Generosity & Spending in the Way of Allah the Almighty
There are numerous narrations in relation to Hazrat Uthman’s (ra) generosity and spending in the way of Allah the Almighty. Hazrat Uthman (ra) himself relates, “There are 10 things I keep hidden and only my Lord knows. I was the fourth person of all people to accept Islam; I have never listened to any vain songs and I have never uttered a lie; ever since I took the oath of allegiance at the hand of the Holy Prophet (sa) I have never touched my private area with my right hand; after accepting Islam, not a single Friday has gone by that I haven’t freed a slave, barring the Friday when I had no slave to free; in such a case, I would free a slave on a day other than the Friday; nor have I committed adultery in the era of Jahilyyah [era of ignorance prior to the advent of Islam] nor after having accepted Islam.”
(Majma‘ al-Zawa‘id wa Manba‘ al-Fawa‘id, Vol. 9, p. 65, Kitab al-Manaqib, Bab fi ma Kana fih min al-Khair, Hadith 14524, Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2001)
Hazrat Uthman’s (ra) freed slave, Abu Saeed relates that whilst the house of Hazrat Uthman (ra) was besieged, he freed 20 slaves.
(Ali Ibn al-Athir, Usdul-Ghabah fi Ma‘rifat al-Sahabah, Vol. 3, Uthman (ra) bin Affan [Beirut, Lebanon: Dar al-Fikr, 2003], p. 489)
Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Mas‘ud narrates:
“We were in a battle alongside the Holy Prophet (sa) when the people were suffering from hunger, to the extent that I witnessed worry on the faces of the Muslims, and joy on the faces of the hypocrites. When the Holy Prophet (sa) witnessed these scenes, he said, ‘By Allah, the sun will not set until He has brought you provisions.’
“When Hazrat Uthman (ra) learnt of this, he said, ‘Allah and His Messenger (sa) have spoken the truth.’ So he purchased 14 camels along with the grains laden upon them and sent nine of them to the Holy Prophet (sa). Upon seeing them, the Holy Prophet (sa) asked, ‘What is this?’ He was then informed that Hazrat Uthman (ra) had sent these gifts for him. Thereupon, the countenance of the Holy Prophet (sa) was filled with joy and happiness and the faces of the hypocrites were overcome with anxiety. Then I saw the Holy Prophet (sa) raise both his hands to the point where the whiteness beneath his arms became visible and he prayed for Hazrat Uthman (ra). I had never heard the Holy Prophet (sa) pray in such a manner for anyone else before, or even after; and the prayer was:
اَللّٰهُمَّ أَعْطِ عُثْمَانَ، اَللّٰهُمَّ افْعَلْ بِعُثْمَانَ
“‘O Allah! Grant Uthman in abundance; O Allah shower Your blessings and bounties upon Uthman.’”
Hazrat Aisha (ra) relates, “When the Holy Prophet (sa) came to me, he saw some meat and asked who had sent it. I answered that it was sent by Hazrat Uthman (ra). Thereupon, I witnessed the Holy Prophet (sa) raise his hands and pray for Hazrat Uthman (ra).”
(Majma‘ al-Zawa‘id wa Manba‘ al-Fawa‘id, Vol. 9, p. 64, Kitab al-Manaqib, Bab I‘anatuh fi al-Jaish al-Usrah wa Ghairih, Hadith 14520/14523, Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2001)
Muhammad bin Hilal narrates from his grandmother that she would go to Hazrat Uthman (ra) when his house was under siege. He says that his grandmother had a son who was named Hilal. One day, when Hazrat Uthman (ra) didn’t find her present he asked about her whereabouts and was informed that she had given birth to a son that night. He states that his grandmother said, “Thereupon, Hazrat Uthman (ra) sent me 50 dirhams and a part of a large cloth and said, ‘This is an allowance for your son and this cloth is for your son to wear. When your son turns one, we shall increase the allowance to 100 dirhams.’”
(Ibn Kathir, Al-Bidayah wa al-Nihayah, Vol. 4, Ch. 7, Sanah 35 Hijri, Fasl fi Dhikr Shai min Siratih [Beirut, Lebanon: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2001] p. 206)
Ibn Saeed bin Yarbu narrates:
“I once left home in the afternoon when I was a child. I had a bird which I was making fly in the mosque when I saw a man lying there who had a beautiful countenance. Beneath his head was a brick or a piece of brick”; he placed the brick there as a pillow. “I stood there and stared in awe of his beauty. He opened his eyes and asked me, ‘O child, who are you?’ I told him who I was, then he spoke out to a child sleeping nearby, but the child did not give any response. Upon this he told me to go and bring him and I proceeded to do so. The wise man instructed the child to go and bring something and told me to sit down. Then the child went away and returned with a garment and 1,000 dirhams. He then asked me to take off the clothes I was wearing and gave me the garment to wear, in which he had placed one thousand dirhams. When I returned to my father and I told him everything that had just happened, he said, ‘O my child, do you know who it is that treated you in this way?’ I replied that I did not know except that he was a person who was sleeping in the mosque and I had never in my entire life seen a more handsome person. He said to me, ‘He was Hazrat Amirul Momineen [leader of the faithful] Hazrat Uthman (ra) bin Affan.’”
(Ibn Kathir, Al-Bidayah wa al-Nihayah, Vol. 4, Ch. 7, Sanah 35 Hijri [Beirut, Lebanon: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2001] pp. 206-207)
Ibn Jarir relates that Hazrat Talha (ra) met Hazrat Uthman (ra) whilst he was going towards the mosque. Hazrat Talha (ra) stated to Hazrat Uthman (ra), “I now have the 50,000 dirhams which I owed you, therefore you may send someone to me in order to collect the money.” Upon this, Hazrat Uthman (ra) stated, “Owing to your kindness, I gift this amount to you.” In other words, he did not need to repay him.
Asmai states that Ibn Amir appointed Qatan bin Auf Halali as the governor of Kirman and so left with 4,000 Muslim soldiers. During the way, a valley had given way due to the rain and their path was obstructed as a result. Qatan feared that perhaps he would not be able to arrive at his destination on time and so he announced that whoever could cross the valley, he would be given 1,000 dirhams as a reward. Following this, people began to swim in order to go across the other side. Whenever any of the soldiers would cross the valley, Qatan would instruct that he be given his reward. Eventually, the entire army crossed the valley and thus four million dirhams were given. However, Ibn Amir, who was the governor, refused to give this money to Qatan and informed Hazrat Uthman (ra) about this matter in writing. Upon this, Hazrat Uthman (ra) stated, “Give this amount to Qatan for he has helped the Muslims in the cause of Allah.” Thus, ever since they had crossed the valley, the rewards which they were given were known as “Jawaiz” which is the plural of “Jaizah”.
(Ibn Kathir, Al-Bidayah wa al-Nihayah, Vol. 4, Ch. 7, Sanah 35 Hijri, Fasl fi Dhikr Shai min Siratih [Beirut, Lebanon: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2001] p. 208)