'O' son of Adam, I was hungry and you did not feed me......'

Helping and Doing Good to Others

Being of service to others is a way of life that leads to happiness. The Prophet (Blessings and Peace be Upon him) is reported to have said: "Verily, Allah will say to his slave when He will be taking account of him on the Day of Judgement, 'O' son of Adam, I was hungry and you did not feed me.' He will answer: 'How could I feed you? You are the Lord of the worlds!' He will say: 'Did you not know that my slave so and so who is the son of so and so felt hunger, and you'did not feed him. Alas, had you fed him you would have found that (i.e. reward) with Me.' 'O' son of Adam, I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink.' He will reply: 'How could I give You drink? You are the Lord of the worlds!' He will say: 'Did you not know that my slave so and so, the son of so and so felt thirsty and you did not give him drink. Alas, if you had given him, you would have found that (i.e. reward) with me.' 'O' son of Adam, I became sick and you did not visit Me.' He will answer: 'How can I visit You? You are the Lord of the worlds!' He will say: 'Did you not know that my slave so and so, the son of so and so became sick and you did not visit him. Alas, had you visited him, you would have found Me with him."'

Here is an interesting point, in the last third of the hadith are the words: ,...'you would have found Me with him.' This is unlike the first two parts of the hadith wherein: 'You would have found that (i.e. the reward for feeding and giving drink) with Me.'

The reason for this is that Allah is with those whose hearts are troubled, as is the case with the person who is sick.

Also, know that Allah made the prostitute from the children of Israel to enter Paradise because she gave a drink to a dog who was thirsty. So what will be the case for the one who feeds other humans, giving them drink and removing from them hardships!

It is reported in an authentic hadith that the Prophet (Blessings and Peace be upon him) said: "Whoever has extra provision, he should give from it to the one who has no provision. And whoever has an extra mount, he should give with this extra to the one who has no mount."

Hatim said in some of his beautiful couplets, commanding his servant to search for guests: "Burn the coals, for truly, the night is chilly, If you bring me a guest, then I set you free."

And he said to his wife: "Whenever you make food, then search, for the one who is hungry, as I do not eat alone."

Ibn Mubarak's neighbour was a Jew. He would always feed him before his own children and would provide clothing for him first and then for his children. Some people said to the Jew, 'Sell us your house.' He answered, 'My house is for two thousand dinars. One thousand is for the price of the house and one thousand is for having Ibn Mubarak as a neighbour!' Ibn Mubarak heard of this and he exclaimed, 'O' Allah! guide him to Islam.' Then, by the leave of Allah, he accepted Islam.

On another occasion, Ibn Mubarak passed by a caravan of people who were travelling to make the pilgrimage to Makkah and he himself was on his way to do the same. In the caravan, he saw a woman taking a dead crow from a cesspit. He sent his servant to inquire about this and when he asked her, she replied, 'We have had nothing for three days except that which finds its way into it.' When Ibn Mubarak heard of this, his eyes swelled with tears. He ordered for all of his provision to be distributed among those of the caravan, and having nothing with which to continue the j oumey, he returned to his home and gave up making the pilgrimage for that year. Later, he saw someone in a dream saying, 'Your pilgrimage has been accepted, as have your rites; and your sins have been forgiven.'

Allah, the All-Compassionate, says: "And give them preference over themselves, even though they were in need of that themselves." (Quran 59:9)

One poet said: "Even if I am a person who is far, From his friend in terms of distance, I offer him my help and wish to alleviate his difficulties, And I answer his invitation and his call to me for help, And if he dons a wonderful new outfit I will not say, Alas, were I to be blessed with the clothes that he wears."

Another poet said: "Good remains, even if time prolongs, And evil is the most vile of things to keep possession of."

No one regrets having done well even if he was extravagant in doing so. Regret is for the mistake only, or for a wrong done, even if it was small.

Source: Don't be Sad - Shaykh Aaidh ibn Abdullah Al-Qarni