Modesty, Borrowing, and the Ruling on Begging

The questioner:
How do we combine the self-restraint that Allah mentions with the fact that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) borrowed his armor from a Jew on one occasion? How do we reconcile the verse “And whoever restrains himself, Allah will provide for him” with this?

The Shaykh:
This is considered charity. Borrowing a debt for the purpose of buying and selling is permissible; there is no harm in it. It is merely an act of modesty—modesty regarding one’s need for people and asking them for help. That is what modesty is. As for the debt itself, there is no harm in it. One may borrow, buy, and sell; there is nothing wrong with it, nothing wrong with it.

The questioner:
Yes, is there a difference regarding the prohibition? Did the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) address this lowliness?

The Shaykh:
No, there is no distinction here; the prohibition is where the distinction lies. In the hadith of Qabisa, Abu Khariq narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: until he obtains it, then he should refrain. And a man was struck by a calamity that swept away his wealth, so I permitted him to ask until he obtained a portion of a livelihood, meaning a means of subsistence that suffices for his needs. And a man who fell into poverty, meaning he had wealth and abundance but then fell into poverty, so if the master observes that one of his people who is of noble status has fallen into poverty, and the need for asking has befallen him, or something other than that, and he is stingy, his companion will eat his wealth out of stinginess. It can be called the lower part of the earth. Because its end is to destroy one out of dislike for asking, except in cases of need and dire necessity.