person. If you are one of those who donate profusely and retain only
little for themselves, you are openhanded. However, if you give while
in need yourself, you have reached the highest degree of generosity:
altruism; this stems from staunch faith, genuine love, perseverance
and steadfastness, and hope of reward from Allaah The Almighty.
The following are some of the most important factors that urge one to
favor others over his or her self:
1- Love of good manners and abhorrence of incivility: one's level of
self-sacrifice is proportionate to one's desire to possess good
morals, because favoring others is the epitome of courtesy.
2- Dislike of stinginess: anyone who hates miserliness knows that
there is no means of countering it other than with generosity and
kindacts.
3- Respect of the rights ofothers: when a person gives people their
due and respect, he or she meticulously fulfills their rights, fully
aware that if he or she does not reach the level of altruism, he or
she will not give others their due.
4- Belittling the worldly life and aspiring for the Hereafter: if
people are primarily concerned withthe next life, the worldly one
becomes inconsequential in their sight; they know that they will be
recompensedfor whatever they give here, on the Day of Resurrection
when they will be in dire need.
5- Adapting oneself to tolerating hardship and distress: this helps
one reach a degree of self-sacrifice that may result in poverty and
harsh conditions; so, if a person is not accustomedto endurance, he or
she will not be capable of giving while in need.
Degrees of altruism
Among the scholars who have divided altruism into varying degrees, is
Ibn ul-Qayyim who said:
"The first level is to favor others over yourself in that which does
not diminish your commitment to the religion, hinder your path [to
Allaah] or waste your time; this means that you favor their interests
over your own, such as when you feed them while you are hungry, dress
them whileyou are still unclothed and offer them water while you are
thirsty. However, this should not lead you to commit anything
Islamically prohibited. Thus, any act that results in reforming your
heart, time and standing with Allaah The Almighty, should not be an
object of sacrifice. If you favor others at the expense of such acts,
you are actually ignorantly favoring Satan over Him.
The second degree is to give preference to the pleasure of Allaah The
Almighty over the satisfaction of people, even if its repercussions
are so severe that one's body and faculties cannot afford them. This
act entails that one wantsand does whatever pleases Him, although it
may result in the anger of His creatures. This is the degree of the
Prophets of Allaah, whereas the Messengers were at a higher level, and
the resolute Messengers, may Allaah exalt their mention, even more
esteemed.
However, the Prophet occupies the highest level of all, as he resisted
the whole world, devoted himself to calling others to Allaah The
Almighty, bore the animosity of both relatives and strangers for His
sake and favored His pleasure over anyone else's, in all aspects,
fearing the criticism of no one. His intention, concern and endeavors
were all dedicated to satisfying Allaah The Almighty, conveying His
message, rendering His Words the uppermost and fighting His enemies
until His religion became superior over all others, its argument
established against the worlds and His favor perfectly bestowed on the
believers. The Prophet conveyed the message, delivered the trust,
advised the Ummah, strove ardently in the way of Allaah The Almighty
and worshipped Him until he passed away. Therefore, no one attained as
exalted a degree of altruism as the Prophet .
As for a person who favors people's approval over that of Allaah The
Almighty, it is His unchangeable tradition that He makes their
satisfaction impossible toachieve and he or she is forsaken by them,
with only him/herself to blame. Indeed, someone whose praise is sought
will eventually vilify and the one whose satisfaction is desired, will
become displeased. Accordingly, the person who seeks the approval or
delight of others will neither achieve his or hergoal, nor attain the
reward of the pleasure ofthe Lord; and this is the weakest and most
foolishperson."
Ash-Shaafi'i said, "Satisfying people is an unattainable goal.
Therefore, adhere to what makes you righteous; and that is possible
only if we favor the satisfaction of the Lord over that of others."
Some Arabic verses of poetry speak about this, such as those that
read:
I wish that my bond with You [O Allaah] remains sweet
Even if life becomes bitter;
I wish that You are pleased [with me],
Even if all people are disgruntled;
I wish that what is between me and You is good,
Even if my relations with people are not.
If You love me, every problem will seem easy
And everything on earth will amount to nothing.
The third degree of altruism is to attribute this quality to Allaah
The Almighty and not one's own self, and to admit that these
self-sacrificing acts are by His Command, thereby submitting them to
Him. Consequently, if we do favor others over our own self, it means
that it is Allaah The Almighty Who did so in reality, for He is the
actual Giver.
