Charity, the healer of hearts and the joy of both worlds

It is said in the Qur’an:

And spend out of what We have given you before death comes to any of you, so that he should say: My Lord! why did You not respite me to a near term, so that I should have given alms and been among the doers of good deeds? (Munafiqun, 63/10).

Inspired by this verse, Hadrat Mawlana (Alaihi Rahma) said:

• “Unfortunate souls are like dwellers in a house full of smoke. Give ear to their cries and respond by opening a window for ventilation. That will refine your soul!”

• “What have you got? What have you treasured up? What kind of pearl did you draw from the bottom of the sea? All this will be clear on the day of your death.”

• “Visiting friends without a present is like going to the mill without wheat.”

“One should pay back what one owes before death takes it by force.”

The following couplet by Necip Fazil puts this point elo- quently:

O stingy jeweler, get another purse!

Save up a currency valid in the grave…

Wise advice is fundamental to the revival of hearts. Those who appreciate the treasures of wisdom become wise themselves. Those who follow wisdom rightly will surely perfect faith.

May our Lord give us the opportunity to live in an atmosphere of wisdom and to perceive the mysteries of reality. May He help us to comprehend the meaning of the Qur’an, of the universe, and of being human.

Amin…

• Excerpt from the book, “Such a mercy he is”