Quran Garden

Session 419

Chapter 3

Verse 92

A continuation

None of you will attain true piety unless you spend out of what you cherish: whatever you give, God knows about it very well.  (Chapter 3: Verse 92)

I am sure that you have done this before, probably more than once! You opened your closet, looked through your clothes, and picked the old shoe and the out-of-style sweater to give to charity.  People typically give away the things they do not like.  But Allah commands you to do the opposite.  Let's see how the Companions of our beloved Muhammad understood the verse, "None of you will attain true piety unless you spend out of what you cherish." 

Abu Talha was one of the wealthiest residents of Medina.  He owned an orchard called Bayruhaa across the mosque of Prophet Muhammad.  He, peace be upon him, used to enter this garden to rest under its shade and drink from its water.  When Abu Talha heard the verse "None of you will attain true piety unless you spend out of what you cherish," he came to Muhammad and said, "O Messenger of God, the most beloved property to me is Bayruhaa.  I want to donate it for the sake of God.  Please take the proceeds from its sale and give it where God guides you." Prophet Muhammad replied, "This is a winning trade, this is a winning trade! I suggest that you find poor relatives of yours and give it to them." 

When Zaid bin Harithah heard the verse, he immediately thought of his majestic horse, Sabal.  He grabbed the horse's rein, rushed to Prophet Muhammad, and said, "Messenger of God, you know how much I love my horse. I want to give it to charity." He, peace be upon him, took the horse from Zaid and gave it to his son, Osama ibn Zaid.  Zaid felt unease in his heart and said, "O Messenger, I wanted to offer my horse in God's path, and you gave it to my son?!" The Prophet replied, "Allah accepted your charity, Zaid." He, peace be upon him, always gave the poor relatives of the donor priority. 

Ibn Omar had a beautiful servant girl from Persia which he loved.  When he heard the verse, he said, "I value nothing more than my servant, and I have now freed her for the sake of God." Ibn Omar could have married this servant after he freed her, but he said, "I want to keep my intention pure for God, and not taint it by marrying the woman I just freed." 

The Companions rushed to give their most prized possessions to the poor.  This may seem odd nowadays, but they understood that God's reward is none other than Paradise.  Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said, "Indeed God's product is very expensive.  Indeed, God's product is Paradise." In a sacred narration (Hadith Qudsi), Allah says, "People paid each other with common goods in worldly life, and today I pay them with Paradise."

Lastly, we tell the story of Abu Dhar, who owned herds of camels and wanted to offer his most beloved camel for charity.  He had a prized male stud that he used to fertilize all the female camels.  When a poor guest came to his door, Abu Dhar said, "I'm sorry, brother, but I am too busy.  Please go and select the best of all the camels from my herd so I can slaughter it for you." The guest returned shortly with a skinny camel.  Abu Dhar looked up and said, "My friend, you have betrayed me! I asked you to bring the best camel, and you brought me this!" The guest replied, "I found the male stud to be the best of all, but I left it for the day that you might need it." To which Abu Dhar smiled and said, "The day I would need it the most is the day I am lowered into my grave. Please go back and take that camel." 

The great Companion Abu Dhar understood that the day a person dies is the only day worth preparing for.  He also understood not to trick or lie to himself.  When the guest chose a camel that was not dear to Abu Dhar, he asked him to go back and bring his favorite because he remembered God's words, "Whatever you give, God knows about it very well."  

In fact, Abu Dhar, may God be pleased with him, taught us the most beautiful lesson about managing wealth.  He explained that there are always three partners who share your wealth.  The first partner is life events that do not consult with you or ask for permission before grabbing your wealth.  Life often forces you to spend when you do not want to or cause your investments to fail.  If your child ends up in the hospital, you may spend all your money to help them recover.  The second partner who shares your wealth is your heirs.  They wait for your death, then dip in and take everything you own.  They look at your money as a free gift to enjoy life.  The third and last partner is you.  You have control over your wealth as long as you live.  Abu Dhar advised, "Try not to be the weakest of all partners.  Spend in God's cause before life's events or death take your money away!"

The companion Abdullah Ibn Amrou came to our beloved Muhammad and asked him about reading the Quran.  He, peace be upon him, said, "You should read the entire Quran in a month," to which Abdullah replied, "I think I can do better." Prophet Muhammad said, "Then read it in twenty days." Abdullah said, "I think I have the strength to do better." Prophet Muhammad said, "Then read it in ten days." Abdullah said, "Can you do more?" Prophet Muhammad then replied, "Read the entire Quran in a week but do not burden yourself with more than that."       

The Quran is primarily divided by chapter (sura) and verse (aya).  Chapters vary in length and are generally arranged from longest to shortest.  The Quran is additionally divided into 30 equal sections, each called "a Juz."  These divisions make it easier for you to pace the reading of the entire Quran over one month: reading a relatively equal amount of one Juz each day.  It is particularly helpful during the month of Ramadan when it is recommended to complete one full reading of the Quran from cover to cover. 

Verse 92 of Sura Al-Imran marks the end of the third Juz of the Noble Quran.  To all of you who have been with Quran Garden from the beginning, we want to say, Thank you!  God willing, we will continue our journey together.  To all our new listeners, we invite you to visit QuranGarden.com and our Youtube Channel and download the QuranGarden App, where you will have access to the entire Tafsir of the first three Juz of the Quran.