Abu Dawud

1544. English Commentary: "Poverty" is of two types: that of wealth or that of the heart. If a person does not possess wealth but his heart is content and self-sufficient, then this is praiseworthy. However, if, on the contrary, a person is afflicted with "greed," then this is a very reprehensible trait. Furthermore, there is such a state of poverty and destitution in which a person is deprived and helpless in acquiring the necessities of life to the extent that he is unable even to fulfill obligatory duties. From this, the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) sought refuge. By "scarcity" is meant the scarcity of good deeds and the means to perform them. And "humiliation" refers to a person becoming disgraced before Allah by committing sins, or losing his dignity in the eyes of people to the extent that his invitation (to good) is not even listened to. We are taught to seek Allah's protection from this as well. Similarly, for a person to become an oppressor or oppressed within his society—neither of these conditions is praiseworthy.

Al-Awza'i has opposed Hammad ibn Salamah in narrating this hadith, and that is in the following way: Hammad ibn Salamah, narrating from Ishaq ibn Abdullah, said: "From Sa'id ibn Yasar, from Abu Hurayrah," whereas Al-Awza'i, narrating from Ishaq ibn Abdullah, said: "Ja'far ibn 'Iyad narrated to me, he said: My father narrated to me, from Abu Hurayrah," meaning Al-Awza'i mentioned Ja'far ibn 'Iyad instead of Sa'id ibn Yasar. And Allah knows best.

(1) In the benefits of Sunan Abi Dawud, translated and published by Darussalam, hadith: 1544, Abu 'Ammar Umar Farooq Saeedi (hafizahullah) writes that poverty is of two types: of wealth or of the heart. If a person does not possess wealth but is content and satisfied at heart, this is praiseworthy. But on the contrary, if a person is afflicted with "greed," this is a very reprehensible trait. Also, the state of poverty and destitution in which a person, being deprived and helpless in acquiring the necessities of life, is unable to fulfill obligatory duties—protection from this was sought by the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). By "scarcity" is meant the scarcity of good deeds and their means, and "humiliation" is that a person, by committing disobedience (ma'siyah) to Allah Ta'ala, becomes disgraced before Allah, or loses his dignity in the eyes of people to the extent that his invitation is not even heard. We are taught to seek Allah Ta'ala's protection from this. Similarly, for a person to become an oppressor or oppressed in his society—neither situation is praiseworthy.

(2) By poverty, it can also mean that poverty which poses a risk of disbelief and misguidance, because for the common people, poverty can become a means of misguidance. However, for the special servants of Allah Ta'ala, financial poverty is a blessing. Your supplications are, in fact, a teaching for the Ummah. Or, by poverty is meant that which a person cannot bear and is forced to extend his hand in begging. Poverty can also mean poverty of the heart, as mentioned in the previous lines.

(3) By "scarcity" can be meant scarcity of people, and also scarcity of wealth, which has been called poverty above; otherwise, abundance of wealth often becomes a cause of misguidance. By "humiliation" is meant the dominance of people, such that a person cannot even obtain his own right. For details, see hadith: 5451.

(4) In this hadith, each subsequent word is the result of the previous one. Scarcity arises from poverty, scarcity gives birth to humiliation, and humiliation makes a person oppressed. Or, according to the principle "when hardship reaches its peak, it leads to confrontation," he becomes an oppressive bandit. We seek refuge with Allah from that.

For details, see, Benefit of Hadith: 5463.

Commentary:
Benefits and Issues:
To seek refuge from these things, supplicate in this manner:
«اللّهُمَّ إنِّي أَعُوْذُ بِكَ مِنَ الْفَقْرِ، وَالْقِلَّةِ، وَالذِّلَّةِ، وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ أَنْ أَظْلِمَ أو أُظْلَمَ»