The Book of Miscellany

A man asked Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), "Which act in Islam is the best?" He (ﷺ) replied, "To feed (the poor and the needy) and to greet those whom you know and those you do not know."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "There are forty kinds of virtue, the highest of which is to gift a (milch) she goat. He who practises any of these virtues, expecting its reward (from Allah) and believing on the verity of the promise made for it, will enter Jannah."[Al-Bukhari].

Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "O son of Adam, if you spend the surplus, it will be better for you; and if you retain it, it will be bad for you. You will not be reprimanded for keeping what is enough for your need. Begin with those who are your dependents, and the upper hand (i.e., the one that spends in the way of Allah) is better than the lower hand (i.e., the one that receives charity.)"[Muslim].

Whenever the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was asked a thing by one who is about to accept Islam, he would give it. A man came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and he gave him a herd of sheep scattered between two mountains. When he returned to his people, he said to them: "O my people! Embrace Islam because Muhammad gives like one who has no fear of poverty." Some people would embrace Islam only for worldly gains, but soon Islam becomes dearer to them than the world with all what it contains.[Muslim].

Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) distributed some wealth and I said to him, "O Messenger of Allah! Do you not think that there are other people who are more deserving than these whom you gave." He (ﷺ) said, "They had, in fact, left no alternative for me except either they should beg of me importunately or they would regard me as a miser; but I am not a miser."[Muslim].

While I was walking with the Prophet (ﷺ) on his return from the battle of Hunain, a few bedouins caught hold of him and began to demand their shares. They forced him to a tree and someone snatched away his cloak (which got entangled in that thorny tree). The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Give my cloak back to me. Were I to have camels equal to the number of these trees, I would have distributed them all among you, and you would not have found me a miser, or a liar, or a coward."[Al-Bukhari].

Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Wealth is not diminished by giving (in charity). Allah augments the honour of one who forgives; and one who displays humbleness towards another seeking the pleasure of Allah, Allah exalts him in ranks."[Muslim].

Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "I swear by Allah for three (qualities) which I am going to tell you about. Remember them well:(1) The wealth of a man will not diminish by Sadaqah (charity).(2) Allah augments the honour of a man who endures an oppression patiently.(3) He who opens a gate of begging, Allah opens a gate of poverty (or he said a word similar to it)."He (ﷺ) also said, "Remember well what I am going to tell you: The world is for four kinds of people. (1) One upon whom Allah has bestowed wealth and knowledge and so he fears his Rubb in respect to them, joins the ties of blood relationship and acknowledges the Rights of Allah on him (and fulfills them); this type will have the best position (in Jannah). (2) One upon whom Allah has conferred knowledge but no wealth, and he is sincere in his intention and says: 'Had I possessed wealth, I would have acted like so-and-so.' If that is his intention, his reward is the same as that of the other. (3) One whom Allah has given wealth but no knowledge and he squanders his wealth ignorantly, does not fear Allah in respect to it, does not discharge the obligations of kinship and does not acknowledge the Rights of Allah. Such a person will be in the worst position (in the Hereafter). (4) One upon whom Allah has bestowed neither wealth nor knowledge and he says: 'Had I possessed wealth, I would have acted like so-and-so (i.e., he would squander his wealth).' If this is his intention, both will have equal sin."[At- Tirmidhi, who classified it as Hadith Hasan Sahih].

Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) had slaughtered a sheep and distributed major portions of its meat. Then he (ﷺ) asked, "Is there anything left?" She replied, "Nothing, except the shoulder." Thereupon he said, "All of it is left except its shoulder."[At-Tirmidhi, who classified it as Hadith Sahih].

Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said to me, "Do not hoard; otherwise, Allah will withhold from you."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

I heard Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying: "The case of a miserly man and a generous man who gives in charity is similar to that of two persons who are clad in armour from their breasts up to their collar bones. When the generous man gives in charity, his armour expands so much as to cover his fingertips and toes. When the miser intends to spend something the armour contracts and every ring of it sticks to the place where it is (sinks into his flesh). He tries to loosen it but it does not expand."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "He who gives in charity the value of a date which he legally earned, and Allah accepts only that which is pure, Allah accepts it with His Right Hand and fosters it for him, as one of you fosters his mare, until it becomes like a mountain."[Al- Bukhari and Muslim].

