2:264 Al-Baqara (The Cow)

ينهى عباده تعالى لطفا بهم ورحمة عن إبطال صدقاتهم بالمن والأذى ففيه أن المن والأذى يبطل الصدقة، ويستدل بهذا على أن الأعمال السيئة تبطل الأعمال الحسنة، كما قال تعالى: { ولا تجهروا له بالقول كجهر بعضكم لبعض أن تحبط أعمالكم وأنتم لا تشعرون } فكما أن الحسنات يذهبن السيئات فالسيئات تبطل ما قابلها من الحسنات، وفي هذه الآية مع قوله تعالى { ولا تبطلوا أعمالكم } حث على تكميل الأعمال وحفظها من كل ما يفسدها لئلا يضيع العمل سدى، وقوله: { كالذي ينفق ماله رئاء الناس ولا يؤمن بالله واليوم الآخر } أي: أنتم وإن قصدتم بذلك وجه الله في ابتداء الأمر، فإن المنة والأذى مبطلان لأعمالكم، فتصير أعمالكم بمنزلة الذي يعمل لمراءاة الناس ولا يريد به الله والدار الآخرة، فهذا لا شك أن عمله من أصله مردود، لأن شرط العمل أن يكون لله وحده وهذا في الحقيقة عمل للناس لا لله، فأعماله باطلة وسعيه غير مشكور، فمثله المطابق لحاله { كمثل صفوان } وهو الحجر الأملس الشديد { عليه تراب فأصابه وابل } أي: مطر غزير { فتركه صلدا } أي: ليس عليه شيء من التراب، فكذلك حال هذا المرائي، قلبه غليظ قاس بمنزلة الصفوان، وصدقته ونحوها من أعماله بمنزلة التراب الذي على الصفوان، إذا رآه الجاهل بحاله ظن أنه أرض زكية قابلة للنبات، فإذا انكشفت حقيقة حاله زال ذلك التراب وتبين أن عمله بمنزلة السراب، وأن قلبه غير صالح لنبات الزرع وزكائه عليه، بل الرياء الذي فيه والإرادات الخبيثة تمنع من انتفاعه بشيء من عمله، فلهذا { لا يقدرون على شيء } من أعمالهم التي اكتسبوها، لأنهم وضعوها في غير موضعها وجعلوها لمخلوق مثلهم، لا يملك لهم ضررا ولا نفعا وانصرفوا عن عبادة من تنفعهم عبادته، فصرف الله قلوبهم عن الهداية، فلهذا قال: { والله لا يهدي القوم الكافرين }

وقد روى النسائي عن مالك بن سعد عن عمه روح بن عبادة عن عتاب بن بشير عن خصيف الجراري عن مجاهد عن ابن عباس عن النبي - صلى الله عليه وسلم - قال لا يدخل الجنة مدمن خمر ولا عاق لوالديه ولا منان وقد رواه ابن أبي حاتم عن الحسن بن المنهال عن محمد بن عبدالله بن عصار الموصلي عن عتاب عن خصيف عن مجاهد عن ابن عباس ورواه النسائي من حديث عبد الكريم بن مالك الحوري عن مجاهد قوله وقد روي عن مجاهد عن أبي سعيد وعن مجاهد عن أبي هريرة نحوه ولهذا قال الله تعالى "يا أيها الذين آمنوا لا تبطلوا صدقاتكم بالمن والأذى" فأخبر أن الصدقة تبطل بما يتبعها من المن والأذى فما بقي ثواب الصدقة بخطيئة المن والأذى ثم قال تعالى "كالذي ينفق ماله رئاء الناس" أي لا تبطلوا صدقاتكم بالمن والأذى كما تبطل صدقة من راءى بها الناس فأظهر لهم أنه يريد وجه الله وإنما قصده مدح الناس له أو شهرته بالصفات الجميلة ليشكر بين الناس أو يقال إنه كريم ونحو ذلك من المقاصد الدنيوية مع قطع نظره عن معاملة الله تعالى ابتغاء مرضاته وجزيل ثوابه ولهذا قال "ولا يؤمن بالله واليوم الآخر" ثم ضرب تعالى مثل ذلك المرائي بإنفاقه قال الضحاك: والذي يتبع نفقته منا أو أذى فقال "فمثله كمثل صفوان" وهو جمع صفوانة فمنهم من يقول الصفوان يستعمل مفردا. أيضا وهو الصفا وهو الصخر الأملس "عليه تراب فأصابه وابل" هو المطر الشديد "فتركه صلدا" أي فترك الوابل ذلك الصفوان صلدا أي أملس يابسا أي لا شيء عليه من ذلك التراب بل قد ذهب كله أي وكذلك أعمال المرائين تذهب وتضمحل عند الله وإن ظهر لهم أعمال فيما يرى الناس كالتراب ولهذا قال "لا يقدرون على شيء مما كسبوا والله لا يهدي القوم الكافرين".

