...Spend Out Of What We Have provided...

Society Religion & Philosophy
1

:salam2:

The title of this thread is taken from Chapter 2 Verse 3: “Who believe in the unseen, establish prayer, and spend out of what We have provided for them.”

It is more then seven months and i’m still keep pondering on this verse particularly on “spend out of what we have provided for them”. The questions which comes in my mind is that:

1- How much to spend?
2- Where to spend?
3- Shall we save some out of these?
4- Source of such income?
5- Source of such expenditure?

To find the answer of above, I read many stories of Prophet’s PBUH Companions. Like Hazrat Abu Bakar r.a., spend everything what he had, another Companion r.a. spend half from his wealth. Then there is a very inspiring story of ‘Muhajir and Ansar’.

On the other hand, I’m assuming from this verse that we shall not save any amount for our future or shall not spend on any other luxuries related to this world. <— Here another thoughts come into my mind that we need such luxuries to do our daily life work as well as for our own serenity.

You are welcome to share your views.

2

Re: ...Spend Out Of What We Have provided...

I think that the appropriate amount would be to spend as much as you can after having provided for your family wisely. <-- The question arises here. What exactly would be considered "wise"?

3

Re: ...Spend Out Of What We Have provided...

From my understanding of the ayah:

Ayah 2:3 "Who believe in the unseen, establish prayer, **and spend out of what We have provided for them***.*"

Who believes in the unseen … This is about having Emaan on what one have not seen.

Life in this world is test and in test we are expected to use our intelligence (what Allah has given us to differentiate, analyse and learn) to develop Emaan on things we cannot physically or materially verify (Allah who is one, Angels, life after death, judgement day, jannah, jahannum, etc). To aid and reminds us human to develop their Emaan, Allah sent prophets and books. Prophet (SAW) was last prophet and Quran was last book for humans, to aid and remind us of our test.

Establish prayer: That is obvious … that one should pray to Allah, and that one should do with belief (belief on unseen).

And spend out of what We have provided for them." … here also, it is same as establishing prayer … that is one should believe and then with that believe one should spend what Allah has given.

Actually, here in ayah, important thing that Allah wants us to remember is that, whatever we have is not ours but is given by Allah (provided to us by Allah). We are caretaker of whatever we have (so we should never think that what we have is ours). Being caretaker, we should also realise that whatever we have is test from Allah, and that test is about how we spend what we have (what is provided by Allah).

So, one should not be miser (as people who are miser thinks what they have are theirs), rather spend wherever we see what we have is needed … keeping in mind obligations Allah has put on us. We also should not become careless in our spending and throw what we have, as what we have is not ours, but we are just caretaker and we would be giving account of whatever we have to one who gave us (Allah) on judgment day.

As to how, where, and in what proportion one should spend: First obligation is to fulfil all needs of those who are our responsibility, that is spending on parents, wives, children, siblings, and then close relatives. Once their requirement is adequately fulfilled (not excessively, but adequately), and still one is left with what is provided to us by Allah, then one should spend on neighbours … and then further afar … fulfilling needs of needy adequately.

Anyhow, the word ‘adequate’ is quite vague, and here personal discretion comes into play … and that is part of this worldly test. For one person adequate could be having dinner twice a week in nice restaurant (considering eating out daily as excessive), while other might consider even eating out once a week as waste.

Best answer in determining ‘adequate’ is: One should put oneself in the shoe of people who Allah has not provided (as their existence is test for those who are provided). Then think that if they were needy, what they would have considered adequate for people who are provided.

Anyhow, Allah has created us and Allah knows our strengths and weaknesses, so, even though it is very difficult to get provided and still deprive oneself (and close ones), one should do their best keeping in mind that whatever they have is not theirs, they have responsibility towards those who are not provided, and that Allah would take account of everything what one have (what Allah provided us with).

4

Re: ...Spend Out Of What We Have provided...

Peace lethal kamikaze

To me it means ... Those who don't go willingly into debt and those who don't steal ... And pay zakat on what they have saved.

by extension those who pay off debts before spending on luxuries or going on travel or pilgrimage.

This particular verse does not talk about proportions of spending and who to spend on, but other places in the Holy Qur'an qualify this ...

I also consider my spending money the same as spending on my family. So whether it is for me or for my family what I should spend should be within the limits of what is described above.

