—yet when you see them you would think, “These must be the poorest people alive.” They go on to trouble others with their incessant begging. Sometimes they ask—not out of genuine necessity—but because they want their houses to resemble the houses of the wealthy, their cars to look like the cars of the wealthy, and their clothes to match the clothes of the wealthy. Such conduct is sheer foolishness. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Whoever pretends to possess what he has not been given is like a person wearing two garments of falsehood.” Be content with what Allah has granted you: if you are poor, then live according to your means; if you are rich, then according to yours.

But to copy the affluent—saying, “I want a luxury car, an opulent house, and sumptuous furnishings,” and then to go around begging—whether you ask outright before buying such things, or you purchase them first and afterwards tell people, “I am in debt,” and the like—all of this is a grave error. Limit yourself to what you have and to what your Lord has bestowed upon you. Ask Allah to grant you a provision that will not lead you to transgression, a provision that will spare you from depending on His creation—and that is sufficient. We ask Allah for success and well-being for ourselves and for you.

6/265 — On his authority, from the Prophet ﷺ: “The one who strives on behalf of a widow or a destitute person is like a warrior in the path of Allah.” He added—so I think—“and like one who stands (in prayer) without fatigue, and like one who fasts without breaking his fast.” Agreed upon.