To Remind About Charity Given is Forbidden

Allah praises those who spend from their money in His cause, and then refrain from reminding those who received the charity of that fact, whether these hints take the form of words or actions.

Allah's statement,

وَلاَ أَذًى

(or with injury), indicates that they do not cause harm to those whom they gave the charity to, for this harm will only annul the charity. Allah next promised them the best rewards for this good deed,

لَهُمْ أَجْرُهُمْ عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ

(their reward is with their Lord), indicating that Allah Himself will reward them for these righteous actions. Further,

وَلاَ خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ

(On them shall be no fear) regarding the horrors of the Day of Resurrection,

وَلاَ هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ

(nor shall they grieve) regarding the offspring that they leave behind and the adornment and delights of this world. They will not feel sorry for this, because they will acquire what is far better for them.

Allah then said,

قَوْلٌ مَّعْرُوفٌ

(Kind words) meaning, compassionate words and a supplication for Muslims,

وَمَغْفِرَةٌ

(and forgiving) meaning, forgiving an injustice that took the form of actions or words,

خَيْرٌ مِّن صَدَقَةٍ يَتْبَعُهَآ أَذًى

(are better than Sadaqah (charity) followed by injury.)

وَاللَّهُ غَنِىٌّ

(And Allah is Rich) not needing His creation,

حَلِيمٌ

(Most Forbearing) forgives, releases and pardons them.

There are several Hadiths that prohibit reminding people of acts of charity. For instance, Muslim recorded that Abu Dharr said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,

«ثَلَاثَةٌ لَا يُكَلِّمُهُمُ اللهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ، وَلَا يَنْظُرُ إِلَيْهِم، وَلَا يُزَكِّيهِمْ، وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ: الْمَنَّانُ بِمَا أَعْطَى، وَالْمُسْبِلُ إِزَارَهُ، وَالْمُنَفِّقُ سِلْعَتَهُ بِالْحَلِفِ الْكَاذِب»

(Three persons whom Allah shall neither speak to on the Day of Resurrection nor look at nor purify, and they shall receive a painful torment: he who reminds (the people) of what he gives away, he who lengthens his clothes below the ankles and he who swears an oath while lying, to sell his merchandise.)

This is why Allah said,

يأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ لاَ تُبْطِلُواْ صَدَقَـتِكُم بِالْمَنِّ وَالاٌّذَى

(O you who believe! Do not render in vain your Sadaqah (charity) by reminders of your generosity or by injury) stating that the charity will be rendered in vain if it is followed by harm or reminders. In this case, the reward of giving away charity is not sufficient enough to nullify the harm and reminders. Allah then said,

كَالَّذِى يُنفِقُ مَالَهُ رِئَآءَ النَّاسِ

(like him who spends his wealth to be seen of men) meaning, "Do not nullify your acts of charity by following them with reminders and harm, just like the charity of those who give it to show off to people." The boasting person pretends to give away charity for Allah's sake, but in reality seeks to gain people's praise and the reputation of being kind or generous, or other material gains of this life. All the while, he does not think about Allah or gaining His pleasure and generous rewards, and this is why Allah said,

وَلاَ يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الاٌّخِرِ

(and he does not believe in Allah, nor in the Last Day.)

