Shaykh Ibn Taymiyah (rahimahullah) said:

‎Amongst the people there is he who Hasad leads him to backbite. Thus, he combines two ugly affairs: backbiting and envy.

‎[Source: Majmū' al-Fatāwā, 28/238]

Allah uglifies the face of those who spread slander (backbiting) and carry tales (gossiping).

[al-Hafidh adh-Dhahabi (rahimahullah), Siyar A’laam an-Nubalaa’, 14/380]

Whoever sets his tongue free to slander and speak about the honour of the Muslims, and seeks their faults, Allāh will hold back his tongue from professing the Shahādah (at the time of death).

[Ibn al-Jāwzī (rahimahullāh), Baḥr ad-Dumūʿ (Sea of Tears), 1/124]

Urwah ibn al-Zubayr (radiyAllahu ‘anhu) reported:

“Aaishah (radiyAllahu ‘anha) would give 70,000 coins in charity while her own clothes were covered in patches.”

[al-Zuhd wal-Raqa’iq, 754]

Abdullah Ibn Zubayr (radiyAllahu ‘anhu) said:

"I have never seen two women more generous than Aaishah and (her sister) Asmaa (radiyAllahu ‘anhouma).

Their generosity was different; Aaishah would gather things and after they had been collected together, she would share them out; Asma would not keep anything for the next day.”

[al-Adab al-Mufrad Book 14, Hadith 280, Authenticated by al-Albani (rahimahullah)]

The Noble Scholar Shaykh Sulayman ar-Ruhayli (hafidhahullah) stated:

The one who falls from the truth into falsehood is far worse than the one (who is upon falsehood) who never knew the truth from the start.

[Youtube Lecture Titled:أمثال القرآن أهميتها مقاصدها, 1 (parables of the Quran, their importance and their purpose)]

Dr. Abdul Malik al-Qassem (hafidhahullah)

When my late father (may Allah have mercy on him) went to offer condolences, he would check on the circumstances of the deceased’s family. If he saw that the deceased had young children, he would ask (out of concern), “Hopefully their house is owned (rather than rented)?” If they answered yes (that it is owned), he would be happy.

[Dr. Abdul Malik al-Qassem (hafidhahullah), Titled: “Housing Is A Priority Dont Delay” from his official twitter account)]

Fudayl ibn ’Iyyād (rahimahullāh) said:

If you are able to be unknown, then do so. What does it matter if no one knows you? It does not matter if you are not (known or) praised. It doesn’t matter if you are blameworthy according to people if you are praiseworthy with Allāh, the Mighty and Majestic.

[at-Tawādu’ wal-Khumool by Abū Bakr al-Qurashī (rahimahullah), pg. 43 | al-Bayhaqī (rahimahullah), az-Zuhd al-Kabīr, pg. 100]

I was with Ibn al-Mubarak (rahimahullah) one day and we reached a water fountain from which people drank,

so he went close to drink, and people did not recognize him and pushed him.

When he finished and came out, he said:

“This is the way to live”, meaning like ordinary people without being (recognized and) dealt with in a special manner because of his knowledge (or position).

[Hasan al-Basri (rahimahullah), as-Sifaat as-Safwah, 4/135]

Ibn Ma’een (rahimahullah) said:

"I have not seen anyone like Ahmad ibn Hanbal.

We were companions for fifty years,

and he never boasted about any of the virtues and good deeds he possessed.

I once saw Imam Ahmad (rahimahullah) go down to the market in Baghdad and buy a bundle of firewood.

He carried it on his shoulder.

When people recognized him,

the merchants abandoned their shops,

the shopkeepers their stalls,

and passersby stopped in their tracks,

greeting him and saying, 'Let us carry the firewood for you.'

He shook his hand (declining the offers),
His face turned red,
And tears welled up in his eyes.

He said, 'We are a poor people.

If it were not for the protection of Allah, we would be disgraced.'"

[Hilayat al-Awliyaa', 9/181].

Follow Those Who Have Died; The Living Are Not Safe From Fitnah

The Great Companion,
‘Abdullaah Ibn Mas’ood (radiyAllahu ‘anhu) said:

Whoever wants to follow a path, let him follow the path of one who has died, for indeed the living are not safe from fitnah.

