Hindu and Buddhism Forbids Usury

Here is a nice summary of various religious all of which seem to give up the fight against usury, at some point:

Among the oldest known references to usury are to be found in ancient Indian religious manuscripts and Jain provides an excellent summary of these in his work on Indigenous Banking in India.  The earliest such record derives from the Vedic texts of Ancient India (2,000-1,400 BC) in which the “usurer” (kusidin) is mentioned several times and interpreted as any lender at interest.  More frequent and detailed references to interest payment are to be found in the later Sutra texts (700-100 BC), as well as the Buddhist Jatakas (600-400 BC).  It is during this latter period that the first sentiments of contempt for usury are exressed.  For example, Vasishtha, a well known Hindu law-maker of that time, made a special law which forbade the higher castes of Brahmanas (priests) and Kshatriyas (warriors) from being usurers or lenders at interest.  Also, in the Jatakas, usury is referred to in a demeaning manner: “hypocritical ascetics are accused of practising it”.

Then he notes...

Indeed, a school of Islamic thought which emerged in the 19th Century, led by Sir Sayyed, still argues for a interpretative differentiation between usury, which it is claimed refers to consumptional lending, and interest which they say refers to lending for commercial investment.  

Which is exactly the position of one Catholic who blogs under Zippy.  Murder is murder whether a company does it or an individual....  and so is usury.





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