Preferences in voluntary charity

Al-Mundhir bin Jarir narrates from his father (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: I was sitting with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) when a group of people came to him, wrapped in sheets and with swords hanging from them; they had no lower garments on them nor anything else, and they were from the tribe of Mudar. When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) saw their hardship, their hunger and their destitution, his (peace and blessings be upon him) face changed. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) stood up and went into his house, then went to the mosque and led the Zuhr prayer. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) ascended the pulpit, and the pulpit was a small one. He praised Allah Almighty and extolled Him, then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "To proceed: Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, has revealed in His Book: 'O mankind, fear your Lord, who created you from one soul' [Surah al-Nisa: 1], up to 'Watcher' [Surah al-Nisa: 1], and 'Fear Allah, and let every soul look to what it has put forth for tomorrow' [Surah al-Hashr: 18], up to 'they are the attainers' [Surah al-Hashr: 20]." And he said: "Give charity before the day comes when you will not be able to give charity. Give charity before something comes between you and charity. Let a man give charity from his dinar, from his dirham, from his wheat, from his barley, and let none of you ever look down upon anything given in charity, even if it is half a date." A man from the Ansar stood up with a bag that was in his hand and handed it to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) while he was on the pulpit. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) took hold of it, and joy was evident on his (peace and blessings be upon him) face. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever establishes a good practice and it is acted upon will have its reward and the like of the reward of those who act upon it, without anything being reduced from their rewards; and whoever establishes an evil practice and it is acted upon will bear its sin and the like of the sin of those who act upon it, without anything being reduced from their sins." Then the people stood up and dispersed, and whoever owned a dirham, a dinar or anything else gathered it, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) distributed it among them.

Sayyiduna Adi bin Hatim (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Protect yourselves from the Fire, even if by means of half a date."

Sayyiduna Adi bin Hatim (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Allah Almighty will speak to every one of you, with no barrier and no interpreter between them. He will look to his right and see nothing except what he sent forth; then he will look to his left and find nothing else; then he will look in front of him and see nothing but the Fire. So protect yourselves from the Fire, even if by means of half a date."

Sayyiduna Adi bin Hatim al-Ta'i (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned the Fire, sought refuge from it and turned his face away; then he mentioned it, sought refuge from it and turned his face away. Shu'bah said: As for twice, there is no doubt. Then he said: "Protect yourselves from the Fire, even if by means of a piece of a date; and if you do not find even that, then by means of a good word."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever gives in charity the equivalent of a date from pure earnings, and only what is pure ascends to Allah, then Allah Almighty accepts it with His right hand and nurtures it for its owner, just as one of you nurtures his foal, until it becomes like the mountain of Uhud."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to say: "O Muslim women! Let no neighbour look down upon (a gift) for her neighbour, even if it is the hoof of a goat."

Sayyiduna Abu Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) says: We used to carry loads (for wages). Then one of us would give a large charity and it would be said of him that he did it to show off, and if someone gave half a sa' in charity it would be said to him that Allah Almighty is free of need of your charity. Then this blessed verse was revealed: "Those who criticise the believers who give charity voluntarily" up to "a painful punishment" [Surah al-Tawbah: 79].

Muhammad bin Bujayd al-Ansari (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates from his grandmother Hawwa (may Allah be pleased with her) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Give to the one who asks, even if it is a burnt hoof."

Abd al-Rahman, one of Banu Harithah, narrates from his grandmother Umm Bujayd (may Allah be pleased with her), who was among those who gave the pledge of allegiance to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). She said: O Messenger of Allah! By Allah, it sometimes happens that a poor person stands at my door but I find nothing to give him. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to her: "If you find nothing at all, then send him back after giving him a burnt hoof."

Uqbah bin Amir (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Every person will be in the shade of his charity until judgement is passed between the people."
Yazid (may Allah have mercy on him) says: Not a single day passed in which Abu al-Khayr (may Allah have mercy on him) missed giving charity, even if it was only a cake or an onion.

Sayyiduna Hakim bin Hizam bin Khuwaylid (may Allah be pleased with him) says that he heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "The upper hand is better than the lower hand. Let each of you begin with his own household. The best charity is that after which a person still remains self-sufficient. Whoever seeks to refrain from asking, Allah will keep him from it, and whoever seeks to be independent of people, Allah will make him independent."

Sayyiduna Hakim bin Hizam (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates a similar hadith from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), except that he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'Wa man yastaghni yughnihi Allah' "Whoever seeks to be independent, Allah will make him independent," and he did not mention the phrase about refraining from asking (isti'faf).

Wuhayb also narrated it from Hisham bin Urwah, from his father, from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), like this hadith of Hakim bin Hizam. Musa bin Isma'il narrates the same hadith from Wuhayb with both chains, and he mentions in it the phrase about refraining from asking (isti'faf).

