The Comprehensive Concept of Environmental Pollution in Islam- Part-6
By Dr. Zafar Darik Qasmi, New Age Islam
27 April 2026
Abstract:
This article explains that the earth is a great blessing from Allah and an essential resource for all living beings. Islam teaches that humans are given responsibility to use natural resources wisely and protect them from pollution. The Qur’an highlights that the earth provides livelihood, comfort, and stability, and it is designed in a balanced way for human benefit. Scholars explain that the earth contains all necessary resources, and humans must learn to use them properly with knowledge and skill. The article emphasises that protecting land includes keeping it physically clean and avoiding corruption, disorder, and harmful activities. Environmental care in Islam is not only physical but also moral, ensuring peace, balance, and sustainability for all creation.
Main Points:
· Earth is a blessing from Allah, providing food, shelter, and resources for all living beings.
· Humans must use natural resources wisely and avoid pollution to maintain environmental balance.
· The Qur’an teaches that earth is stable, comfortable, and created perfectly for human survival needs.
· Knowledge and skills help humans use earth’s resources properly and benefit from them responsibly always.
· Avoiding corruption, conflict, and harmful actions is necessary to protect the environment and human peace.
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If natural resources are properly protected, the environment can certainly be saved from pollution and dirt. In the previous parts, we learnt that water and air are great blessings from Allah and important natural resources. Therefore, they must be protected from pollution. In the same way, land is also an important natural resource.
Protecting the earth is necessary because Allah has made it a place of living, a source of sustenance, balanced in nature, and a sign of His power. The question is: how can we protect the earth and keep it free from pollution? The answer is that we must try our best to keep it clean and avoid spreading corruption and disorder on it.
The earth is a place of residence and survival for all humanity. It is a great blessing of Allah, beyond full human understanding. Just imagine — we live on this earth, build houses, factories, and carry out all our activities here. It also plays a basic role in the survival of all living beings.
The Qur’an tells us that the earth is a place for human life and stability:
وَلَقَدْ مَكَّنَّاكُمْ فِى الْاَرْضِ وَجَعَلْنَا لَكُمْ فِيْـهَا مَعَايِشَ ۗ قَلِيْلًا مَّا تَشْكُرُوْنَ - ( الاعراف: 10)
“We have established you on the earth and provided you with means of livelihood in it, yet you are grateful only a little.”
Allah has settled human beings on the earth and given them the ability and authority to benefit from the treasures placed within it, in a proper and respectful way, so that the earth remains safe from pollution.
In this context, consider the following statement of Mufti Muhammad Shafi Usmani:
“By mentioning the blessings of Allah, people are encouraged to accept the truth and act upon it. Allah has given you full authority and control over the earth and has opened thousands of ways for you to gain comfort and benefit from it. It is as if the Lord of the worlds has made the earth a huge storehouse containing everything needed for human life, from basic needs to sources of enjoyment.
All necessary things for human life have been placed within it. Now, the duty of human beings is to learn how to take out these resources from this storehouse and how to use them properly. Every branch of knowledge, skill, and new invention is based on this: using the things created by the Creator and stored in the earth in a wise and proper way.
A foolish and unskilled person does not know how to take out these resources or how to use them correctly, so they do not benefit from them. A wise person understands both how to obtain and how to use them, and therefore gains benefit from them.”
(Ma‘arif al-Qur’an, Vol. 3, p. 524)
In another verse, Allah says that the earth has been made like a bed for us — comfortable and suitable for living:
اَلَّذِىْ جَعَلَ لَكُمُ الْاَرْضَ فِرَاشًا وَّالسَّمَآءَ بِنَآءً وَّاَنْزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَآءِ مَآءً فَاَخْرَجَ بِهٖ مِنَ الثَّمَرَاتِ رِزْقًا لَّكُمْ ۖ فَلَا تَجْعَلُوْا لِلّـٰهِ اَنْدَادًا وَّاَنْتُـمْ تَعْلَمُوْنَ ۔ ( البقرہ: 22)
“Who made the earth a resting place for you and the sky a canopy, and sent down water from the sky, bringing forth fruits as provision for you. So do not set up partners with Allah while you know.”
Under this verse, Mufti Muhammad Shafi Usmani writes:
“Among these universal blessings, the creation of the earth is mentioned. It has been made like a bed for human beings. It is not too soft like water, where one cannot stay firm, and not too hard like stone, which would make it difficult for us to use according to our needs. Instead, it has been created in a balanced way between softness and hardness, so that it can serve the general needs of human life.
The word ‘Firash’ does not mean that the earth is not round. In fact, although the earth is a huge sphere, it appears flat to us when we look at it. The Qur’an usually describes things in a way that everyone can understand — whether educated or uneducated, from the city or the countryside.” (Ma‘arif al-Qur’an, Vol. 1, p. 134)
Minerals found in the earth are essential for the survival of humans and other living beings. Most living creatures, including humans, get their food from the earth. The blessings that Allah has placed in the earth are for the benefit of all humanity.
Allah has also made pathways in the earth so that you can easily travel from one place to another according to your needs.
Allah says:
اَلَّـذِىْ جَعَلَ لَكُمُ الْاَرْضَ مَهْدًا وَّسَلَكَ لَكُمْ فِيْـهَا سُبُلًا وَّاَنْزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَآءِ مَآءً ۖ فَاَخْرَجْنَا بِهٓ ٖ اَزْوَاجًا مِّنْ نَّبَاتٍ شَتّـٰى ۔( طہ 53)
“Who made the earth a cradle for you and made pathways in it, and sent down water from the sky, then We brought forth different kinds of plants.”
The earth is a major source of human survival. Many blessings come from it which humans use in their daily life. Therefore, protecting the earth is essential in every way.
Firstly, we must keep the soil physically clean. Secondly, we must avoid creating corruption, conflict, and disorder, which also pollutes the environment.
When corruption spreads on earth, it not only harms the environment but also disturbs human peace and stability. Therefore, we must avoid all actions that can harm the earth or pollute the environment.
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Dr. Zafar Darik Qasmi is an Islamic Scholar, author and Regular Columnist for New Age Islam.
New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism