on others, or die leaving his heirs destitute, begging from others. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said:
“It is better for you to leave your heirs well-off than to leave them destitute, begging from others.”
“When Allah accepted Ka‘b ibn Mālik’s repentance, Ka‘b said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, part of my repentance is to give away all my wealth as charity for Allah and His Messenger.’ The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, also said to him, ‘Keep some of your wealth, for that is better for you.’”
Whatever the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, described as better for a person is undoubtedly better for him than its opposite. Whoever therefore gives generously from his wealth for Allah’s sake beyond what is obligatory upon him, renouncing that wealth and desiring the abundant reward Allah has in store for him, is an ascetic by virtue of the wealth he has renounced and relinquished for Allah’s sake, Mighty and Majestic.
Thus, all the Companions noted for their wealth were ascetics in this world, by virtue of the wealth they gave for Allah Most High during their lives and the intentions with which they spent on themselves until their deaths. Even if their wealth was considerable, what they gave during their lives exceeded what was spent after their deaths. It is not the case that a person can only be called an ascetic once he has relinquished all his wealth for Allah’s sake, Mighty and Majestic, and abandoned every enjoyment it affords for fear of being questioned about it, as the group we mentioned first maintained.
Those who renounce this world practise asceticism according to the extent of their progress toward the abode of the Hereafter. This world and the Hereafter are like the two pans of a balance: when a person inclines away from one toward the other, his weight tips that pan. If he tips the pan of the Hereafter, he is counted among those who renounce this world. Their degrees of asceticism differ according to how far they tip the balance. The utmost degree of asceticism is to incline toward nothing in this world unless it brings one nearer to Allah Most High; then the pan of this world is empty and carries no weight. If the two pans balance equally, however, or if he tips the pan of this world, he is not counted among those who renounce it.
Asceticism in this world is therefore measured by intentions, and none knows its measure except the One who knows the worth of those intentions and rewards them accordingly. A person with great wealth may thus be more detached from this world than someone with little wealth, or someone with none at all.
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There is disagreement on this subject. One group of scholars has said that asceticism is