💎[The Best Charity]

The Prophet ﷺ said:

( خَيْرُ الصَّدَقَةِ مَا كَانَ عَنْ ظَهْرِ غِنًى وَابْدَأْ بِمَنْ تَعُولُ )

“The best charity is that which is given while one remains self-sufficient, and begin with those whom you are responsible for.”

📚[Narrated by al-Bukhārī (1426) and Muslim (1034)]

Al-Nawawi says:

ومعناه أن " أَفْضَل الصَّدَقَة مَا بَقِيَ صَاحِبهَا بَعْدهَا مُسْتَغْنِيًا بِمَا بَقِيَ مَعَهُ , وَتَقْدِيره : أَفْضَل الصَّدَقَة مَا أَبْقَتْ بَعْدهَا غِنًى يَعْتَمِدُهُ صَاحِبهَا وَيَسْتَظْهِرُ بِهِ عَلَى مَصَالِحه وَحَوَائِجه ,

Its meaning is:
The most virtuous charity is that which leaves the giver in a state of sufficiency after giving.
In other words: The best kind of charity is that which leaves a person with enough to rely on and manage his needs and interests.

وَإِنَّمَا كَانَتْ هَذِهِ أَفْضَل الصَّدَقَة بِالنِّسْبَةِ إِلَى مَنْ تَصَدَّقَ بِجَمِيعِ مَاله ; لأَنَّ مَنْ تَصَدَّقَ بِالْجَمِيعِ يَنْدَم غَالِبًا أَوْ قَدْ يَنْدَم إِذَا اِحْتَاجَ , وَيَوَدّ أَنَّهُ لَمْ يَتَصَدَّق ,


This type of charity is considered superior — especially when compared to someone who gives away all of his wealth — because a person who gives away everything often ends up regretting it, particularly if he later falls into hardship. He may then wish he hadn’t given it away.

بِخِلَافِ مَنْ بَقِيَ بَعْدهَا مُسْتَغْنِيًا فَإِنَّهُ لا يَنْدَم عَلَيْهَا , بَلْ يُسَرُّ بِهَا ...

This is in contrast to the one who retains what he needs after giving — such a person does not regret it, but rather finds joy in having given.

( وَابْدَأْ بِمَنْ تَعُول ) فِيهِ تَقْدِيم نَفَقَة نَفْسه وَعِيَاله "

As for the phrase: “And begin with those whom you are responsible for”,
it means that one should give priority to spending on oneself and one’s dependents.

📚 End quote from Sharḥ al-Nawawī ʿalā Muslim.

[When the Devils Tried to Assault the Prophet]

Ahmad narrated — and it was authenticated by al-Albani — from Abū al-Tayyāḥ, who said:

قُلْتُ لِعَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ خَنْبَشٍ التَّمِيمِيِّ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ، وَكَانَ كَبِيرًا:
أَأَدْرَكْتَ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ؟
قَالَ: نَعَمْ.

I said to ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Khanbash al-Tamīmī — may Allah be pleased with him — and he was elderly:
“Did you meet the Prophet ﷺ?”
He said: “Yes.”

قَالَ: قُلْتُ: كَيْفَ صَنَعَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ لَيْلَةَ كَادَتْهُ الشَّيَاطِينُ؟
فَقَالَ:

I said: “What did the Messenger of Allah ﷺ do on the night when the devils plotted against him?”

إِنَّ الشَّيَاطِينَ تَحَدَّرَتْ تِلْكَ اللَّيْلَةَ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مِنَ الْأَوْدِيَةِ وَالشِّعَابِ، وَفِيهِمْ شَيْطَانٌ بِيَدِهِ شُعْلَةُ نَارٍ يُرِيدُ أَنْ يُحْرِقَ بِهَا وَجْهَ رَسُولِ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ. فَهَبَطَ إِلَيْهِ جِبْرِيلُ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ، فَقَالَ: يَا مُحَمَّدُ، قُلْ. قَالَ: مَا أَقُولُ؟ قَالَ: قُلْ:

He said: “Indeed, the devils descended that night upon the Messenger of Allah ﷺ from the valleys and mountain passes. Among them was a devil holding a torch of fire, intending to burn the face of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ with it.
Then Jibrīl عليه السلام descended to him and said:
‘O Muḥammad, say.’
He said: ‘What shall I say?’
He said: ‘Say:

أَعُوذُ بِكَلِمَاتِ اللهِ التَّامَّاتِ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا خَلَقَ وَذَرَأَ وَبَرَأَ،
وَمِنْ شَرِّ مَا يَنْزِلُ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ، وَمِنْ شَرِّ مَا يَعْرُجُ فِيهَا،
وَمِنْ شَرِّ فِتَنِ اللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ،
وَمِنْ شَرِّ كُلِّ طَارِقٍ، إِلَّا طَارِقًا يَطْرُقُ بِخَيْرٍ، يَا رَحْمَنُ.

