Riba (Interest) in Islam and Other Major Religions

Defining Riba

The Holy Qur'an did not give any definition for the term for the simple reason that it was well known to its immediate audience. It is like the prohibition of pork, liquor, gambling, adultery etc., which were imposed without giving any hard and fast definition because all these terms were well known and there was no ambiguity in their meaning. The case of riba was similar. It was not a term foreign to Arabs. They all used the term in their mutual transactions. Not only Arabs but all the previous societies used to practice it in their financial dealings and nobody had any confusion about its exact sense. In the verse of Surah An-Nisaa the Holy Qur'an has reproached the Jews for their taking riba whist it was prohibited for them. Here this practice...