I mean (follow) the Companions of Muhammad (sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam).

They were the best of this ‘ummah: the purest in heart, the deepest in knowledge and the most straightforward.

Allah chose them

to accompany His Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and establish His religion,

so recognize their status

and follow in their footsteps

and adhere as much as you can to their example of conduct and attitude,

for they followed true guidance.

[Ibn ‘Abdil Barr (rahimahullah), Jami’ Bayaan al-‘Ilm wa Fadhlihi, 2/97]

Imām Ahmad Ibn Hanbal (rahimahullah) said:

Remain unknown, because I have been tested with fame.

[Siyaar a’laam an-Nubalaa’ v. 11, pg. 226]

The Messenger of Allah (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said:

Allah, the Glorified, says: “Pride is My Cloak and greatness My Robe, and whoever competes with Me with regard to either of them, I shall throw him into Hell.

[Ibn Majah, no. 4174]

Ibn al-Qayyim (rahimahullah):

So show no concern for the praise of the one whose praise cannot adorn you in any way,

nor for the blame of one whose blame can do nothing to disfigure or dishonor you.

And seek the praise of the One in whose praise is all honor and in whose blame is all disgrace.

[al-Jawziyyah, Ibn Qayyim (rahimahullāh), al-Fawā'id, pg. 221]

He (sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) spoke the truth when he said that giving in charity (or giving with the intention of charity) does not decrease wealth.

-

Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Uthaymeen (rahimahullah):

The Prophet of Allah (sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam):

“Wealth never decreases because of giving charity.”

And he (sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said:

“Whoever would like to have a long life and ample provision, let him uphold his ties of kinship.”

Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, only ordained these worldly benefits in order to encourage people, and if they are encouraged by these (worldly) promises, then they will do these things (of worship, charity etc)

But the one who seeks the hereafter will attain benefits both in this world and the hereafter,

as Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

{Whoever desires the harvest of the Hereafter - We increase for him in his harvest} [ash-Shoora, 42:20].

That is, We will give him (who desires the hereafter with his deeds), benefits in both this world and in the hereafter.

As for seeking only worldly benefits only (solely) when doing acts of worship, undoubtedly this is a shortcoming in one’s intention, the cause of which is excessive focus on and love of this world in the heart of the one who does that. End quote.

[Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Uthaymeen (rahimahullah), Liqaa’aat al-Baab al-Maftooh, 3/505]

A Mountain of Gold

Imam Abu'l Hajjaj al-Makki (rahimahullah)

Mujahid ibn Jabr (rahimahullah) said:

If you spend as much as (the weight of) Abi Qubays (name of a mountain in Makkah) in obedience to Allah, then it's never excessive;

but if you spend even a small amount in disobedience towards Allah, then it's sheer profligacy.

[Tafseer Ibn Abi Haatim (rahimahullah), 7962]

Every Promise of Allah is True

{يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّ وَعْدَ اللَّهِ حَقٌّ فَلَا تَغُرَّنَّكُمُ الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا وَلَا يَغُرَّنَّكُم بِاللَّهِ الْغَرُورُ}

O mankind! Verily, the Promise of Allah is true. So let not this present life deceive you, and let not the chief deceiver (satan) deceive you about Allah (His promises).

[Surah Fatir, 35:5]

#OnSadaqah

"Treat your patients (ailing ones) with charity."

Ibn Baz (rahimahullah) said:

"Charity is among the greatest causes of healing, relieving distress, and warding off affliction."

I (Abdul Malik) have seen the impact of this hadith in the long life of my mother (may Allah have mercy on her),

her resilience in the face of illnesses that could have led to her demise.

Allah preserved her for us for many years, during which we were blessed with her company, until she passed away.

May Allah have mercy on her, and on our parents and your parents, all of them.

[Dr. Abdul Malik al-Qassem (hafidhahullah), from his official twitter account)]

Hadith Qudsi

The Messenger of Allah (sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said,

Allah said: “Verily, We have sent down wealth for the performance of prayer and offering charity.

If the son of Adam owned a valley, he would like to have a second. If he had two valleys, he would like to add a third. Nothing satisfies the belly of the son of Adam but the dust of the grave, yet Allah will relent to whoever repents.

