Riyadh Al-Salehin | Episode (69) | Chapter on the virtue of asceticism in this world (3)

0:00 *Riyadh al-Salihin* from the words of the Master of the Messengers, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

0:09 Chapter on the Virtue of Asceticism in This World, Encouragement to Take Little from It, and the Virtue of Poverty.

0:19 On the authority of 'A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, who said:

0:24 "The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, passed away,

0:28 and there was nothing in my house that a living creature could eat

0:32 except a small portion of barley on a shelf of mine.

0:36 I ate from it for quite a long time,

0:39 but when I measured it, it was consumed."

0:42 Agreed upon.

0:44 "A small portion of barley" means an amount of barley;

0:48 this is how al-Tirmidhi explained it.

0:50 "A living creature" literally means anything possessing a liver, meaning any animal or human.

0:55 "A small portion of barley" means some barley,

0:59 and the word *shaṭr* is used for half or something close to it,

1:02 though that is not the intended meaning here.

1:05 A shelf (*raff*) is a plank of wood raised above the ground,

1:08 upon which things meant to be preserved are placed,

1:11 or a niche-like alcove in a wall;

1:14 the latter is closer to the intended meaning.

1:17 "It was consumed" means it was finished and exhausted.

1:21 Among the lessons derived from the hadith:

1:25 The Prophet's turning away from worldly possessions,

1:29 even though the Arabian Peninsula had submitted to him

1:32 and its wealth and produce had reached him.

1:35 Yet despite that, there was nothing to be found in the home of his most beloved wife

1:39 except this meagre amount of barley.

1:43 The maintenance of the Prophet's wives was exempted

1:48 from his estate, which is not inherited.

1:51 Thus, what was in the house of 'A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her,

1:54 was the remainder of her designated maintenance.

1:58 For had she not been entitled to maintenance after his death, peace be upon him,

2:04 that barley would have been taken from her.

2:07 The hadith indicates the commendability of moderation in living expenses

2:11 and in what satisfies hunger,

2:13 for that constitutes half of one's livelihood.

2:16 It also highlights one of his miracles, peace be upon him,

2:19 regarding the multiplication of small amounts of food;

2:22 what 'A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, experienced falls under this category.

2:26 It was part of the blessing of the Prophet, peace be upon him,

2:30 which requires full surrender and trusting submission to Allah.

2:35 'A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, used to eat from that barley

2:40 without noticing any decrease in it,

2:42 but when she measured it, that barley ran out.

2:45 This is because measuring when spending detracts from the blessing of trusting submission,

2:49 as it is looked upon with an eye of covetousness,

2:52 leading to negligence in thanking the Bestower for it.

2:56 Whoever is granted provision by Allah, honored with a favor,

3:01 or shown divine gentleness in any matter,

3:03 must maintain continuous gratitude

3:06 and not introduce any change into that state.

3:11 Measuring is required in commercial transactions

3:14 because it pertains to the rights of both transacting parties,

3:17 whereas measuring while spending on oneself and family

3:19 can incite stinginess;

3:21 hence it was disliked.

3:23 On the authority of 'Amr Ibn al-Harith, the brother of Juwayriyah bint al-Harith,

3:28 the Mother of the Believers, may Allah be pleased with them both, who said:

3:32 "The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, did not leave behind

3:35 at his death a single dinar or dirham,

3:39 nor a male or female slave,

3:41 nor anything else except his white mule that he used to ride,

3:47 his weapon, and a piece of land that he designated as charity for wayfarers."

3:52 Narrated by al-Bukhari.

3:56 "And a piece of land" refers to half the land of Fadak,

4:01 a third of Wadi al-Qura,

4:03 a share from the fifth of Khaybar,

4:06 and an estate from the land of Banu al-Nadir.

4:09 Among the lessons derived from the hadith:

4:13 It indicates that any slaves mentioned in connection with the Prophet, peace be upon him,

4:19 had either died or were freed by the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.

4:25 Prophets do not leave behind dirhams or dinars as inheritance;

4:29 whatever they leave behind is charity.

