CHILDREN’S CORNER

CHILDREN’S CORNER 365 Days with the Sahaba Goodword is an award-winning publishing company with a splendid range of Islamic Books in many languages. It offers innovative products for children, including Quran stories, moral stories, craft and activity books, gift packs, Islamic games, Arabic and Islamic readers for home and school. 365 Days with the Sahaba is a unique book that contains 365 anecdotes from the lives of the pious Companions of the Prophet Muhammad. These anecdotes provide lessons in morality and ethics. The following is a selection of two anecdotes from this book. Upper Hand is Better than the Lower Hand W HEN Hakim ibn Hizam embraced Islam, he vowed to himself that he would atone for whatever he had done before Islam and whatever amount he had spent in opposing the Prophet, he would spend the same amount now for the cause of Islam. He sold Dar al-Nadwah (Assembly House) for one hundred thousand dirhams and gave the entire money for the cause of Allah. While Hakim was generous in his spending for the sake of Allah, he still craved wealth. After the battle of Hunayn, he asked the Prophet for some of the booty. The Prophet gave him what he had asked. He then asked for more and the Prophet gave him more. Hakim was still a newcomer to Islam and the Prophet was more generous to newcomers to reconcile their hearts to Islam. So, Hakim ended up with a large share of the booty. Then the Prophet told him: “O Hakim! This wealth is indeed sweet and attractive. Whoever takes it and is satisfied will be blessed by it and whoever takes it out of greed will not be blessed. He would be like someone who eats and is not satisfied. The upper hand is better than the lower hand (it is better to give than to receive).” The kind words of advice had a deep and immediate effect on Hakim. He was mortified and said to the Prophet: “O Messenger of Allah! By Him who has sent you with the truth, I shall not ask anyone after you for anything.”