Ashrat al-Saah - al-Wabil - Yusuf al-Wabil - (169)

28 – The Prevalence of Avarice (1):

Abū Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “Among the signs of the Hour is that avarice will become widespread.” (2)

He also reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Time will draw closer, good deeds will diminish, and avarice will be cast into people’s hearts.” (3)

Muāwiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: “The situation will only grow harsher, and people will only grow more avaricious.” (4)

Avarice is a blameworthy trait that Islam has forbidden. Islam has also made clear that whoever is protected from the avarice of his own soul has indeed succeeded and prospered. Allah Most High says: “Whoever is protected from the avarice of his own soul—it is they who are successful” [al-Hashr: 9 and al-Taghābun: 16].

Jābir ibn Abd Allāh (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Beware of injustice, for injustice will be darkness on the Day of Resurrection. And beware of avarice, for avarice destroyed those who

(1) *Shuhh* (avarice) is the most extreme form of miserliness and denotes withholding more intensely than ordinary miserliness. It is also said to mean miserliness coupled with covetousness. See *al-Nihāya fī Gharīb al-Hadīth* (2/488). (2) Related by al-Tabarānī in *al-Awsat*. See *Fath al-Bārī* (13/15). Al-Haythamī said: “Its narrators are narrators of the *Sahīh*, except for Muhammad ibn al-Hārith ibn Sufyān, who is trustworthy.” *Majma al-Zawāid* (7/327). (3) *Sahīh al-Bukhārī*, Book of Tribulations, chapter “The Emergence of Tribulations” (13/13, with *Fath al-Bārī*). (4) Related by al-Tabarānī, and its narrators are narrators of the *Sahīh*. *Majma al-Zawāid* (8/14).

٢٨ - كثرة الشُّحِّ (١): عن أبي هريرة ﵁؛ قال: "من أشراط السّاعة أن يظهر الشحُّ" (٢). وعنه ﵁ عن النّبيّ ﷺ؛ قال: "يتقارب الزّمان، وينقص العمل، ويلقى الشحُّ" (٣). وعن معاوية ﵁؛ قال: سمعتُ رسول الله ﷺ يقول: "يزداد الأمر إِلَّا شدَّة، ولا يزداد النَّاس إِلَّا شحًّا" (٤). والشحُّ خُلُقٌ مذمومٌ، نهى عنه الإسلام، وبيَّن أنَّ مَنْ وُقِيَ شحَّ نفسه؛ فقد فاز وأفلح؛ كما قال تعالى: ﴿وَمَنْ يُوقَ شُحَّ نَفْسِهِ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ﴾ [الحشر: ٩ والتغابن:١٦]. وعن جابر بن عبد الله ﵁ أن رسول الله ﷺ قال: "اتَّقوا الظُّلم، فإن الظُّلم ظُلُماتٌ يوم القيامة، واتَّقوا الشُّحَّ؛ فإن الشحَّ أهلك مَنْ

(١) (الشح): أشد البخل، وهو أبلغ في المنع من البخل. وقيل: هو البخل مع الحرص. انظر: "النهاية في غريب الحديث" (٢/ ٤٨٨). (٢) رواه الطبراني في "الأوسط". انظر: "فتح الباري" (١٣/ ١٥). قال الهيثمي: "رجاله رجال الصّحيح، غير محمّد بن الحارث بن سفيان، وهو ثقة". "مجمع الزوائد" (٧/ ٣٢٧). (٣) "صحيح البخاريّ"، كتاب الفتن، باب ظهور الفتن، (١٣/ ١٣ - مع الفتح). (٤) رواه الطبراني، ورجاله رجال الصّحيح. "مجمع الزوائد" (٨/ ١٤).