Allah next set the example of whoever gives charity to show off. Ad-Dahhak commented that the example fits one who follows his acts of charity with reminders or harm. Allah said,

فَمَثَلُهُ كَمَثَلِ صَفْوَانٍ

(His likeness is the likeness of Safwan) where Safwan, from is Safwanah, meaning `the smooth rocks,'

عَلَيْهِ تُرَابٌ فَأَصَابَهُ وَابِلٌ

(on which is little dust; on it falls a Wabil) meaning, heavy rain,

فَتَرَكَهُ صَلْدًا

(which leaves it bare.) This Ayah means that heavy rain left the Safwan completely barren of dust. Such is the case with Allah's action regarding the work of those who show off, as their deeds are bound to vanish and disappear, even though people think that these deeds are as plentiful as specks of dust. So Allah said,

لاَّ يَقْدِرُونَ عَلَى شَىْءٍ مِّمَّا كَسَبُواْ وَاللَّهُ لاَ يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الْكَـفِرِينَ

(They are not able to do anything with what they have earned. And Allah does not guide the disbelieving people.)

O you who believe annul not the rewards of your voluntary almsgivings with reproach and injury as in the manner of the annulment of the expenditure of one who expends of his substance to show off to men and believes not in God and the Last Day this is the hypocrite. The likeness of him is as the likeness of a smooth rock on which is soil and a torrent of intense rain smites it and leaves it barren and smooth with nothing on it. They have no power lā yaqdirūna is a resumption of the statement about the likeness of the one that expends for show; the person becomes plural on account of the potential plural implication of alladhī ‘the one who’ over anything that they have earned that they did in other words they find no reward for it in the Hereafter just as one finds nothing of the dust that was on the surface of the smooth rock after the rain has washed it away. God guides not the disbelieving folk.

In the fourth verse, the same subject has been taken up differently with a little more emphasis. It was said: Do not waste your charities: verbally -- by causing your favour to be known; or practically by causing pain.

This makes it clear that any form of favour-flashing or needy-bashing, after an act of charity renders such charity null and void. There is no reward for it.

In this verse, one more condition governing the acceptance of sadaqah صدقہ has been added by saying that one who spends for public exposure, for name and fame, and does not believe in Allah Almighty and the Day of Resurrection, can be likened to be acting in a situation where he sows a grain on a clean rock which has collected a layer of soil, then comes the rain and washes the whole thing clean. Such people will never reap what they have sown and Allah Almighty will not let the disbelievers see the way. From this we know the condition that governs the acceptance of sadaqah صدقہ and khayrat خیرات۔- spend only to seek the good pleasure of Allah Almighty and with the intention of getting thawab ثواب (reward) in the akhirah آخرۃ (Hereafter). Never do it with the intention of having public exposure, name and fame. Spending with the intention of earning name and fame is wasting what you spend. And should a true Muslim, who does believe in the Hereafter, expend something simply for name, fame, and under hypocritical motivation, he too, would not get any thawab ثواب (reward) for it. Moreover, there is a hint here in the use of the additional sentence ولا یؤمن باللہ ، (And does not believe in Allah); perhaps, it aims to suggest that hypocrisy and name-seeking is not just the sort of thing a person who believes in Allah Almighty and the Day of Resurrection would ever do since hypocrisy is a sign of something being wrong with his faith.

The meaning of وَاللَّـهُ لَا يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الظَّالِمِي 'Allah Almighty will not show disbelievers the way' towards the end of verse 264 is that the Qur'anic guidance is universal. It is common to all human beings. But, disbelievers do not take notice of this guidance, rather go a step farther and make fun of it. As a result, Allah Almighty lets them be deprived of the very taufiq توفیق ، the ability to accept guidance. The effect is that they do not accept any guidance.