Generosity means spending with an open heart. Spending wealth on His servants in order to gain the love of Allah Almighty is called 'generosity'. If a person spends despite his need and requirement, then that is the best generosity, this is called altruism . There are different ways of generosity: for example, feeding the poor and needy, raising orphans, helping widows financially and doing various public welfare affairs. Allah said to the people who sacrifice (declaring them as the successful ones):
وَيُؤْثِرُونَ عَلَى أَنْفُسِهِمْ وَلَوْ كَانَ بِهِمْ خَصَاصَةٌ
Translation:
"And give preference (to them) our themselves, even though they are in poverty."(Surah Al-Hashr: 9) While explaining the importance of generosity, the Holy Prophet said:
Translation:
"The generous is close to Allah, close to Paradise, close to people and the miser is far from Allah and Paradise and close to the Fire."(Jami at-Tirmidhi: 1968)
If generosity is seen in a broader sense, along with wealth and goods, a person can also be generous in knowledge, time and health. Telling something knowledgeable to a person who is not familiar, this is also generosity. It is also generosity to give time to a person to make him happy, it is also generous for a healthy person to help a sick, old and weak person in any of his matter.
i. Character of the Holy Prophet and Generosity and Altruism
Hazrat Anas says that the Holy Prophet always gave away any thing that was demanded from him and he possessed that Once a man came to him and made a request.The Holy Prophet ordered to give him goats in such a great number from the wealth of charity that it would be spread between two mountains. He returned to his people and said,
"O my people, embrace Islam. Verily, Muhammad the Messenger of God, bestows so much that there is no fear of poverty."(Sahih Muslim: 2312)
Once a person came to the Messenger of Allah and said, "Tam hungry. He sent a message to his wife about the arrangement of the guest's meal, she said, " "I swear upon the One who has sent you with the highest knowledge, I have nothing but water." Then the Holy Prophet sent a message to the second wife. She also answered almost in the same way, even all wives said like this. The Prophet said to his Companions , Who will invite this person as a guest tonight? A person from the Ansar said, O Messenger of Allah! I will make a feast for him. He took him to his house and asked his wife about dinner. Wife said that there is only enough food for children. He said, manage them somehow and make them sleep. When the guest will come, blow out the lamp and we shall show that we are also eating and then everyone sat down. When it was morning and the companion of the Prophet met him.
The Prophet said, Allah is very pleased with the way you have feasted your guest at night.(Sahih Muslim: 2054)
The Holy Prophet was such a generous person that sometimes if a needy person came to him to demand something and he didn't have that requested item, he used to take that thing from someone else on his guarantee to fulfil the need of the needy. Once a man came to and made a request for something. The Holy Prophet said,
"I have nothing with me right now. If you buy desired items, you can buy them on my guarantee. When something comes to me, I will pay for it."
(Shamail Tirmidhi)
"It never ever happened that the Messenger of Allah was asked for anything and he refused for it."(Sahih Muslim: 2311)
The Holy Prophet was not only a model of generosity in his words and deeds, but he also used to encourage and exhort generosity and self-sacrifice to the Ahl al-Bayt and the Companions.And the Companions used to pile their wealth and means in the feet of the Holy Prophet like crazy.The Holy Prophet said during the battle of Tabuk: Is there anyone who will help me in the preparations of army, I will give him the good news of paradise. Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddique showered all his wealth and means in the court of the Holy Prophet . Hazrat Umar Farooq also presented half of the wealth of the house and Hazrat Usman Ghani presented hundreds of camels loaded with Jihad goods and coins in the Prophet's court.
Ahl al-Bayt were full of generosity, sacrifice and altruism. Once Hazrat Bibi Fatima and Hazrat Ali Al-Murtaza were fasting. At the time of Iftar, a person knocked and said that he was hungry. So, they gave him everything and did their iftar with water.We should adopt the attributes of generosity and altruism because by generosity and selflessness, not only the individuals of the society are helped but the pleasure of Allah is sought as well. Generosity diminishes the love and greed for wealth and goods and blesses a man with peace and contentment of heart. Generosity saves from evils and blesses with complete faith.