4:32 On the authority of Khabbab Ibn al-Aratt, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:

4:38 "We emigrated with the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,

4:42 seeking the Face of Allah the Exalted,

4:45 so our reward was assured with Allah.

4:48 Some of us died without having enjoyed anything of their worldly reward;

4:52 among them was Mus'ab Ibn 'Umayr, may Allah be pleased with him,

4:56 who was killed on the day of Uhud, leaving behind only a striped woolen cloak.

5:00 When we covered his head with it, his feet were exposed,

5:04 and when we covered his feet with it, his head was exposed.

5:08 So the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, ordered us to cover his head with it

5:14 and to put some lemongrass over his feet.

5:18 Yet others among us had their fruit ripen, and they are now plucking it."

5:23 Agreed upon. The *namirah* is a striped cloak made of wool.

5:29 His statement "had ripened" means became ripe and mature.

5:34 His statement "plucking it" means gathering and harvesting it;

5:39 this is a metaphor for the worldly wealth and influence Allah the Exalted opened up for them.

5:46 "We seek" means we petition and desire.

5:51 "Was assured" means it was confirmed and decreed.

5:54 "Without having enjoyed" means without acquiring any worldly wealth.

5:58 Lemongrass (*al-idhkhir*) is a sweet-smelling plant.

6:03 Among the lessons derived from the hadith:

6:06 A demonstration of the truthfulness of the righteous salaf (early generations) in describing their conditions.

6:10 Patience while enduring poverty and rough living

6:15 is among the stations of the righteous.

6:17 It contains an indication that a shroud ought to be ample and spacious,

6:22 covering the entire body.

6:25 If the shroud falls short of that

6:27 and an ample covering is unavailable,

6:30 his head and as much of his upper body as possible are covered with it,

6:34 and whatever remains exposed is covered with lemongrass

6:38 or other types of grass.

6:41 A martyr's clothes are not removed;

6:44 rather, he is buried in them, as they serve as his shroud.

6:47 That is why Mus'ab Ibn 'Umayr, may Allah be pleased with him, was shrouded in his cloak

6:52 and covered with lemongrass,

6:54 because it was too short to cover his entire body.

6:58 The shroud or its cost is taken from the deceased's own estate,

7:02 even if he left nothing else behind.

7:06 The emigration of the foremost, first believers

7:08 was not for the sake of any worldly gain they might obtain,

7:11 nor for any immediate blessing they sought to hasten;

7:13 rather, it was purely for the sake of Allah,

7:16 that He might reward them for it in the Hereafter.

7:19 Remembering the lives of the righteous

7:22 leads a servant to take little from this world,

7:25 disengage from its snares,

7:27 unburden oneself of its heavy loads,

7:30 and set forth to join their ranks.

7:33 On the authority of Sahl Ibn Sa'd al-Sa'idi, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:

7:40 The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:

7:44 "If this world were worth the wing of a mosquito to Allah,

7:49 He would not have given a disbeliever a single drink of water from it."

7:53 Narrated by al-Tirmidhi.

7:55 Among the lessons derived from the hadith:

7:58 The insignificance of this world in the sight of Allah and its worthlessness to Him,

8:02 as well as the insignificance of those who seek it,

8:05 for whom it has become their greatest concern and the limit of their knowledge.

8:09 The true worth of this world lies in making it a pathway to the Abode of the Hereafter

8:14 and a fertile ground for righteous deeds.

8:18 The permissibility of using parables

8:20 to make the meaning clearer to the listener.

8:23 On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:

8:29 I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, say:

8:33 "Indeed, the world is accursed,

8:36 and accursed is all that is in it,

8:38 except the remembrance of Allah the Exalted and what is allied to it,

8:42 and a scholar or a student of knowledge."

8:45 Narrated by al-Tirmidhi.

8:47 "Accursed"

8:49 means base and detested.

8:52 "Accursed is all that is in it"

8:55 refers to wealth, commodities, desires, and the like.

8:59 "And what is allied to it"

9:01 means whatever is connected or close to it.

9:03 Among the lessons derived from the hadith:

9:07 The permissibility of disparaging everything that distances one from Allah the Exalted

9:11 and distracts from His remembrance;

9:13 it is in this light that the chapter's hadith is understood.

