— Ryoichi Mita
— Ruwwad Center
Shu‘ayb’s community was the progeny of Abraham. The central city of the area which they inhabited was Tabuk. The old name of Tabuk was Ayka, which literally means ‘the forest.’ That is why, in the Quran, it is called Ashab al-Ayka (the dwellers of the forest). The root cause of all moral and social evils is setting double standards. Just conduct for a man is to give others their rightful due, and take for himself what rightfully belongs to him. This is the Divine ‘balance’. When this is upset, disturbance occurs in collective social life. The secret of maintaining this balance is the fear of God. If the fear of God goes out of the heart, nothing can make a man keep his moral equilibrium. All the prophets who had appeared on behalf of God had told their addressee communities: ‘I am a trustworthy Messenger to you.’ This shows that a preacher should necessarily have the quality of trustworthiness. One aspect of this trustworthiness is that he should not raise any material or economic issue with his addressee community, so that there should never be any doubt about the selflessness of his purpose. This trustworthiness is so important that it should be fostered at any cost, even if the preacher of truth has, voluntarily, to forego his material rights for its sake.