Charity, whether obligatory (Zakat) or voluntary (Sadqat) is the one of the main pillars of Islam to establish balance in the society. If every person shares a little after meeting his bare minimum needs and helps those to make their ends meet, the entire community can prosper and no one will need to beg or ask someone for help.
However, those giving charity should have a pure heart to give charity. If the charity is being given to favour someone or as a show off, the entire reward will be wasted away and nullified, for charity is to be made only to please Allah as a show of gratefulness. How can we be charitable if we do not acknowledge our Lord for having given us enough to help others? Unless we acknowledge this blessing of Allah, we can never be hopeful for acceptance of our good deeds and acts to help others.
We have already written a number of posts on importance of charity and the act of thankfulness to Allah in our series of posts on Importance of Charity in Islam. To add on to whatever has already been written and shared, we share a befitting scholarly thought by eminent scholars of present times, Wahiduddin Khan:
Wahiduddin Khan (1 January 1925 – 21 April 2021) was an Islamic scholar and peace activist known for having written a commentary on the Quran and having translated it into contemporary English and talking on issues related to Islam
وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ
(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”
That is our duty to convey only to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.
May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى) help us understand Qur'ān and help us to act upon the commandments of Allah contained therein. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door.
May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in the video above are those of the scholar concerned. We have shared this view as added information in better understanding of Islam. The reader may or may not agree with the view owing to their own perception. If anyone differs with the material contained in this post, one may consult the references and their authors. If someone has more material about the subject, he/she is most welcome to share in the comments box to make the post all encompassing.
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For more Scholarly views and videos, please read our reference page: Scholars' Viewpoint on Important Issues Related to Islam. You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Quran.
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