Ramazan arrives each year as a moral reminder. It asks believers to pause, to restrain desire and to re-examine the way they live, earn and treat others. It is therefore deeply troubling that the arrival of Ramazan is so often accompanied by practices that contradict its very spirit. Rising prices of basic food items, artificial shortages and quiet hoarding have become almost predictable features of the holy month.
The Qur’an lays down a principle that is as relevant today as it was fourteen centuries ago: believers are commanded to give full measure and weight with justice and not to deprive people of what is rightfully theirs. This guidance speaks to fairness in pricing and restraint in the pursuit of profit. When essential goods are deliberately withheld or prices are inflated simply because demand is high, the transaction may remain legal, but it ceases to be ethical.
Ramazan is also a lesson in self-discipline. The believer refrains from what is otherwise lawful — food and drink — in obedience to a higher moral calling. If restraint can be exercised at the dining table, it can surely be exercised at the cash counter. True piety is reflected in everyday dealings, especially where power and vulnerability intersect.
Consumers, too, have a role to play by resisting panic buying, discouraging exploitative practices and supporting those who conduct business with integrity. Markets are shaped not only by sellers but by the collective choices of society. When prices are fair, supplies remain accessible, and surplus is shared with those in need, the marketplace itself becomes a space of virtue, not merely transaction.
As the holy month unfolds, it is worth asking whether our commercial conduct reflects the values we claim to uphold. Let Ramazan be a season in which our markets reflect mercy, our transactions reflect honesty and our pursuit of livelihood reflects consciousness of accountability before Allah.
M Shaban Uppal
Lahore