Giving charity in he case of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr as-Siddique (RA) and Sayyiduna Umar Farooq (RA) is not called spending ... It is giving away ... Spending here means exchanging for goods that we consume rather than charity because we have not purchased anything.

5

Re: ...Spend Out Of What We Have provided...

Peace psyah,

I don't think if there is any huge difference between 'spending' and 'giving away/charity', hence both is same like:

I spent out an amount to gain good deeds/reward in return from my Lord on the day of resurrection
I given away/charity and hope the reward of it from my Lord on the day of resurrection

Basically, I think, we after spending some amount, usually 'save' remaining for any purpose in the future rather than spending or giving away in charity. The Chapter 104 caution us about collecting and counting of wealth.

In conclusion what I understood from the verse quoted in post #1 is that to be among "Al-Muttaqun [the pious and righteous persons who fear Allah]", it is necessary to spend wealth/amount in the way of Almighty Allah.

6

Re: ...Spend Out Of What We Have provided...

The expression, *they spend out of what We have provided for tke,m, *includes not only spending in the cause of Allah but also spending for the welfare of the individual and the. community. The words used here are used in their widest possible sense. Wealth, power, influence, physical and intellectual capacities-in sh&rt, all that one may receive from God-must be devoted, partly at least, to the well-being of others.

The commandment is explained in the famous hadith: "Your self has a claim upon you, and your Lord has a claim upon you, and your guest has a claim upon you, and your family has a claim upon you. So you should give to everyone his due" (Tirmidhi).

The verse, in short, lays down three directions and describes three stages for the spiritual well-being of man:-
I. A Muslim should believe in the truths which are hidden from his eyes and beyond his physical senses

II. When the believer reflects on the creation of the universe and the marvellous order and design which exists in it and when, as a result of this reflection, he becomes convinced of the existence of the Creator, an irresistible longing to have a real arid true union with Him takes hold of him. This finds consummation in observance of Prayer.

III. Lastly, when the believer succeeds in establishing a living contact with his Creator, he feels an inward urge to serve his fellow-beings who, being the creatures of his own Lord and Master, are members of the large family to which he himself belongs. So, in order to meet their needs and requirements, he spends willingly and freely out of the wealth, knowledge or anything else which God has provided him

7

Re: ...Spend Out Of What We Have provided...

^^^ Brother, you are right about 'spending from what is provided', that when in Ayah it says … ‘spend out of what we have provided to them’, it includes everything what one have, as all what one have is provided by Allah, including power, abilities, knowledge, wealth, etc. … as all what a human have is part of test from Allah, that one should share … or spend on people who require or need them.

But then, explanation of the ayah can include many things that are beyond the topic, as the question asked was specific about ‘spending from wealth’, one restricted the explanation to ‘spending of wealth’.

As for first part: 'Who Believe on the unseen' ... it is to do with 'Emaan' (or explanation of Emaan ... that is part of human test in this world) ... as Emaan is believing on unseen (that is believing on something one cannot verify using senses)... whereas, if something is no more unseen (and can be verified) than believing on that would not be Emaan, but Yaqeen ... and when that stage would come to humans (that for most would happen after death) then test is over (Emaan would turn into Yaqeen without reward ... and addition to a person's amaal would end too).

'Establishing Prayers' and 'spending from what one is provided', is only beneficial for humans going through test, that is, in state of their Emaan (while they are in this world)... and that is why it is mentioned here. [As what I understand from this ayah]

8

Re: …Spend Out Of What We Have provided…

:salam2:
Sorry for short replies.

As per your eeman and strenght. You might have read that in certain ghaza propeht :saw2: accepted sadqa of whole ealth from hadrat abu bakr :razi: but declined the other from some other sahabi :razi:

In any good deeds, at certain times however certain deeds take the form of fardh spending.

Yes. Zakat is on saving not on income. That means that we can save.

Abu Bakr ibn Abi Maryam reported that he heard the Messenger of Allah,may Allah
bless him and grant him peace, say: “A time is certainly coming over mankind in
which there will be nothing which will be of use save a dinar and a dirham.” (The Musnad of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal)

The following is related about the steemed Companion, Sa`d b. Abi Waqqas :razi:, who wanted to make out a will giving away in charity everything that he owned:He went to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and said to him: “O Messenger of Allah! I have a lot of wealth and only my daughter to inherit it from me. Should I bequeath all of my wealth in charity?”

