On giving charity, even if it is small, when you fear that the person you are giving a small amount to will not accept it because he expects you to give him something more
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The questioner : O Shaykh, may Allah reward you, the hadith that indicates the encouragement to give charity, even if it is small
The Shaykh : Yes
The questioner : If you fear that the person you are giving a small amount to will not accept it, meaning he expects you to give him something more, and you only have this amount, perhaps... so is it from the perspective of averting harm that you do not give it to him?
The Shaykh : Yes, his question says that some poor people, or some beggars—in reality, they are not poor people, but beggars who perhaps beg for the sake of abundance—if you give them a small amount, they return it, saying, "This is not enough." Yes, so should I give it to him, even though I fear that he will speak ill of my honor, or should I not give it to him? We say: Do not give it to him, because the truly poor person accepts what is given to him, whether little or much. We know that they share a single date. People come going around the doors, knocking on doors in the markets, and you bring a date and divide it among them; sometimes they quarrel over the date and fight over it. I have witnessed this. Yes, so the truly poor person accepts what he gets, but these people who beg from people for the sake of abundance are the ones who do not accept anything but a large amount.
The Shaykh : Yes
The questioner : If you fear that the person you are giving a small amount to will not accept it, meaning he expects you to give him something more, and you only have this amount, perhaps... so is it from the perspective of averting harm that you do not give it to him?
The Shaykh : Yes, his question says that some poor people, or some beggars—in reality, they are not poor people, but beggars who perhaps beg for the sake of abundance—if you give them a small amount, they return it, saying, "This is not enough." Yes, so should I give it to him, even though I fear that he will speak ill of my honor, or should I not give it to him? We say: Do not give it to him, because the truly poor person accepts what is given to him, whether little or much. We know that they share a single date. People come going around the doors, knocking on doors in the markets, and you bring a date and divide it among them; sometimes they quarrel over the date and fight over it. I have witnessed this. Yes, so the truly poor person accepts what he gets, but these people who beg from people for the sake of abundance are the ones who do not accept anything but a large amount.