Helping the needy

 

Helping the needy is the human and moral duty of all.  Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala) said:

 

Translation: and help ye one another unto righteousness and pious duty.  (Surah Al-Maeda: 2)

 

One can fulfill the needs of someone with the help of charities and the starvation of impoverished gets disposed.  Hence it is also a pillar of Deen', and Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala) declared spending in the cause of Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala), as a test and a standard for His love.

 

The Holy Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said:

 

Hidden charities calm the anger of Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala) and apparent (open) charities will work as a shield from the fire of hell.

 

Charities save people from injurious deaths, evade misfortunes and increase one's age.

 

Further the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said:

 

Charities don't lessen the wealth but increase it.  (Mustadrak Alas Sahihain' Hadith No: 6491)

 

Hadhrat Imam Hasan (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with him) says:

 

Whoever spends in the cause of Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala), they earn respect and contrary to this, whosoever did not, they earned insult.

 

Hadhrat Imam Zain Ul A'bideen (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with him) says: "In whomever you find this attribute that he gives those who ask for is not a generous person but the generous is those who discharge their duties imposed on them by Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala) before they are asked for and don't even possess the desire of being famous.  Instead, they execute their noble deed with the complete belief of receiving great reward from Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala).

 

A great saint says that you give your alms even to those who are deserving and undeserving, so that Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala) bestows you even with the commodities which you deserve and those who you don’t.  Hadhrat Rab'ee (May Allah Ta'ala shower His mercy upon him) never used to give a piece of broken bread or broken item or used cloth to any beggar.  He would say: I feel ashamed that on the Day of Judgment my A'amaal Nama (account of deeds) is presented before Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala) and my whole account is full of useless items, which I gave in the cause of Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala).

 

Anecdote: Te leader of women, Hadhrat Syeda Fatima (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with her) once fell sick.  Hadhrat Ali (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with him) asked her:  What does your heart wish for? Hadhrat Fatima (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with her) said: Pomegranate.  Since Hadhrat Ali is the chief of ascetics, he did not have any money.  He purchased a pomegranate on debt.  While on his way back to home, a beggar met him and said:  Oh Ali (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with him)! I'm very sick and my heart wishes to eat pomegranate.  On this, Hadhrat Ali thought for few minutes that if I give this to the beggar than Fatima (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with her) will get deprived of it and if I don't give it to the beggar than what I shall I do with it, keeping it with me.  Finally He (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with him) decided that whatever may happen, I should give the pomegranate in the name of Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala).  Hence at the same moment he broke the pomegranate and fed the beggar.  Soon after eating that pomegranate, the beggar became well.  Later when he (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with him) came back home he was happy to see that Hadhrat Syeda Fatima (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with her) too got well.  Hadhrat Ali (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with him) narrated the whole tale.

 

Hadhrat Fatima (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with her) said:  At the moment you fed that beggar with pomegranate, the desire of eating pomegranate left my heart.  I felt as if I had eaten that pomegranate.

 

Hadhrat Salman Farsi (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with him) approached them with a covered tray.  Hadhrat Ali asked him: What is this?  He replied: Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala) send this to you from the Jannah of His beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihi Wa sallam).  When Hadhrat Ali saw it, he could only find nine (9) pomegranates in it.  He said that it doesn't belong to me.  Hadhrat Salman Farsi (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with him) inquired: How do you know?  He said: Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala) has kept the reward of one good deed equivalent ten times its worth in this world, and here I only see nine."  Hadhrat Salman Farsi (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with him) laughed at this and took out the one remaining pomegranate from his pocket and placed it in the tray and said:  I had hidden that pomegranate to test you.

 

Hadhrat Abdullah Ibn Mas'ud (May Allah Ta'ala be well pleased with him) says:  "A person who gives 1 Dirham as charity, while he/she is healthy is far better than giving 100 Dirhams when sick and giving one Dirham by one's own hand is better than giving 1000 Dirhams in one's name.

 

Anecdote: Hadhrat Abu Sahl (May Allah Ta'ala shower His mercy upon him) never use to give charity or alms in one's hand, instead, he use to place it on the ground and the needy use to pick it themselves.  His disciples asked him about the same.  He replied: I don't like that while giving alms, my hand should be above a hand of a Muslim and his hand below the hand of mine.

 

Anecdote:  A saint says:  The generosity of a generous is only pure when one assumes his/her donation as worthless and the one who takes it as superior and is thankful to him/her.