BISMILLAH IR RAHMAN IR RAHEEM





The Charitable Man





Adapted for children from an authentic Hadith


reported by Abu Hurayrah in Imam Nawai's


"Gardens of the Righteous"





by (Anne Stephens) Khadeijah A. Darwish





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THE CHARITABLE MAN





There was once a pious man who decided he wanted to do something good. He wasn't the most wealthy person in the village, however, he decided he would give some of his savings away; he wanted to be charitable.





As night fell, the man left his home with a purse of money and started to look for someone to give it to. As he walked through the streets he came across a thief and much to the thief's surprise the kind, charitable man gave him the purse of money.





The thief was so surprised that he told all his friends and family about the kind man's generosity and it wasn't long until the villagers were asking one another, "Did you hear, last night the thief was given charity?" The villagers thought it was a strange state of affairs.





No long after, the kind, charitable man heard that the purse he had given away last night had been to a thief so he supplicated to Allah saying, "O Allah, tonight I will go out and be charitable again!"





That night the kind, charitable man filled another purse with money, closed the door of his house and went out into the streets. It was so late that most good people were either asleep or at home with their family. This time the kind, charitable man found a woman and as he had done the night before he gave her the purse of money and went home.





Now the woman happened to have a very bad reputation. She was so astonished by the kind man's generosity that she went straight back home and told her friends of her good luck.





By the time morning came everyone in the village knew how the woman with a bad reputation had been given a charitable purse of money and thought the matter was even stranger than the night before. They whispered to one another saying, "Did you know so-and-so, the woman with a bad reputation, was given a purse of money in charity last night?"





When the kind, charitable man heard what was being said in the village he supplicated to Allah again saying, "O Allah, praise belongs to You. Thank You for letting me give charity to a lady with a bad reputation. Tonight, I will give some more charity."





As soon as it was dark the kind, charitable man filled another purse with money and set out in search of someone to give it too. The first man he came across happened to be a very wealthy man and as in the previous nights he gave the man the charitable purse of money and went back home.





The rich man thought it was very strange indeed that he, of all people, would be given a charitable purse of money, after all he didn't need it! He was so amused that he told his family and friends what had happened.





The following morning news of how the rich man had been given charity was on the lips of everyone in the village and it wasn't long until the kind, charitable man heard what the villagers were saying. As before, he supplicated to Allah saying, "O Allah, praise belongs to You. Thank You for letting me give charity to the thief, the lady with a bad reputation and the rich man."





That night the kind, charitable man went to bed and as he slept he saw a vision in which he was told, "The charity you gave to the thief might persuade him to stop stealing. The charity you gave to the lady with a bad reputation might persuade her to stop living the way she does. As for the charity you gave to the rich man, it might teach him to be charitable and start spending from the bounty Allah has given him."