[Shu’ab al-Iman, al-Bayhaqi (rahimahullah) 9800, Grade: Sahih al-Albani (rahimahullah)]

Salamah ibn Dinar (rahimahullah) said:

Struggle against your own desires (hawaa) more intensely than you struggle against your enemy.

[Hilayat al-Awliyaa, 3/231]

If you see a hateful person who bears grudges, one who does not forget slight faults and always attempts to get revenge (directly or indirectly, by word or deed) for mistakes, then consider them like camels.

The Arabs say, ‘So and so is more hateful than a camel!’

Just as you would stay away from a hateful camel who bears grudges then do not befriend a hateful individual who bears grudges.

[Abū Bakr at-Tartushi (rahimahillāh), Sirāj al-Mulūk, pg. 112]

Giving Charity on Fridays

● Ka'b al-Ahbar (rahimahullah) said:

The sun has neither risen nor set on a day greater than the day of Friday,

and charity given on it is greater than on other days.

[Sahih Musannaf of 'Abd Ar-Razzaq (rahimahullah), 5558]

● al-A‘mash narrated from Mujahid, from ‘Abdullah ibn Damrah,

from Ka‘b (rahimahumullah) who said:

Charity is multiplied on Friday.

[Musannaf ibn Abi Shaybah, 2/57, no. 6, Maktabah Islamiyyah]

● Ibn al-Qayyim (rahimahullah) said:

Giving charity on Friday has a special merit compared to other days,

just as giving charity during the month of Ramadan has a higher merit compared to the rest of the year.

I witnessed Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (rahimahullah)

when he would go out for Jumuaah,

he would take whatever he found at home—be it bread or anything else—and give it as charity in secret on his way.

I heard him say:

“If Allah commanded us to give charity before consulting with the Messenger of Allah (sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) (58:12),

then giving charity before consulting with Allah is even more virtuous and deserving of merit.”

[Ibn al-Qayyim (rahimahullah), Zaad al-Maad, 1/399]

● Ibn al-Qayyim (rahimahullah) said:

If the one giving charity

knew

that his charity landed in the Hand of Allah,

before the hand of the poor person,

the pleasure of the giver would be greater than the pleasure of the receiver.

[Ibn ul-Qayyim (rahimahullah), paraphrased from al-Wabil al-Sayyib, al-Madarij as-Salikeen, 1/26]

Abu Huraira (radiyAllahu ‘anhu) reported Allah's Messenger (sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) as saying:

No one gives sadaqah (charity) of a date out of his honest earning, except that Allah accepts it with His Right Hand, and then fosters it as one of you fosters the colt or a young she-camel, till it becomes like a mountain or even greater.

[Sahih Muslim, 1014b, Book 12, Hadith 80]

Abdullah ibn Mas’ud (radiyallahu ‘anhu) said:

“Charity (sadaqah) reaches (lit. falls into) the Hand of Allah before it falls into the hand of the one who asks for it.” (i.e., Allah Ta’ala accepts it), he (radiyAllahu ‘anhu) then recited the Verse:

{(Do they not know that Allah) accepts repentance from His servants and takes their charities”} — Surah Tawbah, 9:104

[Tafsir at-Tabari (rahimahullah); Jami’ul Bayan, Surah Tawbah, Verse: 104, vol. 11, pg. 666, see also: Majma az-Zawaid, vol. 3, pg. 111, Hadith: 4677]

Abu Hurairah (radiyAllahu ‘anhu) narrated that :

the Messenger of Allah (sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said:

"Indeed Allah accepts charity, and He accepts it with His Right (Hand) to nurture it for one of you, just like one of you would nurture his foal, until the bite (of food) becomes as large as Uhud."

[Jami’ at-Tirmidhi 662, Chapter 28: What Has Been Related About the Virtue of Charity, Graded: Hasan Sahih]

Abdullah ibn Mas’ud (radiyAllahu ‘anhu):

"Indeed, charity* (sadaqah) reaches (lit. falls into) the Hand of Allah before it reaches the hand of the one who asks,"

then he recited:

{And He it is Who accepts repentance* from His servants} — ash-Shura: 25, the verse.

[al-Muj’am al-Kabir at-Tabarani (rahimahullah), 8571]