9:16 Everything in this world is amusement and diversion,

9:20 except the remembrance of Allah the Exalted and whatever serves as a means to it.

9:25 A clarification of the virtue of knowledge, its scholars, and its seekers.

9:29 In the pursuit of knowledge, people are of two categories:

9:33 a scholar or a student,

9:36 and both are on the path of right guidance and salvation.

9:41 On the authority of 'Abdullah Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:

9:45 The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:

9:49 "Do not acquire extensive estates,

9:51 lest you become covetous of this world."

9:54 Narrated by al-Tirmidhi.

9:56 An estate (*al-ḍay'ah*)

9:58 refers to real estate or cultivated land.

10:00 "Lest you become covetous of this world"

10:02 means lest you become attached to it

10:04 and distracted by it from the righteousness of your Hereafter.

10:09 Among the lessons derived from the hadith:

10:11 The scholars interpreted this hadith

10:14 as a prohibition against acquiring an excessive number of estates,

10:17 which leads to the heart becoming consumed by them,

10:20 thereby causing a person to rely upon and incline toward this world.

10:25 However, acquiring enough real estate to fulfill one's needs

10:29 is not prohibited, and Allah knows best.

10:33 On the authority of 'Abdullah Ibn 'Amr Ibn al-'As, may Allah be pleased with them both, who said:

10:40 "The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, passed by us

10:44 while we were repairing a reed hut of ours,

10:47 and he asked, 'What is this?'

10:50 We said, 'It has become frail,

10:53 so we are repairing it.'

10:55 He said, 'I see the matter [of death] to be even swifter than that.'"

11:00 Narrated by Abu Dawud and al-Tirmidhi

11:03 with an authentic chain of narration according to the criteria of al-Bukhari and Muslim.

11:06 "We were repairing" means fixing.

11:10 A reed hut (*khuṣṣ*) is a dwelling made of wood and reeds,

11:14 plastered with clay;

11:16 it is so named because of its gaps (*khiṣāṣ*),

11:19 which are openings and holes.

11:22 It had weakened and was about to collapse.

11:26 "The matter" refers to one's appointed time of death.

11:29 "Swifter" means more imminent.

11:32 Among the lessons derived from the hadith:

11:36 The permissibility of maintaining and repairing a home when it deteriorates, weakens, or risks collapsing.

11:43 The leader ought to inspect the conditions of his flock

11:47 and urge them toward that which brings their salvation in this world and the Hereafter.

11:52 An illustration of the rapid passing of this worldly life.

11:56 A person must not occupy himself with worldly affairs in a manner that distracts him from the Hereafter

12:01 and makes him forget his inevitable destiny.

12:04 On the authority of Ka'b Ibn 'Iyad, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:

12:10 "I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) say:

12:14 'Indeed, every Ummah has a trial,

12:17 and the trial of my Ummah is wealth.'"

12:20 Reported by at-Tirmidhi.

12:22 "Trial" (fitnah) means a test and an examination,

12:27 and it is used in the context of both good and bad.

12:30 Allah Almighty said:

12:32 “Every soul must taste of death, and We try you with evil and with good, for ordeal. And unto Us ye will be returned.” (21:35)

12:36 "The trial of my Ummah,"

12:38 meaning that with which it is tested in its worldly life.

12:41 Among the benefits derived from this hadith:

12:45 An explanation of what Allah has tested this Ummah with,

12:48 which is wealth;

12:50 through it, the sincerity of their commitment, the purity of their souls,

12:54 and their adherence to their methodology—or lack thereof—become manifest.

12:58 The intense inclination of human souls toward wealth,

13:02 which is just as Allah stated.

13:04 “And love wealth with abounding love.” (89:20)

13:08 Greed for wealth and attachment to it

13:11 are causes for the corruption of mutual relations,

13:14 because it breeds avarice,

13:16 and avarice leads to the severing of kinship ties.

13:20 Riyad as-Salihin [The Meadows of the Righteous].

Riyadh Al-Salehin | Episode (69) | Chapter on the virtue of asceticism in this world (3)

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