Memorable acts of self-sacrifice
History has brightly recorded many immortal examples of Muslims
attaining the exalted degree and the paramount quality of altruism.
Once, a woman came to the best of creation, the last Prophet and the
leader of Messengers, , and presented a garment to him, saying: "O
Messenger of Allaah, this is [a gift] for you." The Prophet, ,
accepted it and wore it as he was in need of it; then, one of the
Companions sawhim wearing it, and said to him, "What a beautiful
garment! Give it to me!" The Prophet, , indicated his willingness to
do that; then, when he had left, the other Companions reproached the
man, saying, "Youdid not do a good thing when you asked the Prophet to
hand it to you while you see that he is short of [clothes]; and you
know that he never declines to give anything if asked." He explained,
"I sought the blessing of the garment as the Prophet had worn it; and
I wished I could be shrouded in it."
We see similar acts of favoring others even in the Companions and
those that succeeded them . Abu Hurayrah narrates: "A man came to the
Prophet who sent [for some food for him] to his wives, but they
replied: 'We have nothing except water.' So, he asked, 'Who will
receive this man as a guest?' A man from the Ansaar [supporters in
Madeenah] said, 'I will.' He then took the man [home] to his wife and
said to her, 'Host the guest of the Messenger of Allaah hospitably.'
She replied, 'We have nothing except the food of my children.' He
instructed, 'Prepare your food, light your lamp and put your kids to
sleep, if they ask for supper.' Therefore, she prepared her food, lit
her lantern and made her children lie down; she then stood up,
pretending to fix her lamp, when, in reality, she turned it off. Then,
both husbandand wife, pretended to eat beforetheir guest [so as not to
let him know of their dilemma], but actually went to bed hungry. In
the morning, when the Ansaar man went to the Messenger of Allaah he
said, 'Tonight, Allaah laughed [or wondered] at your action.' Then
Allaah The Almighty revealed the verse (what means): {But [they] favor
[others] over themselves, even though they are in privation. And
whoever is protected from the stinginess of his soul - it is those who
will be the successful.} [Quran 59: 9]
Likewise, another of the Ansaar offered to relinquish half of his
property to an emigrant who was paired up with him through the bonds
of brotherhood; he even gave him both, the option to marry one of his
wives, who he would divorce for him. However, the Muhaajir (emigrant
from Makkah) refused, praying, "May Allaah bless for you your wives
and possessions." In yet another paradigm of altruism, Abu Talhah
Al-Ansaari who was the richest of the Ansaar , had a favorite land, a
garden called Bayruhaa' . When he heard a verse in which Allaah The
Almighty Says (what means): {Never will you attain the good [reward]
until you spend [in the way of Allaah] from that which you love}
[Quran 3:92], he went tothe Prophet, , and donated it as charity for
His sake.
Another Companion, Qays ibn Sa'd ibn 'Ubaadah once fell ill;when he
did not receive any visitors, he asked after them and was informed,
"They are ashamed to visit you because of the debt they owe you." He
remarked, "May Allaah debase money that prevents brothers from paying
visits." Then, he ordered someone to announce: "Whoever is indebted to
Qays, is relieved of repayment." That night, his threshold broke, due
tothe large number of people who came to see him.
But, perhaps the exemplars of self-sacrifice among our predecessors,
are the three who favored the other's lives over their own. Huthayfah
Al-'Adawi relates, "I went looking for my cousin on the battlefield
during the war of Al-Yarmook. I had some water and mentally noted, 'If
he still has any breath, Iwill give him some water to drinkand will
wipe his face with it.' I found him and asked, 'Should I give you
water to drink?' He made an affirmative gesture; but then we heard
someone gasp, so he signaled to me to take the water to that man, who
was Hishaam ibn Al-'Aas. When I asked him if I should give him water
to drink, he replied positively, but we heard another man cry out,
"Ah!" Therefore, Hishaam made a sign to me, telling me to go to that
man. When I went to him, I found that he had already expired. When I
returned to Hishaam, I discoveredhe, too, had passed away; and when I
returned to my cousin, I saw that he had died as well, may Allaah have
mercy on all of them!"
Benefits of altruism
If there is no advantage of altruism other than the fact that it
demonstrates the perfection and strength of one's faith, and noble
manners, that would be a good enough reason to practice it. In fact,
favoring others over oneself is also a way to the love of Allaah The
Almighty, intimacy among people, incurring blessings and protection
against stinginess.
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