Dr Adekunle Mikail
The argument in the street in the last three days here in the most populous black nation in the world is how does an individual spend his or her wealth? Whether he or she deploys it for the benefits of humanity and the development of man in general such as in the procurement of the basics of life such as foods, clothes shelters and medicines for his or her goodness or in the obtainment of ostentatious goods such as state -of the -earth cars, luxurious buildings or other material enjoyments that man seek for his or her earthly living!
The causal belle or what has brought this argument was the appeal of one of the music stars in the nation who had sought the hands of his fans to support him by contributing millions to his purse so that he could clear his newly acquired roll Royce from the port. He made this entreaty by appealing to his fans’ sensibilities by saying that ‘ if he had dropped hit songs for them in the past’ , he wants them to show him love and pay him back by dropping something for him so that he would use it clear his newly acquired roll Royce’!
Surprisingly, within 10 minutes of his entreaty, his fans had dropped 7 million naira! Yes seven good million naira just like that within the twinkle of an eyes! And after some hours later, he had acquired more than 100 million naira, even more than he had required! The ease, the comfort and the zeal the fans had exuded in donating millions to their music idol’s account was legendary!
And if the wealthy among the fans could perform excellently well as they had done for having the means to do so without having a recourse to blaming themselves for doing what they could not avoid in the first place, what can we say about the poor among the fans who had also strived endlessly to love the musician back for the songs he had dropped for them hitherto, by dropping their widow’s mite in forms of 1k, 2k and other thousands!
While some are commending the musician’s fans for standing with him at the time of his needs, for according to them, the musician too had supported some of his fans before now at their hours of needs, others are condemning the donors for pouring well waters into the sea – they argued that most of these fans that donated millions of naira in droves , have families and friends whom some thousands of naira can alleviate their sufferings or better their conditions if they would choose to help them.
Honestly, we should not blame the two groups above on how an individual should spend his or her wealth for man is an enemy of what he knows not according to an Arab axiom! We can only blame those that know a straight and guided way but who has chosen to take other routes other than that blessed road!
And as it in the days of yore, so it is now in the time of ignorance despite the avalanche of means to knowledge, it is said that in the early days of the prophet’s mission when his sermon was entering the right spot in the hearts of the Makkah dwellers, some companions of him had come to him to ask him the question pertaining to what our people is asking in the street today containing spending one’s wealth! They asked him :” what should we spend in charity ?” It is our Dirham and Dinar ( forms of money common in their land), it is our agricultural products, it is our time for beneficial things, it is our clothes or other things that benefits humanity?”
But exalted is He who Knows everything , Allah ,exalted is His name, who gave the prophet salla-llahu alehi wasalam, answer to what is bordering his fledging society, He gave them more answer than what they had asked in the first place. Allah Had made His answering of their question an avenue to take care of other things and issues bordering on spending so that nothing would be left afterwards which could serve as an hindrance to spending in their midst! This divine method had been adopted later by the jurisprudent in Islam as their method in answering the question of a questioner whenever he poses one!
When the companions had asked the prophet salla-llahu alehi wasalam ” what should we spend in charity”, Allah Has answered them as follows in Qur’an 2 vs 215 as follows :
” They ask you what they should spend in charity. Say : whatever wealth you spend that is good, is for parents ( your parents) and kindred ( near and far relatives), and orphans and those in want and for wayfarers. And whatever you do that is good,_Allah knows it well”
The questioners had asked :” what should we spend in charity?” But did not ask ”to whom shall we give?” , which is also pertinent to the knowledge of spending wealth!
According to Allama Yusuf Aliy, the leader of the exegetes of the glorious Qur’an in English language when explaining this verse:
” Three questions arise in charity : (1) What shall we give? (2) how shall we give? (3) . The answer is here . Give anything that is good, useful, helpful, valuable . It may be property or money ; it may be a helping hand: it may be advice; it may be a kind word; ” whatever that you give that is good” is charity according to the verse.”
” On the other hand, if you throw away what is useless , there is no charity in it. Or if you give something with a harmful intent. e.g., a sword to a madman, or a drug or sweets or even money to some one whom you want to entrap or corrupt , it is no charity but a gift of damnation!”
A Gift Of Damnation
According to Allama Yusuf Aliy above, a gift of damnation is to give or spend something with a harmful intent! To spend your money or give your time to somebody with a view to teaching him evil; how to use hard substance, how to cheat the government or how to disobey one’s parents! We have some people today whose pastime is spending in teaching children how to smoke ganja, or how to drink alcoholics ! Some are spending their own on teaching impressionable minds on how to be masters in hedonistic exercises! And when you tell them to fear God and refrain from corrupting the leaders of the nation and world tomorrow, they will haul vituperations and invectives on you while giving you bad alias on you!
Allama Yusuf Aliy continues in his explanation on the verse of spending above saying:
” To whom should you give?. It may be tempting to earn the world’s praise by a gift that will be talked about, but are you meeting the needs of those who have the first claim on you? If you are not, you are like a person who defrauds creditors: it is no charity. Every gift is judged by its unselfish character: the degree of need or claim is a factor which you should consider: if you disregard it , there is something selfish behind it. And finally: How should it be given? As in the sight of Allah; this shuts out all pretence , show , and insincerity !”
Are You Meeting The Needs Of Those Who Have The First Claim On You?
