The Virtues of Self-Reliance and Patience
📖Sahih Muslim 1053 a
Abu Sa’id al-Khudri reported: Some people from the Ansar came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and asked him for help. He gave them, then they asked again, and he continued giving, until all that he had was finished. Then the Prophet ﷺ said: “Whatever good (wealth) I have, I will never withhold it from you, But the one who refrains from begging — Allah will protect him from needing others, The one who seeks contentment, Allah will make him content, The one who practices patience, Allah will give him strength to endure, And no one is given a gift greater and more vast than sabr (endurance).”
What We Learn Today:
- The Prophet ﷺ was generous and never turned away the needy when he had something to give.
- But he also taught a higher level of faith: striving to avoid asking people and relying on Allah.
- Begging is not haram (forbidden) when a person is in genuine need and has no other way. The Qur’an acknowledges this and even commands giving to such people with respect.
- However, when a person is able to work, seek provision, or endure with patience, then self-restraint becomes more honorable.
Important Clarification:
Islam does not condemn honest begging from someone who is in true need, The Prophet ﷺ only discouraged unnecessary or habitual begging, and he praised those who show dignity and patience.
Quranic Context:
📖Quran 2:273
Charity is for the poor who have been restricted for the cause of Allah, unable to move about in the land. The ignorant think they are self-sufficient because they do not beg persistently. You will recognize them by their mark, they do not ask people persistently.
This verse shows that some people are truly needy, but they avoid asking. Still, Allah commands others to recognize them and help.
📖Quran 70:24–25
And those in whose wealth is a recognized right, for the beggar and the deprived.
Allah commands believers to give to both the beggar (who asks) and the deprived (who doesn’t ask), proving that begging, when honest, is not condemned.
📖Quran 93:10
And do not repel the beggar.
Allah clearly forbids turning away a person who asks,because they may be in genuine need.
The Prophet ﷺ taught that self-sufficiency, patience, and trust in Allah are higher virtues, but Islam never humiliated those who beg when they truly have no other way, Begging out of greed is discouraged, Begging out of necessity with honesty is permitted, and the community is obligated to support such people, True Islam balances dignity with mercy, If you can endure, that is a gift from Allah, If you must ask, ask with truth, and know that Allah sees both the one who gives and the one who begs.