“Do not attribute purity to yourselves; He knows best who is most pious.” (Qu’ran 53:32)
“Spend in charity for your own good. He who remains safe from his own greed will prosper.” (Qur’an 64:16)
Aside from giving charity when the need arises, Muslims that are financially capable are asked to donate at least 2.5 percent annually of their net worth, known as zakat, to the poor, as a means of preventing widespread poverty. Aside from being an obligatory donation, the word zakat is often translated as “that which purifies.” Just as the body must excrete its waste product to maintain health, zakat purifies us of materialism by excreting our attachments to wealth. Greed is an enemy of gratitude and faith, which is why the Prophet said, “I am not afraid that you will worship others along with Allah after my death, but I am afraid that you will fight with one another for worldly things.” When we give to others with a sincere intention, it helps to loosen our hold on our attachments to this material world.
Zakat is a divine blessing from Allah because it is through the purification of our worldly attachments that we expand and progress in our spiritual life. The less we feed our egos, the more our spirits thrive. We get close to God not through what we have, but through what we give. Since everything in our hands is perishing, it is only what we give for the sake of God that we ever really keep.
To preserve the dignity of the poor, zakat is seen as being owned not by the giver, but by the one who is qualified to receive it. Zakat is not charity as much as it is repaying what we owe to the poor. It is a reminder that whatever we have acquired and earned is not owned by us, but is instead a loan from Allah. When we give charity, we are not giving to another person from ourselves; rather, Allah is the One giving to them, through us. We are not owners of our wealth, we are only divinely chosen caretakers of it. When we are in a state of true giving, there is no longer a giver and a receiver, there is only the universal love of God manifesting through our hands and deeds.
This blog is an excerpt from A. Helwa’s recently published best-selling book, “Secrets of Divine Love: A Spiritual Journey into the Heart of Islam.” Her book is available on Amazon.com
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About A. Helwa
A. Helwa believes that every single person on Earth is deeply loved by the Divine. She is a writer who has inspired hundreds of thousands of readers through her passionate, poetic, and love-based approach to spirituality. Her popular blog @quranquotesdaily, was established while obtaining her Masters in Divinity, as a means of helping others overcome personal and spiritual struggles on their journey of experiencing divine love.
With over 15 years of experience writing and speaking on Islam and spiritual development, A. Helwa draws from her personal experiences and traditional sources to help her readers access ‘Divine love in everyday life.’