WHAT ISLAM SAYS ABOUT BEGGING AND BEGGARS
WHAT ISLAM SAYS ABOUT BEGGING AND BEGGARS
BY:
Nurudeen Dauda
May 1st, 2016.
nurudeendauda24@gmail.com
nurudeendauda24@yahoo.com
nurudeendauda.blogspot.com
Islam is a complete religion it does not need addition neither subtraction; many things that are happing in our societies nowadays are the failure of both leadership and followership. Begging is a curse for humanity and is below one’s dignity and self-respect. Begging tantamounts to lack of trust in God and lack of confidence in one’s ability to earn through hard work. Begging is, therefore, unlawful in an Islamic state and adoption of it as a profession is strictly prohibited.
The view-point of the Qur’an and that of the Sunnah is reflected below by the verses of the Holy Book and Ahadith of Muhammad (PBUH):
1. (Alms are) for the poor who are straitened for the cause of Allah, who cannot travel in the land (for trade). The unthinking men accounteth them wealthy because of their restraint. Thou shalt know them by their mark: They do not beg of men with importunity. And whatsoever good thing ye spend, Lo! Allah knoweth it. -(Al-Quran 2:273)
2. Zubair-b-Awam reported that the Messenger of Allah said: That one of you takes his rope and then comes with a load of wood upon his back and sells it is better than to beg of men whether they give or reject him. -(Bukhari)
3. Qabisah-bin-Maknareq reported : I became surety for a debt and came to the Messenger of Allah to ask him about it. He said: Wait till Zakat comes to us, and then we shall order something therefrom for you. Then he said: O dear Qabisah! Surely begging is not lawful except for one of these three (reasons)-a man who becomes surety for a debt, it then becomes lawful for him to beg till he gets it, after which he shall withhold; a man having met with a misfortune which has ruined his property-it is lawful for him to beg till it enables him to get livelihood (or he said means of livelihood); and a man who meets with dire necessity, till three men of understanding of his tribe stand up (and say): Dire necessity afflicted such one-it is lawful for him to beg till he finds means for livelihood. O Qabisah ! what is besides these in begging is unlawful and its owner eats unlawful things. -(Muslim)
4.Abdullah-bin-Omar reported that the Messenger of Allah said: Man will continue to beg of men till he will come on the Resurrection Day without any piece of flesh in his face. -(Bukhari, Muslim)
5.Ibn Omar reported that the Holy Prophet said while he was on the pulpit speaking about charity and refraining from begging. The upper hand is better than the lower, and the upper hand is that which gives and the lower is that which begs. -(Bukhari, Muslim)
6. Samorah-bin-Jundub reported that the Messenger of Allah said: Begging are scratches with which a man scratches his own face. So whoever likes may make them permanent upon his face, and whoever likes may avoid them-except a man’s begging to a man of power or in an affair from which there is no escape. -(Abu Daud, Tirmizi, Nisai)
7. Sahl-bin-Hanjaliyyah reported that the Messenger of Allah said: Whoever begs while he has got sufficient means begs of Hell-fire. Nufali who was one of its narrators in another place asked: And who is a solvent man for whom begging is unlawful? He (Prophet) said: He who has means which give him food morning and night. He said in another place: He who has food for a day or for a night and a day.(Abu Daud)
8. Hubshi-bin-Junadah reported that the Messenger of Allah said: Begging is not lawful for the solvent, nor for one who is stout and strong except for one who has got pressing poverty or destroying debt. And whoso begs of men to increase his wealth will have scratches on his face on the Resurrection Day, and hot stone of Hell which he will devour. -(Tirmizi)
12- Miscellaneous Unfair Means
Islam has prohibited earning of income through profession of singing and dancing. Income of a magician, soothsayer, foreteller and a painter of life portraits is also unlawful. Earning of income through unfair trade practices like fraud, deception, misrepresentation, sale of defective things or the things which are yet not in possession of the seller is strictly prohibited. Speculation and forward transactions are also un-Islamic. Relevant verses of the Quran and Ahadith are reproduced as follows :
Verses of the Qur’an:
1. O ye who believe! Squander not your wealth among yourselves in vanity, except it be a trade by mutual consent, and kill not yourselves. Lo! Allah is ever Merciful unto you. (4:An-Nisa:29)
2. And of their taking usury when they were forbidden it, and of their devouring people’s wealth by false pretences. We have prepared for those of them who disbelieve a painful doom. (4:An-Nisa:161)
