Quran Garden

Session 345

Chapter 3

Verse 17

a continuation

Those who are patient, truthful, genuinely devout, who give, and who pray before dawn for forgiveness.' (Chapter 3: Verse 17)

We continue down the list of qualities that will earn the believers immense rewards in God's company in paradise. Let's talk about those 'who give' translated from the Arabic origin 'Munfiqeen.' The root 'nafaqa' refers to an animal that has just died.  When talking about a market, the word 'nafaqa' refers to bare shelves because people have just purchased everything.  If you apply the same root to spending, you realize that Allah is asking you to spend generously, and to completely forget about the money you donated.  In other words, don't say to yourself: 'I did so and so a favor', such thoughts should not circle in your mind.  The only person you did a favor for with your charity is yourself, because charity is your salvation. 

In order to give, you must work beyond your basic needs.  If Allah granted you time and ability, you should work extra to provide for your family and to help others.  Allah guarantees the poor families sustenance from the excess of the rich. 

Always keep in mind that Allah made ability a symptom of life.  It is temporary and subject to change at any moment.  While Allah may be asking you to help the poor today, He will ask everyone to help you if you fall on hard times.  In an ever-changing world, if you become weak, God's commands become an asset on your side, not the burden that you may see them today.  So as you help others, remind yourself ‘If I, or my children, become helpless, there will be someone to help us.' Isn't this the best insurance policy? The believer gives when he or she is capable, trusting that all the believers will be there if he or she is in need. 

More importantly, when the day comes where you need the help of others, wouldn't you love for that help to come fast with no strings attached? Wouldn't you like the relief to be honourable and not accompanied by arrogance or hurtful words? If you answered yes, then this is how you should act now while helping others.  Be the best insurance policy for your brothers and sisters: give generously, forget about your gift, and do not mention to anyone that you helped so and so.

Prophet Muhammad –peace be upon him- said: "There are seven types of people to whom God will provide shade on the day when there will be no shade except the shade of the Almighty.  They are: a just ruler; a young person who grew up in the worship of God; a person whose heart is attached to mosques; two people who befriend each other in God's cause and separate in God's cause; a man who was seduced by a woman with status and beauty, yet he said 'No, I fear God'; a person who conceals his charitable giving so his left-hand does not know what his right hand gave, and a person who remembers God in solitude and his eyes fill with tears."

Here is another way to look at your charitable giving: It is your personal savings account.  You are guaranteed to collect your investment in one of two ways.  First, if your circumstances change and you become in need, your brothers and sisters in faith will step forward with their charitable giving to pay you back.  Second, you will collect your charity in the hereafter many folds over directly from God's hand.  Either way, by giving now, you are securing your future in this world and the next.  God says:

The example of those who expend their wealth in the way of God is that of a grain of corn from which grow seven ears, each ear containing a hundred grains. Truly God multiplies for whomsoever He will, for God is infinite and all-wise. (2:261)

 Allah created all of us.  Some are capable and others are incapable; and our abilities are always changing.  The power you have today may be taken away at any moment.  Everything, including your own body, is not yours; It is a gift from Allah.  Thus, the only true refuge for the believer is with the One who is the possessor of all power, the Ever-Living, Ever-Capable.  God says:

Humankind! you are the poor in need of Allah whereas Allah is the Rich Beyond Need, the Praiseworthy. (35:15)

Allah made charitable giving a sign of piety, and He promised the donor heavenly gardens.  Now, every believer makes it a goal of his or her to work hard, earn extra, and then seek the poor to help.  This is how Allah insured the livelihood of the weak and the poor. 

Hard work requires intellect to think and plan; it requires land, natural materials, and energy.  Whether you a are harvesting crops, or running a machine, everything you work with comes from God.  Thus, you should always work with the mindset that you are the custodian of God's gifts, and you should give God His due right from whatever you earn.  Allah does not take this right for Himself, He only wants it for your helpless brothers and sisters.Allah, in turn, will collect His right from the believers for you and your family if you become helpless.  God says:

Who will lend God a good loan, which He will increase for him many times over? It is God who withholds and God who gives abundantly, and it is to Him that you will return (2:245)

Then Allah turns our attention to those "who pray before dawn for forgiveness." Let's recall the detailed description of the believers Allah gave us so far.  They affirm their faith, supplicating the Lord for forgiveness, and ask for protection against hellfire.  They are patient, devout, and charitable.  All these deeds are meant to fulfill the right of worship; Yet, a true believer still longs to spend part of the night in prayer to connect with Allah.  Why? We answer that a servant either seeks God for forgiveness because he or she made a mistake or because he or she feels that more could have been done to seek God's pleasure. 

The word "before dawn" draws our attention towards the hour of the day when most of us rest in comfort.  A person who wakes up before dawn must have had his or her share of rest. Isn't this one of the major problems of our lifestyle? Work occupies the day, and then the night is wasted watching pointless shows or socializing.  People often go to sleep late and exhausted.  How can anyone with this lifestyle expect to wake up before dawn? If you genuinely value time with your Lord, you would organize your life around it.  You would rest after work, spend time with your family, then go to bed early skipping the nightly entertainment. 

What's the big deal in waking up early, you may ask? We answer that Allah distributes His mercyin the calm hours of the night.  When you wake up before dawn, supplicate Allah, and seek forgiveness, you will earn the lion share of this amazing blessing.  A mercy with no limits.  God says:

What you have runs out but what God has endures, and We shall certainly reward those who remain steadfast according to the best of their actions. (16:96)