Legend has it that my Dad, as a chartered accountant from England, would go to the bank in the ’80s and ask for a loan; and when the bank manager would throw up his hands as if to say there was nothing he could do, Dad would ask to see the accounts, rearrange some of the math more efficiently, and thereby create the ability for the bank to give him that loan.
My wife has this gift, too, to arrange things more efficiently; I, however, do not. At least not financially.
I marvel, then, at some of the reports of the generosity of Rady Allahu ‘anh. It is not that he gave everything he had, but that through what had to be borrowing, business leverage, and negotiation acumen, he was able to multiply his ability to invest in the afterlife. And that is what charity is, isn’t it? An investment in the afterlife.
‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Khabbab said: I witnessed the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, urging (people to) support the Army of Difficulty, and then ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan said, ‘Messenger of Allah, I will be responsible for one hundred camels with their saddle blankets and their saddles, in the way of Allah.’ Then he further urged people to support the army and ‘Uthman said, ‘Messenger of Allah, I will be responsible for two hundred camels with their saddle blankets and their saddles, in the way of Allah.’ Then he further urged people to support the army and ‘Uthman said, ‘Messenger of Allah, I will be responsible for three hundred camels with their saddle blankets and their saddles, in the way of Allah.’ Then the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, came down (from the mimbar) saying, ‘There will be nothing at all against ‘Uthman whatever he does after this.’