Ibn Daud - A Handbook of Spiritual Medicine

CHAPTER 11
Fear of Poverty
خَوْفُ‏ الفَقْر al-Faqr] [Khawf
When the heart is not correctly aligned to the decree of the
Almighty, then dissatisfaction will always arise. Dislike of poverty
can sit with a person when they are poor, but by far the more
widespread disease is the fear of poverty when wealth is in place.
The general characteristic of this fear is that one’s cash, capital,
estates or resources will be destroyed or diminished, thus impacting
on lifestyle and esteem. When this fear is placed in the heart of a
person, the clinging greed intensifies, and they redouble their efforts
to accumulate more wealth.
FEAR OF POVERTY
Without doubt, dissatisfaction with one’s allotted portion goes hand
in hand with spending little or no time in worshipping Allāh or
performing genuine acts of charity. The pursuit of worldly riches and
comforts becomes the sufferer’s goal in life.
The Prophet said, “Whoever makes the Hereafter his goal, Allāh
makes his heart rich, and organizes his affairs, and the world
comes to him whether it wants to or not. And whoever makes
the world his goal, Allāh puts his poverty right before his eyes,
and disorganises his affairs, and the world does not come to him,
except what has been decreed for him.” [At-Tirmidhī 2465]
112