May Allah be pleased with him.

His statement “yarzuʾuhu” means “diminishes it.”

Explanation

The author—may Allah have mercy on him—in the chapter entitled “The Numerous Paths to Good Deeds,” quotes the report of Jābir ibn ʿAbd Allah, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Prophet ﷺ said about someone who plants a tree: if anything eats from it—whether a human being, an animal, a bird, or anything else—or if it is reduced or stolen from, that counts for him as charity. This ḥadīth, therefore, encourages cultivation and planting, showing that they contain abundant good: benefit for one’s religion and benefit for worldly life.

The worldly benefit lies in the produce that results. The advantage of cultivation and planting is unlike the advantage of mere coins, for planting benefits the cultivator himself and benefits the entire town. Everyone gains from it by purchasing the fruit, buying the grain, and eating from it. In this there is growth for society and an increase in its blessings, unlike money that is locked away in coffers and benefits no one.

As for the religious benefit: if a bird—be it a sparrow, a pigeon, a chicken, or any other—eats from it even a single grain, that is recorded for him as charity, whether he intended it or not, even if, when he sowed or planted, such a thought never crossed his mind.