The Qur’ān is the Book of Guidance. And it is for the purpose of guidance for mankind that this Final Book of God narrates stories of earlier nations. In Surah Qasas it presents a story of Qārūn, or Korah, who was one of the people of Moses. God had granted him such treasures that it required a band of strong men to carry the keys of his treasures. But he treated his people unjustly. It is said that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. This is more relevant in the case of power of wealth and knowledge.
When there is a flood of wealth, man instead of being grateful to God Who has provided him with such bounties falls prey to the dictates of his whims and inconsistencies. This was the case with Qārūn. Like Pharaoh, who exerted his power of government and authority to suppress his people, Qārūn exulted in his riches and looked down upon the people who were not so blessed. In the cases of both Pharaoh and Qārūn, what is common is injustice, tyranny, disbelief and abandonment of divine guidance. Naturally, in the divine scheme the ultimate end of both is the same; they both ended in failure and ruin. The people of Qārūn had warned him: “Do not exult (in your riches); for God does not love those who are exultant.” (The Qur’ān – 28:76) This shows that abundance of wealth and knowledge, when coupled with arrogance and ingratitude, leads to ultimate failure and destruction.
Possession of wealth requires its possessor to watch God in all their actions, for it is He who granted them all they have. In this given situation, Qārūn should have made good use of the wealth he had. He should have sought, by means of what God had granted him, the good of the life to come, without forgetting his rightful share in this world, and do good just as God had done good to him, and do not seek to spread corruption on earth. These are the values and features that sum up the divine way of life which ensures success in life and in the hereafter.
Corruption is not only embezzlement of funds; it takes many forms, including injustice, indulgence in pleasure, paying no heed to God’s guidance or to the hereafter, spreading envy and hatred against ‘others’, spending money wastefully and blocking its proper use, etc. Qārūn, out of his arrogance caused by abundance of his wealth and knowledge, was practising all sorts of corruption. Therefore, his people told him, as the Qur’ān records: “…do not seek to spread corruption on earth; for God does not love the ones who spread corruption.” (The Qur’ān – 28:77)