I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah from the evil of what He has created, brought into existence, and made;
and from the evil of what descends from the sky and what ascends therein;
and from the evil of the trials of night and day;
and from the evil of every night visitor, except one who comes with good — O Most Merciful.’

قَالَ: فَطَفِئَتْ نَارُهُمْ، وَهَزَمَهُمُ اللهُ تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى.

He said:
Then their fire was extinguished, and Allah, Blessed and Exalted, defeated them.”

📚 Ṣaḥīḥ — Narrated by Aḥmad (15189), authenticated by al-Albānī in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ (no. 74).

⚠️Important Clarification:

[What is Meant by “Not Having Enough to Suffice for a Year” to Qualify a Person for Zakat al Māl or Zakāt al Fiṭr]

Recently, some confusion occurred about the poverty guideline entitling a person to zakat as stipulated by the Ulemā. Perhaps the confusion traces to a translation of some for the phrase مؤنة for a year, which, in this context, means كفاية “enough” for the year. The word مؤنة is context-specific, sometimes meaning قوت (staple) food, sometimes رزق sustenance, شدة hardship, and sometimes حاجة need, among other meanings.

A misreading and mis-contextualization of this phrase seems to have led some to assert that anyone, even with wealth, who does not have enough food in their house to last a year qualifies for Zakat al Fiṭr. This is a clear error. That would make almost everyone without exception, rich and poor, eligible.

In order for Zakat al Fiṭr to be valid it must be given to a poor Muslim at the end of Ramaḍān, and most scholars say it must be given before the Eid prayer.

So what is meant by a poor person being defined as not possessing what suffices them and their families for a year? Ibn ‘Uthaymīn (d. 1421 AH) said:

«فَأَمَّا الْفُقَرَاءُ وَالْمَسَاكِينُ: فَهُمُ الْمُحْتَاجُونَ الَّذِينَ لَا يَجِدُونَ مَا يَكْفِيهِمْ وَيَكْفِي عَائِلَتَهُمْ: إِمَّا مِنَ الْمَالِ، وَإِمَّا مِنَ
الْعَمَلِ وَالتَّكَسُّبِ، فَيُعْطَوْنَ قَدْرَ كِفَايَتِهِمْ وَكِفَايَةِ عَائِلَتِهِمْ ‌لِمُدَّةِ ‌سَنَةٍ عَلَى الْمَشْهُورِ مِنْ مَذْهَبِ الْإِمَامِ أَحْمَدَ رَحِمَهُ ٱللَّهُ. فَأَمَّا مَنْ لَهُ مَالٌ ‌يَكْفِيهِ وَيَكْفِي ‌عَائِلَتَهُ، أَوْ لَهُ عَمَلٌ يَكْتَسِبُ بِهِ مَا ‌يَكْفِيهِ، وَيَكْفِي ‌عَائِلَتَهُ مِنْ رَاتِبٍ حُكُومِيٍّ أَوْ غَيْرِهِ، فَلَيْسَ بِفَقِيرٍ، وَلَا يَجُوزُ لَهُ الْأَخْذُ مِنَ الزَّكَاةِ بِهَذَا السَّبَبِ؛ لِأَنَّهُ غَيْرُ مُسْتَحِقٍّ لَهَا، فَعَلَيْهِ أَنْ يَحْمَدَ ٱللَّهَ عَلَى نِعْمَتِهِ، وَيَسْتَغْنِيَ بِمَا أَغْنَاهُ ٱللَّهُ بِهِ، فَإِنَّ الزَّكَاةَ أَوْسَاخُ أَمْوَالِ النَّاسِ.»


"As for the fuqarā’ (the poor) and the masākīn (the needy), they are the needy ones who do not possess what suffices them and their families—whether in terms of wealth or means of earning a livelihood. They are thus to be given what suffices them and their families for one year, according to the well-known opinion of the madhhab of Imām Aḥmad—may Allah have mercy on him.