3. And thou seest many of them vying one with another in sin and transgression and their devouring of illicit gain. Verily evil is what they do. Why do not the rabbis and the priests forbid their evilspeaking and their devouring of illicit gain? Verily evil is their handiwork. (5:Al-Ma’idah:62-63)
Ahadith of Muhammad (PBUH):
1. Jaber reported that the Messenger of Allah forbade Mukhabarah, Muhaqalah and Muzabanah. Muhaqalah is a man’s selling corn for one hundred Farq of wheat, and Muzabanah is to sell dry dates upon the heads of date trees for one hundred Farq. And Mukhabarah is to let out land for one-third or one-forth (of produce). -(Muslim)
2. Abu Qatada reported that the Messenger of Allah said: Be careful of excessive swearing in sale, because it finds market but then reduces (blessing). -(Muslim)
3.Abu Hurairah reported that the Holy Prophet forbade the sale by stone-throwing and the sale of unpossessed thing. -(Muslim)
4. Abu Hurairah reported that the Holy Prophet passed by a heap of corns. He thrust his hand therein but his fingers touched moisture. He asked, O owner of corn! What is this? He replied: Rain fell on it, O Messenger of Allah. He enquired: Have you not done so over the corn so that people may see it? Whoso acts with deceit is not of me. (Muslim)
5. Ali reported that the Messenger of Allah forbade the (forced) purchase from a needy person, and purchase from the inconsiderate and purchase of fruit before it reaches maturity. (Abu Daud)
6. Waselah-b-Asqa’s reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah say: Whoso sells a defective thing without disclosing it continues to be in the wrath of Allah .--(Ibn Majah)
7. Abu Huzaifah reported that the Holy Prophet prohibited price of blood, price of dogs and earnings of a prostitute. And he cursed the devourer of usury and its giver, the tattooer and the tattooed and the painter (of life-pictures). (Bukhari)
8. Abu Hurairah reported that the Messenger of Allah prohibited the price of dogs and earnings of singing girls. (Sharhi Sunnat)
9. Abu Hurairah reported that the Messenger of Allah said: Verily Allah is pure. He does not accept but what is pure. And verily Allah ordered the believers with which He ordered the Prophets. He said: O Prophets! Eat of the pure things and do good deeds. And He said: Eat of the pure things with which We provided you. Then he mentioned about a man dishevelled in hair and laden with dust, making his journey long and extending his hand towards heaven: O Lord ! O Lord ! while his food was unlawful, his drink unlawful, his dress unlawful and he was nourished with unlawful things. How can he be responded to for that? -(Muslim)
10. Nu’man-bin-Bashir reported that the Messenger of Allah said: Lawful things are manifest and unlawful things are also manifest, and between the two are the doubtful things which many people do not know. Whoso guards against the doubtful things, he makes his religion and honour pure; and whoso falls in the doubtful things, falls in unlawful things like a shepherd who grazes his flock round a reserved pasture ground and doubts grazing therein. Behold ! there is a reserved meadow for everything. Behold the reserved meadow of Allah is His forbidden things. Behold ! there is a piece of flesh in the body. When it is sound, the whole body is sound, and when it is unsound, the whole body becomes unsound. Behold ! it is the heart. (Bukhari, Muslim)
11. A'isha reported that Abu Bakr had a slave who realised rent for him, and Abu Bakr used to enjoy it. One day he came with a thing, and Abu Bakr enjoyed there from. Then the slave said: Do you know what it is? Abu Bakr enquired: What it is? What is it? He said: I used to foretell for a man in the Days of Ignorance, but I did not make good the foretelling, except that I only deceived him. He met me and paid me for that. So this is what you enjoyed. She said that Abu Bakr then thrust his hand (into his mouth) and vomited everything in his belly. (Bukhari)
12. Jaber reported that the Messenger of Allah said: No flesh which has grown out of unlawful things has got better claim to Hell-fire. (Ahmad, Darimi, Baihaqi)
13. Abu Bakr reported that the Messenger of Allah said: A body which has been nourished by unlawful thing shall not enter Paradise. (Baihaqi)
14. Ibn Omar reported: Whoso purchases a cloth with ten dirhams wherein one dirham is unlawful, the Almighty Allah shall not accept his prayer so long as it will last upon him. Afterwards he entered his fingers into his ears and said: Be deaf. Would that I had not heard the Holy Prophet say (it) ! -(Ahmad, Baihaqi).
May Allah guide us!