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "While a man was walking through a barren land, he heard a voice coming out of a cloud saying: 'Irrigate the garden of so-and- so.' Thereupon the cloud drifted in a certain direction and discharged its water over a rocky plain. The streamlets flowed into a channel. This man followed the channel until it reached a garden and he saw the owner of the garden standing in its center, working with his spade spreading the water (changing the course of the water). He asked him: "O slave of Allah, what is your name?" He told his name, which was the same that he heard from the cloud. The owner of the garden then asked him: "O slave of Allah, why did you ask my name?" He replied: "I heard a voice from a cloud which poured down this water saying: 'Irrigate the garden of so-and-so.' I would like to know what do you do with it." He said: "Now that you asked me, I will tell you. I estimate the produce of the garden and distribute one-third of it in charity, I spend one-third on myself and my family and invest one-third back into the garden."[Muslim].

Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Beware of oppression, for oppression will be darkness on the Day of Resurrection; and beware of stinginess because it destroyed those who were before you. It incited them to shed their blood and deem unlawful as lawful."[Muslim].

A man came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said; "I am hard pressed by hunger." He (ﷺ) sent a word to one of his wives who replied: "By Him Who has sent you with the Truth, I have nothing except water." Then he sent the same message to another (wife) and received the same reply. He sent this message to all of them (i.e., his wives) and received the same reply. Then he (ﷺ) said, "Who will entertain this (man) as guest?" One of the Ansar said: "O Messenger of Allah, I will." So he took him home and said to his wife: "Serve the guest of Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)."Another narration is: The Ansari asked his wife: "Have you got anything?" She answered: "Nothing, except a little food for the children." He said: "Keep them busy with something, and when they ask for food put them to sleep. When the guest enters, extinguish the light and give him the impression that we are also eating." So they sat down and the guest ate and they passed the night hungry. When he came to the Prophet (ﷺ) in the morning, he said to him, "Allah admired what you did with your guest last night."[Al- Bukhari and Muslim].

Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "The food for two suffices for three; and the food for three suffices for four persons."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].In Muslim, Jabir (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "The food for one person suffices for two; the food for two suffices for four, and the food for four suffices for eight persons."

Once we were on a journey with Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) when a rider came and began looking right and left. Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Whoever has an extra mount should offer it to him who is without it, and whoever has surplus food should give it to him who has nothing;" and he continued mentioning other properties until we thought that none of us had any right to surplus of his own property.[Muslim].

A woman brought a woven piece of cloth to Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said to him: "I have woven this sheet with my own hands for you to wear." He accepted it as he was in need of it. He later came out wearing it as a lower garment. Someone said: "How nice it is! Kindly give it to me." Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Very well." He remained in our company for some time, then he went back, folded it and sent it to the man. The people said (to that man): "You did not do well. Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) wore it and he was in need of it, and you asked him for it when you are well aware that he (ﷺ) never refuses a request." He said: "I swear by Allah that I did not ask it for wearing. I asked him for it so that it might be my shroud after my death." Sahl (the narrator of this Hadith) said: And in fact it was used as his shroud.[Al-Bukhari].

Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "When the Ash'ariyun run short of food in the Jihad or when they are at home in Al-Madinah, they collect all the provisions they have in a sheet and then divide it equally among themselves. They are of me and I am of them."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

A drink was brought to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and he drank some of it. On his right was a boy and on his left were elderly people. He said to the boy, "Would you permit me to give the rest of this drink to these on my left?" The boy said, "O Messenger of Allah, I would certainly not give preference to anyone in anything that might come to me from you." So he handed over the rest of the drink to him.[Al- Bukhari and Muslim].