice to fulfill it. Undoubtedly it is a trust. Islam considers it worthy of honor that a man should be sincere in his work, should be keen on doing his job in a better way, and should diligently safeguard the right of the people that are in his charge. However ordinary that responsibility may be, a slight negligence is likely to cause undue harm to the whole community and society; and the germs of corruption and mischief enter the entire body politic. Dishonesty in performing official duties causes various moral diseases in the society. It causes great harm to the religion, to the public and to the country.

Wealth and Ability given by Allah are also a Trust

Trust also means that we should take a survey of our powers of perception with which God has blessed us. We should have a look at those special abilities which God has given us. If we look at our property and our children, who are very dear to us, we will feel that all these are God's trust which have been deposited with us.

Therefore it is necessary that they should be sacrificed in His cause, and they should be utilized for seeking His pleasure. If we suffer a loss in them, we should not start crying and wailing and should not consider that it was our personal property that has been taken away from us, because compared to ourselves, Allah is the more rightful owner and He has the right to use whatever He has entrusted us in any way He likes.

"O you who believe ! betray not the trust of Allah and the Messenger, nor misappropriate knowingly things entrusted to you. And know that your possessions and your progeny are but a trial, and that it is Allah with whom lies your highest reward." ( Quran 8: 27-28)

Others' Secrets with you are a Trust

Trust also means that we should protect the rights of secrecy when we attend gatherings. We should not disclose other people's information and secrets. A number of relationships can be severed, rifts created in friendships and interests endangered when the secrets of the gatherings are disclosed by someone by correctly or incorrectly quoting the source, thus jeopardizing all the plans.

Allah's Messenger has said: "When a man says something to someone and then turns to you, then it is a trust."

Keeping trust is a very important quality. Men with weak faith cannot bear the burden of keeping secrets. Allah has given an example of how the burden of trust bears down on a man's whole existence. Therefore, it should not be considered an ordinary thing and no laxity should be shown in fulfilling its demands:

"Truly, We did offer Al¬Amânah (the trust or moral responsibility or honesty and all the duties which Allâh has ordained) to the heavens and the earth, and the mountains, but they declined to bear it and were afraid of it (i.e. afraid of Allâh's Torment). But man bore it. Verily, he was unjust (to himself) and ignorant (of its results)" (Quran 33: 72)

Injustice and ignorance are two evils which beset man's nature. His faith cannot be complete without cleaning and purifying it from injustice.

"It is those who believe and confuse not their beliefs with wrong-that are (truly) in security, for they are on (right) guidance," (Quran 6: 82)