Quran Garden

Session 508

Chapter 3

Verse 180

Those who are tight-fisted with the bounty God has given them should not think that that is better for them.  No indeed, it is worse for them!  What they were tight-fisted with will be hung around their necks on the Day of Rising.  It is God who will inherit the heavens and earth: God is well aware of everything you do.  (Chapter 3: Verse 180)

In Aya 178, we discussed how some hypocrites and disbelievers were under the false assumption that a long life was a privilege and joy for them.  Here, we have another group who thinks that money and wealth are the ultimate good and happiness.  But Allah reminds them that they entered this world naked with no possessions or pockets and, more importantly, will leave with nothing.  Every penny and provision is a gift from Him.    

Keep in mind that while people invent and create things, our inventions are made from the material God provided.  We can explore and utilize God's earth, but no one brings land from their pocket to plant; no one creates seeds from thin air, and none can bring water that did not exist to irrigate with.  The land belongs to God and is a gift from Him, as are the seeds and water. 

Even your power and intelligence are bounties.  When you raise an axe to strike the earth, do you know how many muscles you use?  How many muscles do you move when the axe comes down?  Did you stop for a second and ask yourself where the iron in the axe came from?  God says,

We sent Our messengers with clear signs, the Scripture and the Balance, so that people could uphold justice: We also sent down iron, with its mighty strength and many uses for mankind, so that God could mark out those who would help Him and His messengers though they cannot see Him. Truly God is powerful, almighty.  (57:25)

Let's review: In order to create something, you need God's raw materials and the intelligence and power He gave you.  Your brilliant mind, which thinks and plots, is not yours but a bounty from Allah.  Want proof? We ask: If your mind is yours, can you guarantee keeping it?  No, many people lose their mind to strokes and dementia.  How about the limbs subservient to your will, who created them?  It is God.  Can you keep those?  No, many people lose their muscle control to Parkinson's, accidents, and aging.  How about your eyes, ears, money, family, and so on?  

Now, the critical question: What do you own?  What is truly yours?  The answer is simple: Nothing.  All belong to and will return to the Almighty.  So, make sure you give the Lord His due right in all you have.

Truthfully, God only asks very little from you: a few moments of your day and a small percentage of your wealth.  God is appreciative of your movement and effort, thus, He made the almsgiving Zakat amount inversely proportional to the sweat, time, and natural recourses available to you.  For example, the Zakat on minerals excavated from the earth is 20%.  The Zakat due on agricultural products is 10% of whatever is irrigated naturally by rain and 5% of whatever is irrigated by human effort and groundwater.  In the day-to-day jobs that consume most of your time, the Zakat almsgiving is 2.5% of savings above a certain minimum Nisab amount.  As you can see, when the work is harder and fewer natural resources are in play, God asks you to pay less in Zakat. 

Lastly, no zakat is due if you put your money into trade, factories, and production.  Why?  Because Allah encourages the movement and investment of wealth, not its lifeless stacking in vaults.  When you invest your money, people benefit.  Take, for example, a man who has money saved and decides, rather than paying the 2.5% annual Zakat, to construct a small apartment building for rent.  He would dream and calculate how much he would earn each month in rental income.  Although he may only be thinking of himself, before this man makes a single penny, he will have to hire an architect, engineer, project manager, carpenters, plumbers, and many others.  Impoverished members of society will benefit from this man's money long before he does.  He may have dreaded paying the Zakat almsgiving on the saved cash each year but would gladly spend it all on constructing an apartment building. 

Economic activity and Zakat are designed to help society thrive.  When you give to the poor, you provide everyone with financial security.  More importantly, charity gives you peace of mind that if you become poor or unable to earn, others will help.  This is Allah's reassurance and the true meaning of social security.  

On the other hand, stingy people are selfish.  They are happy to stack wealth and watch their account balance grow.  Every expense is a dread, and almsgiving is out of the question.  Allah is informing them that they are wrong.  The wealth they withhold from the needy will strangle them on the Day of Resurrection, like a rope around their neck. 

Prophet Muhammad explained, “Those who are asked for God’s share of their wealth and do not give, their wealth will be transformed into a vicious, fiery snake on the Day of Judgment.  It will wrap around them, saying: “I am your wealth, I am your treasure.”  Then he, peace be upon him, recited the verse:

Those who are tight-fisted with the bounty Allah has given them should not think that that is better for them.  No indeed, it is worse for them!  What they were tight-fisted with will be hung around their necks on the Day of Rising.

So be careful!  Any due Zakat you withhold will only increase the size and viciousness of that snake.  Always remember:

It is God who will inherit the heavens and earth: God is well aware of everything you do.

And in another verse,

Give from what We have provided for you before death comes to one of you, and he says, "My Lord, if only you would give me a little more time so that I can give alms and be one of the righteous!" (63:10)

A man came to Prophet Muhammad and said: "O Messenger of Allah, what charity has the greatest reward?" He said: "To give charity while you are healthy, afraid of poverty, and hopeful for wealth.  Do not delay until your soul reaches the throat, saying: 'So-and-so is due this, and so-and-so is due that.'"

The verse ends with "God is well aware of everything you do," which is a terrifying statement.  You can hide your wealth, get away with deceiving others, cheat on your taxes, and falsify balance sheets.  But know that Allah is aware of all you do.  He says,

Whoever has done an atom's-weight of good will see it, and whoever does an atom's weight of evil will see it. (99:7-8)