FOMO vs Fiqh: When Social Prestige Overrides Muamalah Logic

Have you ever felt anxious, restless, or suddenly ‘poor’ just from seeing a friend’s Instagram Story at a trendy new café? If so, you are not alone. In this digital age, a mental affliction is silently driving the economic engine of the youth: FOMO, or the neurotic fear of being left behind by the trends and lifestyles of others on social media. Worse, FOMO is no longer just a personal psychological issue; it has mutated into a massive market behaviour among today’s young Muslim generation. To quell the anxiety of being considered ‘unsociable’ or ‘outdated’, sound financial logic and the principles of muamalah are often kicked aside. Digital prestige forces young people to dig deeper into their pockets for items they do not actually need.

Many empirical studies prove that anxiety over being ostracised from social circles directly triggers impulsive purchases. The urge to maintain an online image makes many people force themselves to spend beyond their means. This pattern leads young Muslims into the trap of a hedonistic lifestyle, a secular materialist view that worships physical pleasure and social status as life’s ultimate goal. Yet, Islam offers a starkly contrasting benchmark. A Muslim’s existence is never judged by the number of likes or the height of their social standing in the eyes of people. Our true value is measured by the quality of our spiritual relationship with Allah (habluminallah) and our tangible impact on others (habluminannas). FOMO culture corrupts this order by diverting a long-term, hereafter-oriented life into merely satisfying fleeting worldly desires. The result? Gratitude erodes, sincerity vanishes due to a constant thirst for praise, and ultimately, psychological stress is triggered.

Fiqh Muamalah was revealed as an ethical guide for managing wealth in a balanced manner (tawazun). In the Sharia theory of consumption, spending has a clear order: Dharuriyyat (primary needs for survival), Hajiyyat (secondary needs for ease), and Tahsiniyyat (tertiary needs for aesthetics). FOMO culture radically inverts this pyramid. For the sake of prestige, which falls into the Tahsiniyyat category, young people willingly ignore rational financial calculations. Consequently, they fall into two economic sins strictly forbidden in the Qur’an: Israf and Tabzir. The first, Israf, is excessiveness. This occurs when we consume something halal in essence, but the quantity exceeds the limit of need, such as buying luxury goods repeatedly or hoarding clothes just to follow trends. Islam instructs us to take a middle path—neither stingy nor out of control. The second, Tabzir, is wastefulness. This is far more severe, involving spending money on something completely useless or even leading to sin. The Qur’an sharply rebukes this behaviour in Surah Al-Isra’ verse 27: ‘Indeed, the wasteful are brothers of the devils.’

Progressive Islamic movements like Muhammadiyah view this phenomenon not merely as an individual problem, but as a systemic failure in our cultural propagation. Muhammadiyah consistently campaigns for the importance of a character of simplicity (qana’ah), a productive work ethic, and economic independence. Technology and modernity are certainly not enemies to be shunned, but tools to be mastered. However, without a strong spiritual foundation, digital progress will only breed a consumerist mentality. Due to a vacuum in Sharia economic literacy, the minds of the younger generation are easily colonised by aggressive consumerist values pushed by social media algorithms. Muhammadiyah advocates for an overhaul of religious education curricula to bridge the Qur’an with today’s economic realities. Young people must be educated to become intelligent and rational economic subjects.

So, how do we survive this FOMO storm? The answer lies in building spiritual and intellectual resilience. Our Islamic financial literacy must be upgraded; it cannot stop at merely knowing ‘halal-haram’ labels. We must discipline ourselves to create financial plans, firmly separate ‘wants’ from ‘needs’, and consistently curb impulsive purchases. Psychologically, there is a simple spiritual trick proven effective in taming modern shopping desires. Some interesting research suggests that making a habit of istighfar (seeking forgiveness) can serve as a highly effective psychological ‘emergency brake’ before we press the checkout button on an online shopping app. The brief pause during istighfar gives common sense time to think clearly: Does this item truly bring benefit to my life and worship? Or am I buying it simply because I am afraid of not being considered cool by the world? Cultivating the traits of qana’ah (feeling sufficient) and tawakkal (reliance on God) is our strongest fortress today. When the heart is rich with gratitude, all peer pressure or prestige displays in the virtual world lose their power. Let us return the function of wealth to its original purpose: as a provision for worshipping God, not a tool to become a slave to human validation.