Hadith Qudsi or Hadith Qudse (Arabic: الحديث القدسي, meaning "pure" or "holy Hadith") is a special category of Hadith, the compendium of sayings attributed to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It is stated these Hadiths are unique because their content is attributed to God but the actual wording was credited to Muhammad. This may be one of the reasons they are not included in the Quranic revelations, which are considered to be the verbatim word of God but rather are given a special category, thus occupying a status between Quran and normal Hadith text.
With this description and differentiation between Hadith Qudsi and a Prophetic Hadith, let us share one of the forty Hadith Qudsi on the subject of charity. By going through the Hadith, the reader will automatically know the language in a directive form, the source of which can be no one else by Allah Almighty Himself:
This Hadith Qudsi is mentioned in the Sahi Bokhari volume: The Book of Virtue, Enjoining Good Manners, and Joining of the Ties of Kinship ( كتاب البر والصلة والآداب ) in the 13th Chapter: The Virtue of Visiting the Sick ( باب فَضْلِ عِيَادَةِ الْمَرِيضِ ) Hadith 2569:
Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:
حَدَّثَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ حَاتِمِ بْنِ مَيْمُونٍ، حَدَّثَنَا بَهْزٌ، حَدَّثَنَا حَمَّادُ بْنُ سَلَمَةَ، عَنْ ثَابِتٍ، عَنْ أَبِي رَافِعٍ، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم " إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ يَقُولُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ يَا ابْنَ آدَمَ مَرِضْتُ فَلَمْ تَعُدْنِي . قَالَ يَا رَبِّ كَيْفَ أَعُودُكَ وَأَنْتَ رَبُّ الْعَالَمِينَ . قَالَ أَمَا عَلِمْتَ أَنَّ عَبْدِي فُلاَنًا مَرِضَ فَلَمْ تَعُدْهُ أَمَا عَلِمْتَ أَنَّكَ لَوْ عُدْتَهُ لَوَجَدْتَنِي عِنْدَهُ يَا ابْنَ آدَمَ اسْتَطْعَمْتُكَ فَلَمْ تُطْعِمْنِي . قَالَ يَا رَبِّ وَكَيْفَ أُطْعِمُكَ وَأَنْتَ رَبُّ الْعَالَمِينَ . قَالَ أَمَا عَلِمْتَ أَنَّهُ اسْتَطْعَمَكَ عَبْدِي فُلاَنٌ فَلَمْ تُطْعِمْهُ أَمَا عَلِمْتَ أَنَّكَ لَوْ أَطْعَمْتَهُ لَوَجَدْتَ ذَلِكَ عِنْدِي يَا ابْنَ آدَمَ اسْتَسْقَيْتُكَ فَلَمْ تَسْقِنِي . قَالَ يَا رَبِّ كَيْفَ أَسْقِيكَ وَأَنْتَ رَبُّ الْعَالَمِينَ قَالَ اسْتَسْقَاكَ عَبْدِي فُلاَنٌ فَلَمْ تَسْقِهِ أَمَا إِنَّكَ لَوْ سَقَيْتَهُ وَجَدْتَ ذَلِكَ عِنْدِي " .
"Verily, Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, would say on the Day of Resurrection: O son of Adam, I was sick but you did not visit Me. He would say: O my Lord; how could I visit Thee whereas Thou art the Lord of the worlds? Thereupon He would say: Didn't you know that such and such servant of Mine was sick but you did not visit him and were you not aware of this that if you had visited him, you would have found Me by him? O son of Adam, I asked food from you but you did not feed Me. He would say: My Lord, how could I feed Thee whereas Thou art the Lord of the worlds? He said: Didn't you know that such and such servant of Mine asked food from you but you did not feed him, and were you not aware that if you had fed him you would have found him by My side? (The Lord would again say: ) O son of Adam, I asked drink from you but you did not provide Me. He would say: My Lord, how could I provide Thee whereas Thou art the Lord of the worlds? Thereupon He would say: Such and such of servant of Mine asked you for a drink but you did not provide him, and had you provided him drink you would have found him near Me."
This Hadith carries a special significance on the subject of Charity wherein Allah clearly spells out the importance of Charity which we more often than not relegate for our own needs. Here even visiting a sick amount to charity, an action we more often than not skip and do not visit the sick. In addition to this kind of charity, feeding the hungry and providing drink to the thirsty also fall under the ambit of charity.
Let us be mindful of our duty in respect to the sick, hungry and the thirsty and help them as much as we can.
May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. 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.
Please refer to our reference page: Sunnah and Hadith of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to know more about sunnah of Prophet of Allah. You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Qur'ān.
