Human Wellbeing and the Moral Economy: An Islamic Model

The meaning of human wellbeing and the means towards its improvement have remained at the heart of intellectual enquiry since the dawn of humanity. Some of the most prominent understandings of wellbeing in the Greek, Christian and Muslim traditions include eudaemonia, beatitudo and felicitas, and saʿāda, as discussed by the likes of Aristotle, Aquinas, and al-Ghazāli respectively. At the core of these understandings is the belief that living a virtuous life is an integral part of wellbeing and without it, wellbeing cannot be realised. Such an understanding of human wellbeing leads one to view the economy in moral terms. Given that moral virtue (iḥsān) is central to the Islamic concept of human wellbeing, the Islamic moral economy can be conceived as being a realm where actors seek to enhance their wellbeing through the exercise of moral virtue in economic exchange. Hence, by clarifying the concept of human wellbeing from an Islamic perspective, this study aims to provide the micro foundations for the subsequent macro level analysis of the Islamic moral economy.