A Muslim is Generous and prefers His Brothers over Himself (2/2)

Islam encourages its followers to meet their brothers and compete in generosity that will strengthen the ties of brotherhood among them, because generosity to one's brothers is viewed as a basic characteristic that is required of the Muslim. Islam made accepting a Muslim brother's invitation a duty in which he must not fail. The Sahabah (may Allah be pleased with them) used to accept their brother's invitations, because they saw this as their brother's right and their own duty; failing to do so would be a sin. This is seen in the hadith narrated by Bukhari in al-Adab al-Mufrad from Ziy d ibn An'am al-Ifraqa, who said: ´We were waging a campaign by sea at the time of Mu'awiya (may Allah be pleased with him). Our ship came alongside the ship of Abu Ayyub al Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him). When it was time for lunch, we sent for him and he came to us and said, 'You called me while I was fasting, and I had no choice but to answer you, because I heard the Prophet (Peace be upon him) say: “The Muslim has six duties towards his brother: he should greet him with Salaam when he meets him; accept his invitation; bless him[1] when he sneezes; visit him when he is sick; attend his funeral when he dies; and give him advice when he asks for it.” Indeed, the Sahabah thought that if a Muslim rejected his brother's invitation for no good reason, he was committing a sin against Allah and His Messenger. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) said: “The worst of food is a meal which is cooked for guests, to which those who would come are not invited, whilst those who would reject it are. Whoever rejects an invitation with no good reason has disobeyed Allah and His Messenger.” (Reported by Muslim)

The brotherhood of faith is not just the matter of empty slogans to be shouted. It is a sacred bond that has its own commitments, duties and rights. The one who truly believes in Allah and the Last Day, and who follows Islam, knows this, and does his best to fulfil the duties of Islam. We see evidence of that faith and devotion to Islamic duty in the deeds of the Ansar who set the highest example of selfless love towards their Muhajir brothers who had emigrated for the sake of their religion and arrived in Madinah possessing nothing. The Ansar offered them everything, to the extent that one of them told his Muhajir brother: "This is my wealth: take half of it. And these are my two wives: see which one is more pleasing to you and tell me, so I will divorce her and she can become your wife after she has completed her 'iddah." The Muhajir responded to his brother's kindness and affection with something even better. He told him: "May Allah bless your wealth and your wives for you. I have no need of them. Just show me where the market is so that I can work."

An Ansari welcomed his Muhajir brother as a guest when he had no food in his home except what was just enough for his children, but he preferred his brother over himself and his family, so he told his wife, "Put your sons to bed and extinguish the lamp, then offer what you have to our guest. We will sit with him at the table, and make him think that we are eating, but we will not eat." So they sat at the table, and the guest alone ate, while the couple stayed hungry all night. The next morning, the Ansari went to the Prophet (Peace be upon him) and told him what had happened. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) said: “Allah is pleased with what you have done for your guest this night.” (Reported by Bukhari and Muslim)

The selfless attitude of the Ansar towards the Muhajirin and their willingness to support them with their wealth reached such an extent that they asked the Prophet (Peace be upon him): ´Divide the date palms between us and our brothers.' He said, ´No.' So they said to the Muhajirin, ´Help us to tend the trees, and we will share the crop with you.' The Muhajirin said, ´To hear is to obey.’  (Reported by Bukhari)

The Muhajirin greatly appreciated the good deeds of their Ansar brothers, and told the Prophet (Peace be upon him): "O Messenger of Allah, we have never seen anything like this people to whom we have come: if they have a little, they are still willing to help, and if they have plenty, they are most generous. They have supported us and shared their wealth with us, so much so that we feared that they would receive all the reward." The Prophet (Peace be upon him) said: “No, not so long as you praise them and pray to Allah for them.” [2]

It was sufficient for the Ansar that Allah praised them and commended their good deeds. He revealed an ayah of the Qur'an which would be recited, and the story of their unique selflessness would be told, for all time, and would serve as a realistic and vivid example of how people can break free from selfish greed:

“But those who before them, had homes [in Madinah] and had adopted the Faith - show their affection to such as had come to them for refuge, and entertain no desire in their hearts for things given to the [latter], but give them preference over themselves, even though poverty was their {own lot}. And those saved from the covetousness of their own souls - they are the ones that achieve prosperity.” (Qur'an, Surah Al-Hashr, 59:9)

Whenever people are called upon to make sacrifices and be generous, this Qur'anic description of the Ansar will remain forever a beacon of guidance and a shining example to mankind who is lost in greed and covetousness.

The Ansar understood the meaning of the brotherhood of faith when the Prophet (Peace be upon him) established the ties of brotherhood between them and the Muhajirin. They were true believers, who liked for their brothers what they liked for themselves, as they had learned from the Prophet (Peace be upon him). They did not withhold any of their worldly goods from their brothers, but they willingly offered them half of what they possessed. At the beginning of the hijrah, they made the Muhajirin their heirs, to the exclusion of their own relatives, in order to fulfil the duties of brotherhood which the Prophet (Peace be upon him) had taught them. This is seen in the report narrated by Bukhari from Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: ´When the Muhajirin came to Madinah, a Muhajir would inherit from an Ansari to the exclusion of his own relatives. When the ayah: “. . . But kindred of blood have prior rights against each other . . .” (Qur'an, Surah Al-Anfal, 8:75) was revealed, this inheritance was abrogated, but the duties of support, help, selflessness and beneficence remained.'