Generosity

Almighty Allah (swt) has given some people more financial possibilities than others. It is called generosity for a believer who possesses ample means to share these opportunities with his brothers in need. However, this help to others should not be a compulsory aid like giving zakat. Helping willingly and wholeheartedly in order to gain Allah's approval, apart from the obligatory ones, is called generosity. The reward for this is as follows in the Qur'an: “And the example of those who spend their wealth seeking means to the approval of Allah and assuring [reward for] themselves is like a garden on high ground which is hit by a downpour - so it yields its fruits in double. And [even] if it is not hit by a downpour, then a drizzle [is sufficient]. And Allah, of what you do, is Seeing. (Baqarah, 2/265)

Generosity becomes a moral virtue if it is done without any self-interest and without expecting anything in return. Again, people should not help others so that others may call him generous, and they should not show off; they should help by not even letting their left hands know what their right hands give, without showing off the help and aid they give to people. A moral believer should expect the reward of his kindness and generosity only from Almighty Allah (swt). Because Allah Almighty rewards those who do good deeds. It is among the requirements of morality to pay attention to the fact that the things given to help people are not bad and worthless, and to choose the things we give from among the good and valuable ones.

The opposite of generosity is stinginess. The stingy person does not like to share, selfishly owns what he has, does not care about the situation of others. This attitude is not tolerated in Islam. Almighty Allah (swt) does not like those who are stingy. But as in everything else, being moderate is essential in generosity. Just as stinginess is not tolerated, it is also forbidden in our religion to waste property by overspending unnecessarily.