Sustenance
In the Qur’an, Surah Bani Isra’il ayah 31, it is conveyed that Allah Almighty provides sustenance for our children as well as for ourselves. Why then do so many poor people the world over die each day from starvation and hunger? Please help me understand this.
Allah Almighty provides sustenance for all. He created the earth and the vegetation,
and has provided His creation with all that is necessary for life.
However, rulers, economic planners and people themselves are responsible for husbanding the earth and their own economic wealth. Although Allah supplied the raw materials and necessary conditions, it is the duty of human beings to protect His creation and to use it sensibly,
beneficially and wisely. Every year the USA and Canada burn thousands of tons of wheat in
order to maintain its price, while millions in Ethiopia and Somalia die of hunger. If human
beings neglect their duty, do not conserve the earth’s non-renewable resources, do not protect the environment, permit erosion to eat the earth away, pollution to poison the waters, atmosphere and all that lives therein, they have themselves, not Allah, to blame.