Theme: The Virtue of Merchant & Business

Allah’s messenger (ﷺ) said:

“By the being in whose hand is my life, you will certainly be asked on the day of judgement about this bounty. Hunger took you out of your homes, and then you did no return until you obtained this bounty.”

Narrated by Abu Hurairah رضي الله عنهما

(Source: Sahih Muslim, hadith No. 2038, Riyad-As-Salihin, No.497)

This hadith happened when the prophet met Abu Bakar and Umar out of their homes to which he ﷺ enquired what made them come out of their homes. They replied that hunger was the sole reason. He ﷺ concurred as he was also feeling hungry. They then went to the house of an Ansar after which they were bought fresh & dry dates as well as a goat slaughtered for them.

The hadith highlights the importance of having gratitude towards the provision of this world that has been bestowed to us. It is in line with the quranic verse 102:8 which mentions how one will be questioned of the pleasures he received in this world.

In Islam, saying thank you should not be the end of us showing our gratitude. Rather, we should expand it to good deeds, avoiding sins, increasing sunnah deeds and contributing towards charity. The prophet exemplified this by standing in prayer for long periods at night until his blessed heels began to crack, reasoning to his wife, Aishah “shouldn’t I be a grateful servant of Allah?”

Believers should increase their gratitude toward Allah from which they will see their provisions increase in multiple ways.