Sadaqat al-Sirr wa Fadlaha
- Author died
- 795 AH
- Editions
- Al-Fārūq al-Ḥadīthah lil-Ṭibāʿah wa-al-Nashr
Sadaqat al-Sirr wa Fadlaha (Secret Charity and Its Merit) is a concise treatise by the Hanbali jurist and traditionist Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali (d. 795 AH / 1393 CE) examining the virtues, legal status, and scriptural evidences concerning the concealment of charitable giving .
Subject and Content
The treatise opens with scriptural proofs highlighting the superiority of giving charity in secret, citing the Quranic verse: وَإِنْ تُخْفُوهَا وَتُؤْتُوهَا الْفُقَرَاءَ فَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَكُمْ ("And if you conceal them and give them to the poor, it is better for you") [Al-Baqarah: 271] . Ibn Rajab gathers several prophetic traditions concerning the merit of concealed deeds, including :
- The hadith describing the seven individuals shaded by God on the Day of Resurrection, including رَجُلٌ تَصَدَّقَ بِصَدَقَةٍ فَأَخْفَاهَا، حَتَّى لا تَعْلَمَ شِمَالُهُ مَا صَنَعَتْ يَمِينُهُ ("a man who gives in charity and conceals it so that his left hand does not know what his right hand has done") .
- The tradition stating that الْجَاهِرُ بِالْقُرْآنِ كَالْجَاهِرِ بِالصَّدَقَةِ، وَالْمُسِرُّ بِالْقُرْآنِ كَالْمُسِرِّ بِالصَّدَقَةِ ("one who recites the Quran aloud is like one who gives charity openly, and one who recites the Quran secretly is like one who gives charity secretly") .
- The narration attributed to Anas ibn Malik recounting the creation of the earth and the mountains, in which the son of Adam who gives charity with his right hand while hiding it from his left is described as stronger than the wind .
Exegetical and Juristic Analysis
Ibn Rajab reviews statements of Quranic exegetes and legal scholars regarding whether the preference for concealment applies to all charity or specifically to voluntary alms (sadaqat al-tatawwu'). He critiques the opinion of Ibn 'Atiyyah, who suggested that concealing obligatory alms (zakat) had become preferable in later eras due to the prevalence of withholding it and the risk of ostentation, arguing that such reasoning is weak and comparing it to concealing obligatory prayers in places where people neglect them .
He likewise rejects the claim transmitted from al-Naqqash that verse 271 of Surah al-Baqarah was abrogated by the verse الَّذِينَ يُنْفِقُونَ أَمْوَالَهُمْ بِاللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ سِرًّا وَعَلَانِيَةً ("Those who spend their wealth by night and by day, secretly and openly") [Al-Baqarah: 274], noting that the claim of abrogation is very weak and that both verses indicate that spending is accepted in secret and in public . The text also touches upon rulings regarding giving obligatory alms to non-Muslim subjects (ahl al-dhimmah), citing the reported consensus noted by Ibn al-Mundhir, and concludes with exegetical narrations transmitted by al-Tha'labi .
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