Environmental Crisis and Islam: Human Responsibility and the Trust of the Earth in the Age of Climate Change

ماحولیاتی بحران اور اسلام: موسمیاتی تبدیلی کے دور میں انسان کی ذمہ داری اور امانتِ زمین

Abstract

This paper undertakes a doctoral-level examination of the Islamic ethico-legal response to the contemporary ecological crisis, situating the discourse within the Qur'anic paradigms of khilafah (vicegerency), amanah (trusteeship), and mizan (cosmic balance). Drawing upon classical exegetical literature, prophetic tradition, and the intellectual contributions of Ibn Khaldun, Shah Waliullah, Muhammad Iqbal, Abu al-A'la Mawdudi, and Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the study argues that Islam furnishes a comprehensive metaphysical and juristic framework (fiqh al-bi'ah) for environmental stewardship that both anticipates and critiques the anthropocentric assumptions underlying much of modern Western environmental philosophy. Employing a comparative and analytical methodology, the paper juxtaposes Islamic cosmology with Lynn White's thesis on the historical roots of the ecologic crisis and with secular deep-ecology paradigms, contending that the Qur'anic notion of tawhid (divine unity) resolves the dualism between anthropocentrism and biocentrism through a theocentric ethic of accountability (hisab). The paper further interrogates the gap between normative Islamic environmental ethics and the empirical praxis of Muslim-majority states amid accelerating climate change, proposing a synthesis rooted in maqasid al-shari'ah (objectives of Islamic law) as a policy-relevant framework. The study concludes that the revival of amanah-consciousness constitutes both a theological imperative and a practical necessity for climate governance in the twenty-first century.