The Sunday Mail
Holy Qur’aan Speaks Umari Stambuli —
We must remember that for charity to be accepted and to achieve its goals, the Believer must consider certain essential etiquettes. First of all, the charity must be given from money that is earned in a lawful way.
Almighty Allah says in the Holy Qur’aan: “O ye who believe, spend from what you have (lawfully) earned.” (Ch 2 : v 267). Also, the Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him) said, “Allah Almighty is Tayyib, and He only accepts what is Tayyib”, (the word Tayyib means pure, good and lawful).
Second, when giving in charity, the Believer must purify his intention and make his purpose just for the sake of gaining the pleasure of Almighty Allah and His reward; not anything else (such as worldly benefits, fame, and good reputation).
The Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him) said, “All deeds are based on intention and everyone will be rewarded according to what he had intended (from his action).”
He also said, “There is nothing that you spend for Allah’s sake except that you will be rewarded for it, even the food that you raise up to your wife’s mouth”.
Almighty Allah praised those who give for His sake without expecting any benefit from the people who receive the charity. He says: “And they give food (in spite of their love for it) to the poor, the orphan and the captive. Saying; we feed you seeking Allah’s countenance only, we wish for no reward nor thanks from you.” (Ch 76 : v 8-9).
Any of our daily actions could be turned into an act of worship if it is done purely for the sake of Almighty Allah, and any act of worship could be rejected by Allah if it is done for any other purpose except for pleasing Him.
Third, the Believer should hasten to give in charity and should not delay it without a specific reason. It is also much better for the Believer to give charity during his life when he is in need of money, rather than wait until death approaches him, then he commands his inheritors to give charity on his behalf, after his death.
The Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him) was once asked about the best of all charity, so he said, “The best charity is what you give during your life while you are in need of it.”
Fourth, it is more fitting for the Muslim to give the charity from the best of his possessions, that which he loves the most. This is actually the opposite of what many people do nowadays, as they only give their old unwanted possessions as if they are trying to get rid of them!
Almighty Allah says: “By no means shall you attain righteousness unless you give (freely as a charity) from that which you love; and whatever you spend Allah knows it well.” (Ch 3 : v 92).
However, this does not mean that one should lessen the value of his charity if he only has a little to give. The Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him) once said to his companions, “One Dirham (coin) could be better in reward than one hundred thousand Dirhams!” A man asked, “And how is that, Messenger of Allah?” The Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him) replied, “A wealthy man takes one hundred thousand Dirhams which is one part of his wealth and gives it in charity, while a poor man who only has two Dirhams pays one of them in charity.”
Whatever you do, big or small, will be put in your account, even if it was as tiny as the weight of an atom. Allah Almighty says in the Holy Qur’aan: “Whoever does an atom weight of good he shall see it (in his book), and whoever does an atom weight of evil he shall see it.” (Ch 99 : v 7- 8).
Fifth, the Believer must conceal his charity and do his best not to let anyone know about it to avoid falling into showing off one’s good deeds to others and doing the good deeds for other than the sake of Almighty Allah. The Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him) had highlighted the great virtue of the person who gives charity by concealing it, to such an extent that (even) his left hand does not know what his right hand has spent.
Saying that your left hand does not know what your right hand has spent is a form of expression that indicates how careful you should be when giving charity. One should try not to let anyone notice what they are doing. It would be even better to hide your identity from the one who is receiving the charity, if this is possible, so as to protect the receiver’s dignity and save him from feeling shameful or humiliated.
One righteous person of previous time used to give constant charity to some scholars who were known to be poor during his time. In order to hide his identity and protect them from embarrassment, he used to wait until they entered the mosque for one of the daily prayers, then he would put the money into their shoes/slippers! The scholars never knew his true identity until he passed away and they found that the charity they used to receive on a constant basis stopped all of a sudden.
Sixth, the Believer must not follow his charity by harming the one who receives it, nor should he keep on reminding him of his generosity. In fact the true Believer is one who after giving charity, will not demand any favours of the one who the charity was given to.
Hurting the one who receives charity in any way would only nullify (cancel) the reward of the charity, as Almighty Allah indicates in His Glorious Book: “O you who believe, cancel not your charities by reminders of your generosity, or by harm.” (Ch 2 : v 264)
Seventh, when one cannot (or does not want to) give charity to a person who is asking for it, he should only say a kind word to him, and should not by any means hurt his feelings by uttering mean comments and remarks, etc. Almighty Allah says: “Kind words and forgiveness are better than a charity followed by injury.” (Ch 2 : v 263).
For further information on Islam or a free copy of the Holy Qur’aan, please contact:
Majlisul Ulama Zimbabwe, Council of Islamic Scholars
Publications Department
P.O. Box W93, Waterfalls, Harare
Tel: 04-614078 / 614004, Fax : 04-614003
e-mail: [email protected]
