Extravagance in Building

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‘Abd Allah ibn Yusuf narrated to us: Malik informed us, from Suhayl ibn Abi Salih, from his father, from Abu Hurayra, that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: Allah is pleased with three things for you and displeased with three things for you. He is pleased that you worship Him without associating anything with Him, that you all hold fast to Allah’s rope, and that you give sincere counsel to those whom Allah has placed in authority over you. He dislikes for you idle ‘he said, she said’ talk, excessive questioning, and wasting wealth.

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‘Abd Allah ibn Sa‘id narrated to us: Sa‘id ibn Mansur narrated to us: Isma‘il ibn Zakariyya narrated to us, from ‘Amr ibn Qays al-Mula’i, from al-Minhal, from Sa‘id ibn Jubayr, from Ibn ‘Abbas, regarding the words of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, ‘Whatever you spend, He will replace it, and He is the best of providers’ (Qur’an 34:39). He said: Without extravagance or stinginess.

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Qabisa narrated to us: Sufyan narrated to us, from Salama, from Muslim al-Batin, from Abu al-‘Ubaydayn, who said: I asked ‘Abd Allah about those who squander. He replied: They are those who spend without right.

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‘Arim narrated to us: Hushaym narrated to us: Husayn narrated to us, from ‘Ikrima, from Ibn ‘Abbas, regarding ‘the squanderers’: They are those who spend without right.

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‘Abd Allah ibn Yusuf said: al-Layth related to us; Ibn ‘Ajlan related to us, from Zayd ibn Aslam, from his father, who said: ‘Umar used to say from the pulpit: “O people, put your homes in good order, and frighten these house snakes before they frighten you. For their Muslim ones will not become apparent to you. By Allah, we have not made peace with them since we became their enemies.”

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‘Abd Allah ibn Musa related to us, from Isra’il, from Abu Ishaq, from Haritha ibn Mudarib, from Khabbab, who said: “A man is rewarded for everything except building.”

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Abu Hafs ibn ‘Ali said: Abu ‘Asim related to us; ‘Amr ibn Wahb al-Ta’ifi related to us; Ghusayf ibn Abi Sufyan related to us, that Nafi‘ ibn ‘Asim informed him that he heard ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Amr say to a nephew of his who had come from al-Waht: “Do your workers work?” He replied, “I don’t know.” He said, “If you were from Thaqif, you would know what your workers are doing.” Then he turned toward us and said: “When a man works alongside his workers in his house”—and Abu ‘Asim once said, “in his property”—“he is one of the workers of Allah, Mighty and Majestic.”

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Isma‘il related to us; Ibn Abi al-Zinad related to me, from his father, from ‘Abd al-Rahman al-A‘raj, from Abu Hurayra, from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, who said: “The Hour will not come until people vie with one another in the height of buildings.”

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‘Abd Allah said: Hurayth ibn al-Sa’ib related to us; he said: I heard al-Hasan say: “During the caliphate of ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan, I used to enter the houses of the Prophet’s wives and could reach up and touch their roofs with my hand.”

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And through the chain from ‘Abd Allah, who said: Dawud ibn Qays informed us: “I saw that the chambers were made of palm stalks, covered on the outside with hair cloth. I estimate the width of the room, from the chamber door to the door of the house, at about six or seven cubits. I reckon the inner room to be ten cubits, and I estimate its thickness at about that between eight and seven. I stopped at the door of ‘A’isha, and it faced west.”

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And through the chain from ‘Abd Allah, who said: ‘Ali ibn Mas‘ada informed us, from ‘Abd Allah al-Rumi, who said: “I went in to Umm Talq and said, ‘How low the roof of your house is!’ She said, ‘My son, the Commander of the Faithful, ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, wrote to his officials: Do not make your buildings tall, for that is among the worst of your days.’”

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Sulayman ibn Harb related to us; Jarir ibn Hazim related to us, from al-A‘mash, from Sallam ibn Shurahbil, from Habba ibn Khalid and Sawa’ ibn Khalid, that the two of them came to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, while he was working on a wall—or a building—of his, and they helped him.

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Adam related to us; Shu‘ba related to us, from Isma‘il ibn Abi Khalid, from Qays ibn Abi Hazim, who said: We went to visit Khabbab while he had been cauterized seven times. He said: “Our companions who passed away before us went on, and this world did not diminish them. We have come into possession of things for which we find no place except the earth. Were it not that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, forbade us to pray for death, I would pray for it.”

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Then we came to him another time while he was building a wall of his, and he said: “A Muslim is rewarded for everything he spends, except for something he puts into the earth.”

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‘Umar related to us; he said: My father related to us; al-A‘mash related to us; Abu al-Safar related to us, from ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Amr, who said: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, passed by while I was repairing a hut of ours. He said, “What is this?” I replied, “I am repairing our hut, Messenger of Allah.” He said, “The matter is swifter than that.”

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Abu Nu‘aym and Qabisa said: Sufyan related to us, from Habib ibn Abi Thabit, from Khumayl, from Nafi‘ ibn ‘Abd al-Harith, from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, who said: “Part of a person’s happiness is a spacious home, a good neighbor, and a comfortable mount.”

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Musa said: al-Dahhak ibn Nibras, Abu al-Hasan, related to us, from Thabit, who said that he was with Anas in the corner above one of his rooms. He heard the call to prayer, so he came down, and I came down. Anas shortened his steps and said: “I was with Zayd ibn Thabit, and he walked with me in this manner. He said, ‘Do you know why I did that with you? The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, walked with me in this manner and said, “Do you know why I walked with you?” I said, “Allah and His Messenger know best.” He said, “So that the number of our steps in seeking the prayer would increase.”’”

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‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Yunus related to us; Muhammad ibn Abi al-Fudayk related to us; ‘Abd Allah ibn Abi Yahya related to me, from Ibn Abi Hind, from Abu Hurayra, from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, who said: “The Hour will not come until people build houses that resemble striped garments.” Ibrahim said: “Meaning, striped clothes.”

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Musa said: Abu ‘Awana related to us; ‘Abd al-Malik ibn ‘Umayr related to us, from Warrad, the scribe of al-Mughira, who said: Mu‘awiya wrote to al-Mughira, “Write to me what you heard from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him.” He wrote to him: “The Prophet of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, used to say at the end of every prayer: ‘There is no god but Allah alone, with no partner. To Him belongs the dominion and praise, and He has power over all things. O Allah, none can withhold what You give, and none can give what You withhold; and a person of fortune gains no benefit from his fortune against You.’” He also wrote to him: “He used to forbid idle talk and gossip, excessive questioning, and wasting wealth. He also used to forbid disobedience to mothers, burying daughters alive, and withholding and demanding.”

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Adam related to us; Ibn Abi Dhi’b related to us, from Sa‘id al-Maqburi, from Abu Hurayra, who said: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “No deed of any of you will save him.” They said, “Not even you, Messenger of Allah?” He said, “Not even me, unless Allah envelops me in mercy from Him. So act rightly and come close; set out in the morning and evening, and at some part of the night. Aim for moderation, aim for moderation, and you will reach your destination.”