Quran Study 28 Jan 1983 By Dr Rashad Khalifa
Transcript
0:00 Those who spend their money in the cause of God,
0:03 is like a seed that grows seven spikes, with one hundred seeds in each spike.
0:10 God multiplies the reward manyfold for whomever He wills.
0:15 God is Bountiful, Omniscient.
0:24 So this is the minimum you get for every dollar, it's 700 dollars minimum, not 10%.
0:41 You don't give exactly 10%.
0:47 and not follow up what they have given with reminders or with injury.
0:56 2:262.
0:57 Those who spend their money in the cause of God and do not follow up their charity
1:02 with reminders or injury;
1:05 their reward is with their Lord.
1:08 They have nothing to fear, nor will they grieve.
1:15 A kind statement and forgiveness are better
1:26 than a charity that is followed by injury.
1:32 God is Rich, Clement.
1:35 Without it, there is no reward.
1:39 O you who believe, do not nullify your charities
1:43 by reminders of your generosity or by injury,
1:47 like one who spends his money to be seen by the people,
1:56 and does not believe in God and the Last Day.
2:02 His example is that of a rock covered with a thin layer of soil;
2:07 a heavy rain falls on it and leaves it completely bare.
2:14 They will get nothing from their efforts.
2:17 God does not guide the disbelieving people.
2:37 The idea is that the money that we have is not really ours; nothing is ours, it belongs to God.
2:49 It's not our money.
2:50 He said you shall spend from the good things, not the bad things you earn.
2:54 Verse 2:264.
2:57 O you who believe, do not nullify your charities with reminders or injury,
3:03 like one who spends his money only to show off,
3:09 and does not believe in God and the Last Day.
3:13 His example is that of a useless rock
3:16 covered with a thin layer of soil.
3:19 When heavy rain falls on it,
3:20 it is left completely bare.
3:22 They get nothing from their efforts.
3:25 God does not guide the disbelieving people.
3:29 Then we read again,
3:30 Verse 2:264.
3:31 O you who believe,
3:32 do not nullify your charities
3:33 by reminders or injury.
3:38 So that is what is meant by injury;
3:40 hurting people's feelings.
3:43 And I've seen somebody
3:52 who is very shy. It hurts people's feelings to come and ask, they have
3:59 a sense of dignity, and we must preserve it for the sake of God.
4:05 As the whole Quran says.
4:08 Our existence here, we are not here to receive charity; we are here to work for God.
4:14 So charity must be for the cause of God.
4:17 You know, submission is not just the money.
4:22 And the parable of those who spend their money
4:27 seeking God's pleasure,
4:31 and from their own convictions.
4:35 Look, look at this phenomenon.
4:38 Look at it.
4:43 You can look at the phenomenon
4:46 over here.
4:53 Back to
4:54 265.
4:57 The example of those who spend their money seeking God's pleasure and from their own convictions,
5:04 is that of a garden on high, fertile soil.
5:09 When heavy rain falls, it just doubles its crop.
5:12 If heavy rain is not available, a light rain will suffice.
5:17 God is Seer of everything you do.
5:19 Here is a hard-hitting parable to draw the attention of the people.
5:24 He owns good land. He has to make food for his sheep and his cows.
5:32 And of course, he is not working for a pittance.
5:37 Verse 266.
5:38 Would any of you wish to own a garden of date palms and grapevines, with rivers flowing beneath it, and all kinds of fruit?
6:00 Again, this is emphasizing that while you are in dire need, you see all your work burn up.
6:12 This is to tell all you who believe to spend on charity from the good things you
6:19 earn and from what We produce for you from the earth.
6:23 Do not pick out the inferior thereof to give away,
6:28 which you would not accept for yourself unless you close your eyes. You should realize
6:34 that God is Rich, Praiseworthy.
6:37 So, let's define for us, what are the bad things that God has prohibited.
6:44 To give away old clothes that you don't need anymore, that are no good.
6:50 Just actually look at this. In the whole world, you know, old clothes.
6:55 Instead of throwing them in the garbage bin and getting away with it.
7:01 The charity must be from the good things you have.
7:04 Of course, it doesn't mean you shouldn't give it away, but you don't count it as your obligatory charity.
7:15 You just have to do it.
7:16 You don't count it at all.
7:20 Actually, that's something that you do on the side, though.
7:23 The little bits you give from the old.
7:31 268. The devil
7:32 promises you poverty
7:34 and orders you to commit
7:35 immorality.
7:37 While God promises you forgiveness
7:39 from Him and grace.
