970 – ʿAbd Allah narrated to us; Hārūn related to me; Sayyār narrated to us; Jaʿfar narrated to us; Saʿīd al-Jurayrī narrated, from Abū al-Salīl, who said:

A shaykh halted beside us in our gathering and said: “My father—or my uncle—told me that he was present with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in al-Baqīʿ when the Prophet said: ‘Whoever gives a charity (ṣadaqah) today, I will bear witness for him before Allah on the Day of Resurrection.’”

Then a man came forward—by Allah, there was no one in al-Baqīʿ whose face was darker, whose stature was shorter, or whose eye was more defective than his—leading a she-camel; and by Allah, there was nothing in al-Baqīʿ more splendid than that she-camel. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ asked, “Is this the charity?” He replied, “Yes, O Messenger of Allah.”

Another man belittled him, saying, “Let him give it away; by Allah, it is better than he is.” The Messenger of Allah ﷺ heard his words and said, “You have lied; rather, he is better than you and better than it. You have lied; rather, he is better than you and better than it,” repeating this three times. He then said: “Successful indeed is the one who is ascetic and striving; successful indeed is the one who is ascetic and striving.”