An Outline of Early Islamic History — Page 82
82 account of the poor that the rich were rich. He never took home any gold or silver or riches. Whatever came his way was given away to the poor right away. Once a tribe came to Medina. They were in a very bad way. There were hunger lines on their faces. The Prophet was deeply moved. He at once summoned Muslims to the mosque. He called upon them to bring, “Coin, cloth, grain or even a date,” whatever they coul d afford. Some brought clothes, some gave away their stored grains. One companion brought a heavy load of gold coins. When all this was piled up before him, his face lit up like the moon. Every bit was distributed. The Prophet commanded Muslims to love one another. He said, “What one likes for himself he should also like for his brother. ” This was one of his directives: “Beware, it is kufr (un - Islamic) to fight a Muslim; it is a sin to abuse him. It is not lawful for a Muslim to be angry with a brother for more than three days. ” He advised Muslims to greet one another, to shake hands, to give presents, to invite one another to meals, to serve the sick, and to assist at funerals. For goodwill among mankind, the Prophet commanded his followers to be just even to the enemy, to speak the truth even against the nearest of kin and “to spread peace and feed the poor. ” He was never hard on any man except when he openly broke