7:41 God is Bounteous, Omniscient.
7:49 He grants
7:50 wisdom to whomever He wills.
7:52 And whoever is endowed with wisdom is endowed with a great bounty.
7:57 Only those who possess intelligence are the ones who take heed.
8:08 So what do we learn from this whole section?
8:12 It is a great purchase.
8:20 you get 70,000% return and you do it and forget it, you do it and forget it, you never bring it up.
8:38 If you give it again, you don't tell other people, you tell the recipients themselves, you tell
8:44 And as you see in the next verse, 2:271, you keep the secret, and that implies that you believe in God.
8:58 You know that God knows it.
9:01 If you don't keep the secret, you turn people around you and then you throw them off.
9:05 You're reaping what amounts to a loss by not keeping the secret.
9:10 literally two things:
9:13 whatever charity you give,
9:15 or a vow you make,
9:17 God is fully aware
9:18 thereof.
9:19 The wicked will find no help.
9:22 If you declare your charity,
9:24 they are still good.
9:27 But if you
9:28 conceal them and give them
9:30 secretly to the poor,
9:31 it would be better for you
9:33 and would remit more of your sins.
9:35 God is fully Cognizant of everything you do.
9:42 Well, this verse talks to some of you in particular.
9:45 If you have any questions, let me check with you, okay?
9:48 No, I don't have any questions.
9:56 I just want to say, do you have any questions?
10:01 No, I don't have any questions.
10:04 No, no, I feel confused.
10:06 .
10:12 .
10:20 .
10:22 .
10:22 .
10:23 .
10:23 .
10:28 Yeah.
10:39 So does that mean if you go around
10:48 saying you're a big giver, you know?
10:50 Yeah.
10:51 Yeah, if there's any show-off, or you reap any benefit, that reduces the benefits that God has for you.
11:02 I think it's also so hard to take in and hear that, because if you're getting the benefits, you think you're going to get all the benefits you can, anyway.
11:11 Yeah.
11:12 I mean, I feel like I'm safe.
11:14 It's just different. It's just different than you think you're getting now.
11:18 You're getting a better reward from Allah now.
11:51 I would like to invite everyone here and now, all of us, to the book of Allah.
11:56 The book of Allah.
11:57 Not the book of the Bible, and not the book of the Bible.
12:04 Not the book of the Bible.
12:07 Not the book of the Bible.
12:11 Yes. The book of the Quran.
12:14 Of the religion.
12:15 Of the religion.
12:16 Yes.
12:16 That's the relationship.
12:47 You are not responsible for guiding them; God is the only one who guides whomever He wills.
12:51 Any charity you give is for your own good.
12:55 You shall give to charity only to seek God.
12:56 Any charity you give will be repaid to you, without the least injustice.
13:12 The point is that you can guide people, but when you do,
13:15 you are only doing so in the sense that
13:17 you are an instrument of God's will.
13:21 And it reminds me
13:22 of Ya-Sin, which I've been reading
13:24 a lot. Whether you warn them or you
13:25 warn them not, they will not believe.
13:29 So, people who are
13:30 going to believe will believe, and people who aren't going to
13:32 believe, are not going to believe.
13:33 You may be there as an intermediary,
13:35 you may be the first one to stick the Quran in their
13:38 hand, but not in their heart to believe it,
13:40 because they are not going to believe anyway.
13:45 All power belongs to God.
13:50 Charity is for the poor
13:54 who are restricted in the cause of God,
13:56 and are unable to travel the land.
13:59 The unaware may think that they are rich
14:02 due to their modesty, but you can recognize
14:05 them by their signs.
14:08 They never beg from people insistently,
14:10 and any charity you give, God is fully aware of.
14:15 Those who give charity by night and day,
14:17 secretly and publicly,
14:19 they have their recompense with their Lord.
14:21 They will have no fear, nor will they grieve.
14:26 In Morocco, there are people who will bug you about charity.
14:31 They're professional beggars.
14:33 They may not even be poor.
14:35 And I vividly remember one woman in America who could cry at will, you know, whether her
14:46 husband was just lazy and had money and just said, "Go out and beg if you want something,"
14:51 even though they have money.
14:52 Whereas you see people who are just sitting, reciting something from the Quran,
14:58 not even asking for charity, and people just throw down money.
15:05 It's a good illustration.
15:06 I've seen both sides.
15:19 So it's basically
15:20 more about the laws of
15:22 usury.
15:25 people who are persecuted
15:26 because of their belief in God...
