The Psychological and Moral Effects:
Allah sent religion to the people to guide them to the right path, and to raise them to highness and perfection so that they can get rid of the corruption of their souls with its hopes and ambitions.
Islam’s aim is to purify both people’s hidden souls and visible acts, and the legislations of Islam are working on those two things as Allah mentions in the Qur’an the words “Purification” and “sanctifying.” In Surat Al-Tawbah (Repentance; verse 103): (Take alms from their money to purify them and sanctify them. And pray for them; surely your prayer is an assuagement for them; and Allah is the All-Hearing and the Omniscient)
Allah (Exalted be HE) swore on seven things in Surat Ash -Shams (The Sun; verse 9) that the successful is he who purifies his soul and the failure is he who corrupts it: “ He is indeed successful who purifies it. And he is indeed a failure who corrupts it.”
Usury deviates man from the right path; as the usurer becomes a slave to money of which glitter blinds him. He always seeks to gain money regardless of the means. That is why, he preserves no value, exceeds all the proper limits and violates sanctities. Usury also fills the human soul with avarice and thrift that soon corrupt it and fill it with laziness and cowardice. For, usurers are cowards and know nothing about courage or intrepidity. Thus, “waiting” is the craft of usurers and those who follow their examples; as they give money only to those who invest it and wait for the money to “grow”, and then take the price of their waiting.
Moreover, usurers are indolent and inert; they do not make anything useful but rather wait for the others to work in order to steal the fruits of their efforts. The following verse refers to this meaning: (That which ye give in usury so that it may increase through the property of (other) people, will have no increase with Allah; but that which ye give in charity, seeking Allah’s pleasure, these are the ones who receive their reward manifold.) (Surat Al-Room (The Romans; verse 39))
The verse is referring to the fact that usurers give their money to people so as to increase through their money.
The Qur’an describes usurers as follows: (Those who charge usury are in the same position as those whom the devil hath prostrated by (his) touch. That is because they say: “Trade is like usury” whereas Allah permits trade, and prohibits usury. Thus, whoever heeds this commandment from his Lord, and refrains from usury, he may keep his past earnings, and his case is for Allah (to judge); but whoever returns (to usury) – Such are the rightful owners of the Fire) (Al-Baqarah (The Cow; verse 275))
Allah (exalted be He) asserts that He takes away any blessing from any money gained through usury.
(Allah makes usury to wane and makes almsgiving fruitful, and Allah does not love the always ungrateful the always sinner) (Al-Baqarah (The Cow; verse 276))
Usury has malignant effects on usurers, their souls, actions and appearances. Physicians see that economic instability that results in avarice causes many heart diseases, hypertension, myocardial infarction, blood clotting, brain damage or sudden death.
Dr. Abdel-Aziz Ismael, the master of the internal medicine in Egypt, said in his “Islam and Modern Medicine” that usury is the main reason behind the spread of heart diseases. source: Imanway.com
