The Excellence of the Poor Muslims

“The poor Muslims will stroll in the gardens of paradise forty years before the wealthy Muslims. An example of this is the case of two ships arriving at the tax collector’s post. The tax collector searches one of the ships and finds it empty. He withdraws and the ship is free to go. But he finds the other ship fill of goods. He then orders his people to follow the accounting procedure.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) has said, ‘Misfortunes are gifts from Allah and poverty is in His treasure.’”

“The Messenger of Allah has said, ‘O Ali, Allah has made poverty a trust in His creatures. Whoever hides it, Allah grants him a reward equal to the reward for a fasting person who stands at night to worship Allah. One who reveals it to a person, who is able to help but does not help, it is then as if he has killed him. Although he has not killed him with a sword, or with a spear, but has done so by breaking his heart.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) has said, ‘As the belief of a person increases in strength, his poverty intensifies.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) has said, ‘Had it not been due to the believers’ pleading before Allah to increase their sustenance, He would have moved them to a poorer condition.’”

“Whatever a servant is given of worldly things is to make him learn a lesson and whatever is withheld from him is to place him under the trial.’”

“For our pure Shi’a (followers) there is nothing under the rule of the unjust power more than bare necessities. Westernize or Easternize, you will never gain more than bare necessities.”

“The Holy Prophet has said, ‘O Ali, the need (poverty) is Allah’s trust with His creatures. Whoever keeps it secret Allah grants him a reward equal to that for one who prays, but if he reveals it to one who is able to help and does not help he has killed him, not with a sword or spears, but has killed him by breaking his heart.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) has said, ‘On the Day of Judgment Allah, the Majestic, the Glorious, will turn to the poor believing people, similar to an apologetic one, and will say, “I swear by My Majesty and Glory that I did not make you suffer poverty in the world, considering you insignificant. You will find out how I treat you today. Hold the hands of those who helped you in the worldly life and take them to paradise.” The narrator has said that the Imam then said, ‘A man from among them will say, ‘O Lord, people competed in their world to marry, dress up in fine garments, to have fine food, nice houses, and riding best animals, thus, give me what you had given to them.’ Allah, the Most Blessed, the Most High, will say, ‘You and every one of you will have what I had given to the people of the world from its beginning to its end, seventy times as much.’”

“There was no one of the children of Adam who was a believer but that was poor and there was no one of the children of Adam who was an unbeliever but that was rich until Ibrahim came. He said, ‘O Lord, save us from the evil intentions of the unbelievers. . . .’ (60:5) Thereafter Allah made these (believing people) rich as well as needy and those (unbelievers) wealthy as well as poor and needy.’”

“Once a wealthy man in clean clothes came to the Messenger of Allah and sat down near the Messenger of Allah. Thereafter a poor man in not so clean clothes came and sat next to the wealthy man who then pulled his clothes away from underneath the thighs of the poor man. The Messenger of Allah then asked the wealthy man, ‘Did you fear his poverty might stick to you?’ The wealthy man said, ‘No, that was not the reason.’ The Messenger of Allah asked, ‘Did you fear that something from your wealth might go to him?’ He said, ‘No, that was not the reason.’ The Messenger of Allah said, ‘Did you fear that your clothes may get dirty?’ He said, ‘No, that was not the reason.’ The Messenger of Allah asked, ‘What then was the reason?’ He said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, I have an associate who makes every evil thing attractive to me and vice versa in every good thing. I have decided to give half of my wealth to him (the poor man).’ The Messenger of Allah asked the poor man, ‘Do you accept it?’ He said, ‘No, I do not accept it.’ The wealthy man asked the poor man, ‘Why do you not accept my offer?’ The poor man said, ‘I am afraid, I will began to feel the way your associate makes you feel.’”

“It is in the conversation of Moses, ‘O Moses, when you see poverty coming say, “Welcome to the way of life of the virtuous people. When, you see wealth coming, say, ‘It is a sin. I wanted to experience its punishment early (before the Day of Judgment).”’

“The Holy Prophet has said, ‘Tuba (a tree in paradise) is for the destitutes who bear patience and they are the ones who observe the kingdom of heavens and earth.’”

“The Holy Prophet has said, ‘O destitute people, rejoice and be happy wholeheartedly with Allah. Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, will reward you because of your poverty, if you did not do so, you will not receive any rewards.”

“When it will be the Day of Judgment, Allah, the Most Blessed, the Most High, will command an announcer to announce and call before Him, ‘Where are the poor people?’ certain heads will rise and they will be many. Allah will say, ‘My servants.’ They will say, ‘Yes, our Lord.’ Allah will say, ‘I did not make you poor considering you as insignificant. I chose you for this day. Search among the people those who helped you for My sake and compensate them on My behalf with paradise.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) has said, ‘Had it not been for this Shi’a’s (followers) insistence on receiving more sustenance from Allah He would have moved them from their present condition to a more severe poverty.”

“Once Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) asked me, ‘Do you want to go to the market where fruits and things that you desire are sold?’ I said, ‘Yes, 1 like to go.’ The Imam said, ‘However, for everything that you like to buy but cannot buy there is a reward of one good deed for you.’”

“Allah, the Most Exalted of praise, will apologize to His believing servants who are poor in this world just as a brother apologizes to a brother and He will say, ‘I swear by my Majesty and Glory that I did not make you poor in the world considering you insignificant. Remove this curtain and look what I have given you in exchange for your poverty in the world. ’ The Imam said, ‘He will then raise the curtain and say, ‘(O Lord,) your withholding the wealth of the world from me in exchange for what You have kept in reserve for me has not harmed me at all.”’

“When it will be the Day of Judgment certain necks of people will rise, approach the door of paradise and knock on it. They will be asked, ‘Who are you?’ They will say, ‘We are the poor people.’ They will be told, ‘Show your accounts.’ They will say, ‘You did not give us anything. Why do you ask us for accounts?’ Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, will say they have spoken the truth admit them into paradise.’”

“I heard abu al-Hassan Musa (a.s.) saying, ‘Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, says, “I have not made certain people rich because they are important to Me and I have not made certain people poor because they are insignificant to Me. It is because I wanted to try the rich through the poor. Had there been no poor, the rich ones would not have deserved paradise.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) has said, ‘Our wealthy Shi’a (followers) are our trustees for our poor Shi’a. Protect us by protecting them (the poor Shi’a).”’

“Amir al-Mu’minin, Ali ibn abu Talib (a.s.) has said, ‘Poverty is more beautifying for the believers than the best decorated harness with ornament is for the head of a horse.’”

“Once I asked Ali ibn al-Husayn (a.s.) about the words of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, ‘Were it not that all people would become one nation, . . .’ - and the Imam said, ‘It (all people) stands for the followers of Muhammad (a.s.) all of whom might turn to disbelief, - ‘ ... We would have made for the unbelievers in the Beneficent, ceilings out of silver. . . (43:33) Had Allah done so to the followers of Muhammad (a.s.) the believers might feel very depressed and they would not establish any marital relations with and inheritance for those turning to disbelief (thus, they might become extinct).’” Note: To understand better, read the whole verse: ‘Were it not that all people would become one nation, We would have made for the unbelievers in the Beneficent, ceilings out of silver. . . (43:33 Had all unbelievers been given so much wealth, the common Muslims might have abandoned their religion considering the prosperity of the unbelievers as a sign of Allah’s happiness with them. In fact, according to Allah, worldly things are of no significance at all.