15:28 I'm sorry, I just, um, to say again, that charity is a good thing and it's one of the five pillars.
15:48 And it explains a little bit more about our life.
16:10 These three verses are about
16:12 these three verses are about
16:16 the charity and
16:17 the poor who are persecuted for their
16:20 beliefs
16:21 and are trapped.
16:43 I'm thinking of all the people who I've seen chanting and one man who I remember was,
16:51 had a beautiful, and a most beautiful
16:53 voice. And he would just stand
16:55 in the street and recite from the Quran,
16:56 blind. And he
16:59 didn't seem like he ever
17:01 wanted charity. People would hear him and they would give him
17:03 what he wanted. He didn't seem like he
17:05 cared enough, you know.
17:06 You just felt really good when you gave something
17:09 to him.
17:10 And then there were these professional beggars
17:12 who would just go around
17:14 and they'd just go around
17:16 and you didn't know if they were really,
17:18 you know, if you were a tourist and you didn't live
17:21 there very long, you wouldn't really know for sure.
17:26 On the other hand, if you've ever been to Marrakesh,
17:29 you know that if you feed all the beggars in Marrakesh,
17:31 you'll be a beggar yourself.
17:37 In Morocco and in the East,
17:38 begging is not illegal.
17:40 It's actually something that
17:42 people do professionally.
17:45 I think these three verses
17:46 are making a distinction.
17:48 Here you can't just go around
17:50 and ask people for money, for a handout.
17:52 You can be cited as a bum or a transient or something like that.
17:55 Or really, you can be arrested for vagrancy
17:57 or something like that.
17:59 But in...
18:00 I don't know...
18:03 Oh, my God.
18:04 No, no, no.
18:07 They're plaguing us.
18:10 Oh, my God.
18:12 That's really them plaguing you.
18:15 They're doing something.
18:19 It's just the predominance of begging, all right?
18:22 It's not very predominant in this country compared to...
18:27 it's just not very predominant to see people standing around on the street, you know, with a...
18:37 And you'll see another guy who is showing his stump off, you know, showing no legs,
18:43 make sure you see it.
18:44 or somebody walks up to you
18:46 and shows you that he doesn't have any arms
18:48 or anything.
18:50 It's a different,
18:52 it's a whole different
18:53 profession.
18:54 But it's really the people
19:00 who are persecuted
19:02 because of what they believe,
19:03 they deserve,
19:05 they deserve charity the most.
19:08 You can recognize them
19:10 by their signs.
19:10 They never annoy people by begging. These beggars can be very, very much of a nuisance.
19:40 The next slide.
19:42 The next slide.
19:42 You're going to go to the next slide, that's where I'm going first.
19:44 Once I wanted to start with a new model, we've had a real big change in the world, and it's
19:51 a beautiful clarity.
19:53 And I must have had a crazy
19:56 driver follow me.
19:59 He was very mad.
20:03 He was very mad.
20:06 He was very mad.
20:06 He said, no, no, no, no.
20:07 I'm not going to stop you.
20:09 I'm not going to stop you.
20:10 Then he got on the next road
20:13 and the driver was very mad.
20:16 And the car in front was going to turn around
20:18 and he'd hit the driver.
20:23 And then he was going really fast.
20:25 And we just witnessed these swerves for about a minute, and then he pulled out and did these swerves, and then he did it twice again.
20:32 He did it again and again after that swerve.
20:37 And then they can win the marathon, or make millions of dollars in this campaign.
20:43 But that's nothing compared to immortality.
20:48 And now the ego, we have the perspective that the ego is now the king, and the reward is now the disease.
20:54 We put them all in jail.
20:59 I mean, we didn't give them any help.
21:04 Yeah, he was that kind.
21:09 He was that kind of dictator.
21:12 No more bagpipes in the Masjid. Put them on the screen real quick.
21:16 There they go.
21:21 I think they're enjoying it.
21:24 It's not a famous thing, you know, when you walk home.
21:27 You can't just go...
21:28 If you're playing a musical instrument while you're on the street,
21:32 you just walk around and see you've got a guy with a $4 or $5 bill in your pocket.
22:08 For example, this is for the people who are actually the devotees that we see.
22:13 Very talented people.
22:15 We've got no basis.
22:18 Some of them were dropped from a hundred feet up into a can of water,
22:23 and they just had to put them in there.
22:28 That was the rest of the lie.
22:29 We did not obey.
22:41 No, I did that for charity, when I was holding a charity one of those days.