Sayyiduna Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) says that a man from Banu Udhrah freed a slave of his on the condition that he would be free after his death (mudabbar). This reached the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Do you have any wealth besides him?" He said: No. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Who will buy this slave from me?" Sayyiduna Nu'aym bin Abdullah al-Adawi (may Allah be pleased with him) bought him for eight hundred dirhams, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) brought them and gave them to the man. Then he said: "Begin (your charity) with spending on yourself; whatever is left over is for your family; if anything is left over from your family, it is for your relatives; and if anything is left over from your relatives, then it is like this and like this," meaning: then give to those in front of you, and on your right and on your left.

Sayyiduna Abu Mas'ud al-Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, when a Muslim spends something on his family while hoping for its reward from Allah, it is a charity for him."

Sayyiduna Thawban (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The best of dinars is the dinar a man spends on his dependants, then the one he spends on his mount in the path of Allah, then the dinar he spends on his companions in the path of Allah." Abu Qilabah (may Allah have mercy on him) said: And he began with the dependants. Which man is greater in reward than one who spends on his young children, through whom Allah provides for them and benefits them?

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr bin Umayyah al-Damri (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates from his father that Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) passed by him while he was bargaining over a woollen wrap. He said: "What is this?" He said: I want to buy it and give it in charity. Then he bought it and gave it to his family, and said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Whatever you give them is a charity." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Who is your witness to this?" So he went to Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) and stood behind the door. She said: "Who is it?" He said: "It is Amr." She said: "What has brought you?" He said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Whatever you give them is a charity." She said: "Yes! He (peace and blessings be upon him) said exactly that."
This is the wording of the hadith of Anas bin Iyad, and the hadith of Abu Dawud is more complete.

Sayyidah Zaynab (may Allah be pleased with her), the wife of Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him), says that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered us to give charity and said: "O assembly of women! Give charity, even if it has to be from your jewellery." I was wealthier than Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him), and there were some orphans in his care, and Abdullah was poor. So I said to Abdullah: "Go to the beloved Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and ask whether my charity is valid for you," or she said: "Should I give charity to you?" Abdullah said: "No, rather go and ask yourself." She says: I came to him (peace and blessings be upon him) and sat down, and I saw at the door a woman of the Ansar whose need was the same as mine, and awe (from Allah) had been cast upon him (peace and blessings be upon him). Then Sayyiduna Bilal (may Allah be pleased with him) came out to us, and we said: "Go and ask him (peace and blessings be upon him), but do not tell him about us." He went and asked: "There are two women who are wealthier than their husbands and orphans are being raised in their care; will their charity on them suffice?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Who are they?" Sayyiduna Bilal (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Zaynab and a woman of the Ansar." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Which Zaynab?" He said: "The wife of Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him), and a woman of the Ansar." Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Yes! They have a double reward: one for kinship and one for charity."

Sayyidah Raytah bint Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with her), the wife of Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) and the mother of his children, was a skilled craftswoman, and Abdullah bin Mas'ud had no wealth; she used to spend on him and on his children from the earnings of her craft. She said: By Allah, you and your children have kept me from giving charity, so I cannot give charity along with you. He said: If there is no reward for you in that, I would not like you to do it. So she and he asked the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). She said: "O Messenger of Allah! I am a craftswoman and I sell from what I make, but neither I, nor my child, nor my husband have anything. They have kept me occupied, so I cannot give charity. Is there any reward for me in this?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "There is a reward for you in whatever you spend on them, so keep spending on them."

Umm Salamah (may Allah be pleased with her) says: I said: O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! The sons of Abu Salamah (may Allah be pleased with him) are in my care, and they have nothing except what I spend on them, and I cannot abandon them in such and such a state. If I spend on them, will I have any reward for it? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whatever you spend on them, you will surely be rewarded for it."

Sayyidah Maymunah bint al-Harith (may Allah be pleased with her) says that she freed a slave girl in the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). I mentioned this to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Had you given her to your maternal uncles, you would have received a greater reward."

Bahz bin Hakim (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates from his father, from his grandfather (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: I said: O Messenger of Allah! Who is most deserving of my kindness? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Your mother." I said: Then who? He said: "Your mother!" I said: Then who? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Your mother!" I said: Then who? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Then your father, then the nearest relatives, then the next nearest."

Bahz bin Hakim narrates from his father, from his grandfather (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "If a man's slave comes to him and asks him for something surplus that he has, and he withholds it from him, then on the Day of Resurrection it will be summoned to him in the form of a huge serpent, and it will cling to the very thing he withheld."

Kulayb bin Manfa'ah narrates from his grandfather (may Allah be pleased with him) that he came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "O Messenger of Allah! Who is most deserving of kindness?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Your mother, your father, your sister, your brother, and your slave whose right is joined to yours, and with whom maintaining ties is obligatory."

Sayyiduna al-Miqdam bin Ma'dikarib (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Allah Almighty enjoins you regarding your mothers, then regarding your fathers, then regarding the nearest relatives and then the next nearest."

Khidash Abu Salamah (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I enjoin a man regarding his mother three times, and I enjoin him regarding his father twice, and I enjoin him regarding his slave, even if he is a source of harm to him that troubles him."
The Shaykh said: The students of Mansur differed with one another, in what they narrated from Mansur, about the names of the narrators.