Hawzah News Agency- Hojatoleslam Hossein Lagheri, an Islamic scholar, told Hawzah News Agency that the preservation of nature originates from the core Islamic concept of humanity’s divine stewardship. He stated that environmental protection transcends worldly concerns, framing it as a sacred duty mandated by the Holy Quran.
“God Almighty granted humanity the mantle of vicegerency on Earth,” Hojatoleslam Lagheri said, citing the Quranic verse, ‘Indeed, I will make upon the earth a successive authority.’ “This makes mankind responsible for knowing the divine names and for the guardianship of creation, tasked with purifying the Earth from destructive forces and cultivating its prosperity.”
The scholar elaborated on the purposeful creation of humans from dust, arguing against any notion of accidental existence. Referencing the verse ‘He has brought you forth from the earth and settled you therein,’ he explained that God prepared the raw materials of nature as a provision for life before endowing humanity with intellect and creativity. “Our role is that of a caretaker and manager, not a destroyer,” he noted. “We are commanded to cultivate the land, not corrupt it.”
Highlighting the spiritual dimension of environmentalism, the analyst connected the concept of cultivation and prosperity directly to faith. He argued that just as the Quran declares that only believers truly maintain and build up mosques, the mission to protect and build up the environment similarly requires a foundation of belief in God.
Hojatoleslam Lagheri sharply criticized the global powers for the current ecological crisis. “The primary agents of corruption on Earth are faithless rulers and arrogant powers,” he asserted. “From East to West, humanity faces severe environmental crises, the mass killing of living creatures, and widespread pollution because those who wield power without faith, driven by arrogance, think only of destruction and the annihilation of agriculture and future generations.”
He concluded that wherever faith is absent, corruption fills the vacuum, and the environment becomes the first victim. The scholar underscored that because the natural world was prepared for mankind before our arrival, the relationship must be one of humble stewardship, not arrogant exploitation. He stressed that optimizing the use of natural resources is not just an economic necessity, but an act of worship essential for avoiding divine displeasure.
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