Do our friends who have been donating millions of naira to the musician’s purse meet the needs of those who have the first claim on them? Have they been donating like they have been doing to the musician to their immediate family members such as their wives who have been labouring to take good care of them; parents who had laboured that they remained good ,sound and healthy on the surface of the earth; extended family members who are their kindred, who are there for them when eventualities of life rear their ugly heads; to the orphans who have no fathers to shoulder their responsibilities; to those in want whose poverty is bedridden them from eating daily ; to the wayfarers who have lost the means to continue their travelling or pursue their search for beneficial knowledge?
How many of these people considered spending their wealth on research which can herald new findings in human health, technology and artistic creativity like Ford’s Foundation has been doing for science and general education; Bill and Melinda foundation has been a blessing for HIV/ AIDs and Malaria victims and Ibn Suidi has been performing miracles for the welfare of the Muslims in the worlds!
Nay! Our friends have preferred earning the world’s praise in the words of Allama Yusuf Aliy, to earning Allah’s grace and blessing, for anybody that endeavour to spend anything good in charity for God’s sake will be rewarded with more grace and blessing of Allah! It is like the words of prophet Muhammad salla-llahu alehi wasalam when talking on malevolent or malicious feast or reception as follows :
” A malevolent feast is the one which only the rich and wealth are invited to but which the poverty ridden are barred from …”!
The musician in question and his millions donors are visibly wealthy souls ,no doubt! The object to which he had begged to be donated for has not been one needed for emergency or exigent demand! It is a pure article of ostentation crazily coveting by somebody which fate has favoured before now in a country where the population of the poor is higher in all account than the wealthy!
As for the poor donors who out of their love for the musician donated their widow’s mite, it is not a bad idea that you strive to do your part on an course in which the rich are called but next time please and please let your donations be for those that are lower to you in the poverty ladder!
According to prophet Muhammad salla-llahu alehi wasalam, again while showing the Faithfuls the gradation of whom an owner of a wealth should spend it, he says :
” a spending you put into the mouth of your wife and parents is better and rewardable than the one you give to your kindred ( near and far relatives); the one you put into the mouths of your kindred is better and rewardable than the one you spend on the orphans; the one you spend on the orphans is better and rewardable than the one you spend on the one that have want while the one you spend on the one that have want is better and rewardable than the one you spend on the wayfarers!”
It is better for you to spend your tokens on yourself or your immediate family members or on others who are lower you in the rung of poverty. For spending in the cause of a musician who can feed you for more than a century if you will not be eating more than some morsels of Amala, some pieces of fish and meat and bottles of water; is no charity but a showbiz charade which will earn you no reward despite the many statements of Allah’s apostle , salla-llahu alehi wasalam, on the benefits of charity as follows :
Charity As A Means Of Garnering Wealth.
The prophet has said:
” Give charity Oh Bilal ! And do not fear from the owner of the Thrones (Allah), poverty!” . Is like the prophet is saying to Bilal, his chief prayer caller ” give whatever you have in charity and do not think the owner of the Thrones who is also the owner of all wealth, will thrown you in poverty for giving your wealth in charity !
The prophet said in an hadith reported by Abu-Hurrairah ( Radiya-llahu anhu) :
” There is no day in which the servant of Allah wakes therein ,except that two angels descend; one will be saying :” oh God give the spender of his wealth on charity ,a deposit of wealth”: and the other angel will be saying:” Oh God give the holder of wealth( who does not spend it ) a devastation ( spoil his wealth )”
Charity As An Antidote To Disease!
The prophet salla-llahu alehi wasalam said in one of his ahadith as follows:
: ” Treat your diseases with Charity!” . Exalted is Allah! Is like the prophet is commanding us his ummah, ” do not be slacken, give charity for it lies in its giving , medicines to ailments that ravish you !”
(3) Charity Bars God’s Displeasure And It Is A Formidable Wall Against Death By Plague
The prophet salla-llahu alehi wasalam said in an hadith narrated by his maid Anas Ibn Malik as follows:
” Indeed Charity is a steer ( secret, tip, mystery and reserve) , which bars Allah’s displeasure and prevents death by plague ( Ajakale arun in Yoruba parlance)”
One Of The Fruits Of Charity; An Illumination
Imam Shinkitiy ( Rahimahu llahu) told a story in his book ” Matlahu Baduru” that a man who was a farmer and who happened to be a righteous being had a mosque on which he daily worshipped God. Every night he would go to his mosque with a lamp and a night food. If he ever met other worshippers in the mosque ,he would share his night food with them and prayed the night prayer but if he didn’t, he would eat his food and prayed his night prayer.
He was on this for many years until a Well beside the mosque was dilapidated and its water reduced greatly! He called his children and they agreed to revamp it. The man then volunteered to enter into the Well but on getting there, he slipped into its dungeon and the children tried to remove him but later abandoned their moves to prevent more casualties!
Then for good six years the man was in the valley in the Well living while the charity and the food he lighted and gave to others respectively continue to serve him while Allah prevented him from all the hurts in the Well! After sometimes, his children’s hearts were in the repair of the Well for the benefits of humanity.
When they reached the beneath of the Well, they saw that it had a valley and saw their father still living , breathing and hale! When questioning him about the cause of this miracle, he said ” it was the food he gave others in charity and the light he provided for Allah’s servants to see with it on their ways to the mosque which God Had used in his wisdom to provide shelters and food for him while in the dungeon of desolation!