Ihyaaud Deen An Effort to Revive Deen in Totality
Hazrat Abdullah bin Abbaas (radhiyallau ‘anhuma) Entertains Guests
Abaan bin Uthmaan (rahimahullah) mentions:
Once, a certain man made a plan to harass Hazrat Abdullah bin Abbaas (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma) and bring him to disrepute. He went to all the leaders of the Quraish and told them that Hazrat Ibnu Abbaas (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma) had invited them to a meal the following morning. The man went to different places and continued inviting people on behalf of Hazrat Abdullah bin Abbaas (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma).
The following day, at the time of the meal, a great number of people gathered in the home of Hazrat Ibnu Abbaas (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma), who on learning the truth of the matter, asked the people to be seated, arranged fruit from the market and invited them to partake of it. While Hazrat Ibnu Abbaas (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma) sat with them and started to speak to them, a large number of cooks began preparing the food for the guests.
They were still enjoying the fruit when the meals were ready and served to them. When all the guests had eaten to their fill, Hazrat Ibnu Abbaas (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma) asked his treasurer, “Can we afford to arrange such meals for the people every day?” When the treasurer said that he could afford it, Hazrat Ibnu Abbaas (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma) said to the people, “All of you are invited to have meals with me like this every morning.”
Note:
This incident occurred at the time when the Sahaabah (radhiyallahu ‘anhum) had won many battles (and the wealth of the world was in their possession). However, the Sahaabah (radhiyallahu ‘anhum) spent so generously that they kept nothing with them. In regard to wealth, they were like sieves – as water is filled into the sieve, it immediately flows out until nothing remains.
A Sahaabi would come to possess a large fortune, in consequence of a conquest, but then he would spend everything in his possession, and would not keep with himself a single dirham for a meal.
They were neither accustomed to hoard money, nor to put by anything for their future needs. Hundreds of thousands of dirhams, their share of booty, were spent within minutes.
(Fazaa’il-e-Sadaqaat pg. 705)