As for one who possesses wealth that suffices him and suffices his family, or who has a job through which he earns what suffices him and his family, whether from a government salary or otherwise, then he is not considered poor, and it is not permissible for him to take from the zakāh on this basis, for he is not entitled to it. Instead, he should praise Allah for His blessing and suffice himself with what Allah has enriched him with—for indeed, zakāh is the impurities of people's wealth."

[Ibn ʿUthaymīn, Muḥammad ibn Ṣāliḥ. Majmūʿ Fatāwā wa-Rasāʾil Faḍīlat al-Shaykh Muḥammad ibn Ṣāliḥ al-ʿUthaymīn. Vol. 18, p. 568. Collected and arranged by Fahd ibn Nāṣir ibn Ibrāhīm al-Sulaymān. 1st ed. Riyadh: Dār al-Waṭan – Dār al-Thurayyā, 1407–1438 AH.]

⚠️Important Clarification (cont.):

Elsewhere, he elaborates further:

«فَالْفُقَرَاءُ وَالْمَسَاكِينُ: هُمُ الَّذِينَ لَا يَجِدُونَ كِفَايَتَهُمْ وَكِفَايَةَ عَوَائِلِهِمْ ‌لِمُدَّةِ ‌سَنَةٍ. مِثَالُهُ: رَجُلٌ مُوَظَّفٌ بِرَاتِبٍ شَهْرِيٍّ قَدْرُهُ أَرْبَعَةُ آلَافِ رِيَالٍ، لَكِنْ عِنْدَهُ عَائِلَةٌ يَصْرِفُ سِتَّةَ آلَافِ رِيَالٍ، فَهٰذَا يَكُونُ فَقِيرًا، لِأَنَّهُ لَا يَجِدُ مَا يَكْفِيهِ، فَنُعْطِيهِ أَرْبَعَةً وَعِشْرِينَ أَلْفًا مِنَ الزَّكَاةِ مِنْ أَجْلِ أَنْ نُكَمِّلَ نَفَقَتَهُ. وَرَجُلٌ آخَرُ رَاتِبُهُ سِتَّةُ آلَافٍ فِي الشَّهْرِ، لَكِنَّهُ عِنْدَهُ عَائِلَةٌ كَبِيرَةٌ، وَالْمُؤْنَةُ شَدِيدَةٌ، لَا يَكْفِيهِ، لَا يَكْفِيهِ إِلَّا اثْنَا عَشَرَ أَلْفًا، فَنُعْطِيهِ مِنَ الزَّكَاةِ اثْنَيْنِ وَسَبْعِينَ أَلْفًا. يَقُولُ الْعُلَمَاءُ: يُعْطَى مَا يَكْفِيهِ ‌لِمُدَّةِ ‌سَنَةٍ. وَلَا نُعْطِيهِ أَكْثَرَ مِن ‌كِفَايَةِ سَنَةٍ، لِأَنَّهُ عَلَى مَدَارِ السَّنَةِ تَأْتِي زَكَاةٌ جَدِيدَةٌ تَسُدُّ حَاجَتَهُ، فَلِهٰذَا قَدَّرَهَا الْعُلَمَاءُ بِالسَّنَةِ.»

"As for the fuqarā’ (poor) and masākīn (needy), they are those who do not possess what suffices them and their dependents for an entire year. For example, a man is employed and receives a monthly salary of four thousand riyals, but he has a family whose needs amount to six thousand riyals. This person is considered poor because he does not have what suffices him. So, we give him twenty-four thousand riyals from zakāh to complete his expenses. Another man receives a salary of six thousand per month. Still, he has a large family and significant expenses—he is not sufficiently covered unless he has twelve thousand [per month], so we give him seventy-two thousand from the zakāh. The scholars say he is to be given what suffices him for a year. We do not give him more than a year’s sufficiency because, over the year, new zakāh will come that can fulfill his needs. For this reason, the scholars have assessed it based on the year."

[Ibn ʿUthaymīn, Muḥammad ibn Ṣāliḥ. Sharḥ Riyāḍ al-Ṣāliḥīn. Vol. 1, p. 421. Riyadh: Dār al-Waṭan li-l-Nashr, 1426 AH.]