Epicureanism and Global Consumerism in Shaping Muslim Buyers’ Consumption Pattern: An Islamic Perspective

Abstract

The present paper attempts to shed some light on the Islamic view of consumption. Particularly, this paper seeks to answer; (i) what is the situation of present day consumerism? (ii) How does Islam perceive consumption and worldly possession? (iii) What are the Islamic ordains regarding consumption? (iv) What are the shortfalls of present day Muslim consumers? And (v) what are the reasons behind these shortfalls? Relevant literatures are reviewed and the guidance of Holy Quran and Sunnah are discussed to answer the research questions. A Muslim consumer tries to conform his/her consumption to the dictates of the Islamic ethical standard (shariah). He/she spends consciously only on halal (permitted) purpose and avoids haram (prohibited) ones. An Islamic consumer spends to meet dharuriyah (necessities), hajiyah (conveniences) and tahsaniyah (refinements). Unfortunately many Muslims of the present day are, in most cases, not abiding by the Shariah injunctions. For instance, (i) many Muslims consume alcoholic drinks, (ii) solvent Muslims get their fill while their poor neighbors remain hungry, (iii) many are extravagant and spend in ways not permitted by the Shariah, and (iv) there are many who seldom care for interest-based investments and transactions. The present paper tried to identify the causes. These are: (i) lack of adequate knowledge of the Islamic Shariah, (ii) absence of a moral filter, (iii) strong provocation for epicurism, (iv) wanton electronic media aggression for consumption, and (v) lack of proper understanding about the duties and obligations of a Muslim as an Islamic consumer. The present paper contributes to the knowledge by discussing consumption phenomenon from Islamic perspective and by clearly distinguishing Islamic view of consumption from traditional view of consumption. Furthermore, pointing on the nature of shortfall of present day Muslim consumers, the present research calls for more research to consider Islamic ethical standards in the field of marketing.