In the way of Allah
They include women (for love); sons (for strength and pride); hoarded riches which procure all luxuries money can buy; the best and finest pedigree horses; cattle which was the measure of wealth in the ancient world and which essentially remains the means and symbols of good farming in the modern world; and broad acres of […]
They include women (for love); sons (for strength and pride); hoarded riches which procure all luxuries money can buy; the best and finest pedigree horses; cattle which was the measure of wealth in the ancient world and which essentially remains the means and symbols of good farming in the modern world; and broad acres of well-filled land. By analogy, tools and machines of luxury in the present age of advanced digital technology may include electric (metro) trains, automatic engines in automobiles, jet aircrafts, the computer, mobile handsets, etc. Beside all these is man’s inordinate love, as described in Qur’an 89:20, for wealth. Man loves to accumulate as much boundless riches as ‘wish can claim’.
Far better than all these forms of material comforts coveted by man is the Garden of Bliss beneath which rivers flow. To attain this eternal home, man must accept to be modest in his love for the pleasurable things of this life; using his wealth only for matters permitted by Islam in addition to spending or sacrificing part of it for the benefit of others. Allah (SWT) mentions in Qur’an 6: 43 that man’s worst enemy, the Satan, makes sinful acts appear charming to man; making him hardened against charity and all that entails kindness. I wonder why man would not be reasonable enough to give away part of what is largely temporal and artificial in anticipation of that which is enduring and natural!
We have never seen anyone who came back to us after death let alone hear stories about life in the grave or beyond. Yet, many of us live as if death is no longer for the living or has been reserved for creatures in another planet. Some of us find great pleasure in spending huge sums of money (sometimes extravagantly) to buy one unit of mobile handset or ‘decorate’ their toilets with sensor-operated water systems, tiles, etc (a vicinity that is even harmful to human health) but find it difficult to spend a fraction as small as one percent of such expenditures in the way of Allah (SWT). The philanthropic ‘tradition’ in many Muslim communities of contemporary Nigeria suggests that it takes longer period of time to build and complete mosque projects, perimeter fencing of cemeteries, community libraries, bridges that could link up villages, etc, than it takes to build and commission political party offices, hotels, clubs, cinema houses or viewing centers.
(Spending) in the way of Allah which is literally referred to as ‘fi sabili-llah’ is one of the eight ways through which Islam enjoins Muslims in Qur’an 9:60 to give out alms. Spending in the way of Allah (SWT) is actually a practical expression of gratitude to the Most Beneficent; and by extension, contentment. This Qur’anic injunction on fi sabili-llah has however though regrettably been downplayed and neglected in contemporary times by both the affluent and the haves-not. It is lamentable that ours is a generation that is ‘allergic’ to expending resources in the spirit of fi sabili-llah. Man’s choice to prioritize spending for the ephemeral luxuries of this life, indeed, makes him a very unwise and foolhardy animal.
Scholars explain that the scope of fi sabil-illah goes beyond its technical meaning of ‘fighting in the cause of Allah (Jihad)’. According to them, its broadened meaning includes giving alms to the poor, the needy, orphans, vulnerable persons, those employed in the services of distributing Zakat (alms), those who have just been weaned from hostility to Truth (and safety), and those in bondage literally and figuratively. Bondage here includes paying to redeem captives of war; helping those in bondage of ignorance to acquire education; liberating those who are held in the grip of debt to economic freedom.
It is also fi sabili-llah to build schools; give scholarships to seekers of knowledge; settle medical bills of sick persons; support religious activities such as da’wah and public preaching; publish books on various aspects of Islamic religious sciences; contribute to the maintenance of mosques, boreholes and other public utilities. Similarly, it is fi sabili-llah to fund researches in various fields of human endeavour. Indeed, every act of benevolence is fi sabili-llah. However, it is not fi sabili-llah to help a debtor whose debt burden was incurred in disobedience of Allah (SWT). It is equally not fi sabili-llah to help a wayfarer whose journey is for unlawful reason(s) such as traveling to see a girlfriend over a relationship that is not intended to end in marriage.
Fi sabili-llah is not a virtue that is an exclusive preserve of the rich. The needy also have limitless ways of giving charity in the way of Allah. Imam Muslim relates on the authority of Abi Dharr (RA) that the Prophet (SAW) while responding to some of his companions who complained about the vantage position of those who pray, fast and yet give in charity out of their wealth (surpassing the poor in rewards), said “Has Allah not given out that which you could also give in charitable alms? Truly in every tasbih (saying subhana-llah) there is such an alms; in every takbir (saying Allahu Akbar) there is alms; in every tahmid (saying Alhamdu lillah) there is alms; in every tahlil (saying La ilaha ila-llah) there is alms; in every exhortation of others to righteousness there is alms, in every forbidding of others from doing wrong there is an alms. In another hadith, the Prophet (SAW) mentions other forms of alms giving to include exchange of greetings among people; settling quarrel among two (or more people); helping a man to mount onto his beast and hoisting up to it his baggage; a good speech; every step taken on the way to observing prayers; and removing something harmful from the pathway.
Each of these effortless acts is a graceful way of earning reward by the less-privileged. But rather than engage in these forms of reward-earning acts, the poor among us most often take to gossiping, sycophancy, backbiting, rumour-mongering and other unwholesome acts that move them away from righteousness. May Allah (SWT) guide us, the rich as well as the poor, to give in the way of Allah, amin.