The Prophet (peace be upon him) told him that he should not do so. Then Sad suggested bequeathing two-thirds of his wealth to charity. When the prophet again refused, Sad then suggested half of his wealth.

At this point the Prophet (peace be upon him) replied: "One-third, and that is still too much. It is better for you to leave your heirs wealthy, rather than leaving them dependent and begging from others.”

Sunan al-Tirmidhî (2042), Sunan Abî Dâwûd (2480), Sunan al-Nasâ’î (3567) and Sunan Ibn Mâjah (2699)]

Obviously halal. As haram income is normaly categorised in zulm and you HAVE to return it back as one is not the owner of that income.

Cant understand your question?

9

Re: ...Spend Out Of What We Have provided...

Peace All,

Just thinking that if we start doing as it is ordered then I think there will be no poor left in a country. :)

10

Re: …Spend Out Of What We Have provided…

Peace bao bihari,

No need to sorry :hugz: What I meant by saying ‘source of expenditure’, on which things we should use our wealth? What shall we buy and what we don’t.

11

Re: ...Spend Out Of What We Have provided...

Peace lethal kamikaze

I'lll explain my reasoning. The context of this verse is not "instructive" but "informative" ... The beginning verses of the Qur'an are telling us about "the traits of people" ... Although one can use reflective logic to deduce that if such people have such traits - then we should avoid the traits of bad people and apply the traits of good people. (making a guidance for ourselves through the reflective meaning).

So, the Qur'an is explaining the traits of those who fear God. Here the meaning must mean all people who have a sense of God and those who are seeking Him and those who already have God in their lives. The reason being of the use of the term "Allazdeena" - Meaning "the ones who" - not forgetting that the previous verse said "This Book is a Guidance ... to the Muttaqun" and then in this verse proceeds to explain who are these Muttaqun that this Book Guides ...

So the people who become Muslim, or who are Muslim, are all in this group. It means there are a variety of degrees ... Those people who are doing the bare minimum and those who are doing a lot more.

We cannot assume that the Qur'an is only a Guidance for the Muhsinoon - so in one sense it is giving us the limit of what a believer will do in this verse also.

Now coming back to the actual question ... "who spend out of what We have provided them" - What Allah (SWT) has provided us is a halal criteria ... the believers will not spend anything which is knowingly haram. The term OUT OF means - that some or all is spent from halal means, but NONE is spent in haram ways, for haram things, from haram sources. It includes the bare minimum - i.e. those who buy for themselves only as long as they don't steal, don't go unnecessarily in to debt - (i.e. don't take unnecessary credit) and purify their savings wealth with zakat. But it also includes the people who spend all they have towards goodness ... the greatest being the example of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr As-Siddique (RA), who gave all he had in material possessions to the cause of RasoolAllah (SAW).

All other things are reflexive in meaning or derivative ... such as the idea that "all we have is given by Allah (SWT)" - this is true and we can extract that from here - but the more apparent meaning here is about the halal and haram criteria - that Muttaqun do not overstep that barrier. What Allah (SWT) has provided us is what we have obtained by halal means and that what He has not provided us is what we have gained from haram means.

12

Re: …Spend Out Of What We Have provided…

Peace psyah bhai,

:jazak: for explaining further and I agree with you as you explained above, but I would like to add that the Holy Qur’an, at many stages (in various chapters and verses) ordered us that you/we/they “may become Al-Muttaqun”, by obeying various things/acts as ordered/mentioned in various verses which ends with “may become Al Muttaqun”, in the Holy Quran.

One who is a Muslim or the one who became a Muslim is already within the circle of Islam and different traits of them (Muslims) will have different degrees as per their good/bad deeds. But to become among the “Al-Muttaqun”, one must have fear of Almighty Allah and do the same exactly ordered by Almighty Allah through Holy Quran and as ordered our beloved Prophet Muhammad PBUH in various hadiths.

Coming back the point “spend out of what we have provided”, I think its include a person spend in cause of Almighty Allah whatever he/she is provided, and keep for him/herself that much where he/she can say :alhamd: and for next moment and so on, he/she "توكل على الله ", Trust of Him (Almighty Allah), not to keep that much where he/she buy (more) and feel happy or amass it for own future needs etc., and I think those who "توكل على الله " put their trust of Him are actually ‘Al-Muttaqun’.