سورة الفرقان

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): إِذا أَنْفَقُوا لَمْ یُسْرِفُوا وَ لَمْ یَقْتُرُوا [When they spend, they are neither extravagant nor parsimonious]. Extravagance is spending in disobedience and in what is not its rightful place; and لَمْ یَقْتُرُوا means they were not stingy in giving the right of the Great Allah [and the right of the people]. And in کانَ بَیْنَ ذلِکَ قَواماً, qawam means justice and spending on that which Allah has commanded.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Abd al-Malik ibn Amr says: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) recited this verse: وَ الَّذِینَ إِذا أَنْفَقُوا لَمْ یُسْرِفُوا وَ لَمْ یَقْتُرُوا وَ کانَ بَیْنَ ذلِکَ قَواماً, and to explain it, he took a handful of pebbles from the ground and squeezed them tightly in his hand, and said: "This is the way of parsimony, in which, out of narrow-eyed miserliness, one refrains from spending and expenditure." Then he took another handful of pebbles and loosened his fingers to such an extent that most of the pebbles fell to the ground, and said: "This is the way of excess and extravagance, in which one goes to excess in spending and in the expenses of life." And the last time, he took a handful of pebbles and opened his fingers just enough that part of the pebbles fell and part remained in his hand, and said: "This is the basis of the endurance of blessings and the continuity of well-being."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): There are four persons whose supplication is not answered: a man who had wealth and destroyed and squandered it, and says: "O Allah, grant me sustenance." So it is said to him: "Did I not command you to be moderate? Did I not command you to manage your wealth?" Then Allah says: وَ الَّذِینَ إِذا أَنْفَقُوا لَمْ یُسْرِفُوا وَ لَمْ یَقْتُرُوا وَ کانَ بَیْنَ ذلِکَ قَواما [And those who, when they spend, are neither extravagant nor parsimonious, and (keep) between these the just mean].

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): Whoever gives in other than its rightful place has committed extravagance, and whoever withholds from paying the rights and dues [of others] has brought hardship into their lives.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Fear Allah and do not be extravagant nor parsimonious in spending, but be moderate. Indeed, tabdhir (squandering) is a form of extravagance, and Allah the Mighty and Majestic has said: وَ لا تُبَذِّرْ تَبْذِیراً [And do not squander in any way!] (Al-Isra/26).

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Ishaq ibn Abd al-Aziz narrates from one of the Shia that he said to Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): "On our way to Mecca and performing Umrah, we applied nura (depilatory paste) to remove the excess hair from our bodies, but we had nothing to rub on the nura to clean it off, so we rubbed flour on our bodies." Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said: "Do you think this is extravagance?" Ishaq said: "A doubt had arisen within me," and in reply I said: "Yes." The Imam said: "Anything that is beneficial for the health of the body is not extravagance, and I sometimes order that [fine flour] be mixed with oil so that I may rub it on my body to clean it. Know that extravagance is when it causes the wasting of wealth and harm to the body." Then I asked: "What is iqtar (miserliness)?" He said: "Eating bread and salt while one is able to prepare other food." I said: "Then what is the meaning of moderation?" He said: "That one at times consumes only bread, meat, milk, vinegar and oil [ghee]."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Sulayman ibn Salih says: I said to Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): "What is the least degree of extravagance?" He replied: "That a person gives away the garment that covers him, and pours out what remains in his cup, and eats dates and throws their pits here and there."

Imam Kazim (peace be upon him): Muhammad ibn Sinan narrates from Imam Kazim (peace be upon him) concerning the words of Allah the Mighty and Majestic وَ کانَ بَیْنَ ذلِکَ قَواماً [and (keep) between these the just mean] that the Imam (peace be upon him) said: al-qawam [the just mean] means performing the act in a fitting manner, such that the one who has means gives according to his capacity and the one in straitened circumstances gives according to his own, giving what is proper, and this is obligatory upon the virtuous (Baqarah/236). So the spending should be to the extent that, in a customary measure, it covers the expenses of wife and children — for this is for the good of himself and others. Allah does not burden any soul beyond what He has given it (Talaq/7).

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) said to his son Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): "O my son! A good deed between two sins wipes out the effect of those sins." He asked: "O father, how does it wipe them out?" He said: Like the words of Allah the Exalted وَ الَّذِینَ إِذا أَنْفَقُوا لَمْ یُسْرِفُوا وَ لَمْ یَقْتُرُوا وَ کانَ بَیْنَ ذلِکَ قَواماً [And they who when they spend, are neither extravagant nor parsimonious, and (keep) between these the just mean]. Here extravagance is one sin and stinginess is another sin, and وَ کانَ بَیْنَ ذلِکَ قَواماً [and (keep) between these the just mean] is counted as a good deed. So the good deed is placed between two evil deeds.

Imam Rida (peace be upon him): Muhammad ibn Umar narrates from a man, and he from al-Ayyashi, who said: I said to Imam Rida (peace be upon him): "What is the amount of maintenance for a wife?" He said: "Between two disliked things." He says: I said: "What is meant by 'between two disliked things'?" He said: "May Allah have mercy on you; do you not know that Allah has considered extravagance disliked and has considered withholding from spending disliked, and He has said: وَ الَّذِینَ إِذا أَنْفَقُوا لَمْ یُسْرِفُوا وَ لَمْ یَقْتُرُوا وَ کانَ بَیْنَ ذلِکَ قَواماً [And they who when they spend, are neither extravagant nor parsimonious, and (keep) between these the just mean]."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Abd al-Rahman said: I asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about the verse یَسْأَلُونَکَ مَاذَا یُنفِقُونَ قُلِ الْعَفْوَ [They ask you what they should spend; say, the surplus (beyond your own needs)] (Baqarah/219), and he answered: وَ الَّذِینَ إِذَا أَنفَقُوا لَمْ یُسْرِفُوا وَ لَمْ یَقْتُرُوا وَ کَانَ بَیْنَ ذَلِکَ قَوَامًا [And those who, when they spend, are neither extravagant nor stingy, and are between that, moderate]. Then he said: "This verse was revealed after the verse یَسْأَلُونَکَ مَاذَا یُنفِقُونَ قُلِ الْعَفْوَ, and the second verse is that very middle way."

Imam Rida (peace be upon him): The expenditure and outlay you make on yourself and your family should be from surplus, for Allah says: یَسْأَلُونَکَ مَاذَا یُنفِقُونَ قُلِ الْعَفْوَ [They ask you what they should spend; say, from what is surplus to your own needs] (Baqarah/219), and 'al-afw' means the middle course and moderation, and Allah said: وَالَّذِینَ إِذَا أَنفَقُوا لَمْ یُسْرِفُوا وَلَمْ یَقْتُرُوا وَکَانَ بَیْنَ ذَلِکَ قَوَامًا [And those who, when they spend, are neither extravagant nor stingy, and are between that, moderate].

Imam Kazim (peace be upon him): For whoever is moderate in spending, I guarantee that he will not become poor and needy.