Muslims ought to extend their hands with mercy and reach out to the needy no matter where they are. The concept of charity in Islam is not only confined to financial aid and monetary dealings but it also takes different shapes and various forms which starts from the simple act of smiling to people and removing any harm away from the road and ends up with giving all one’s efforts, money and time for the sake of helping others. God the Almighty guided us through various Prophetic traditions to the enormous importance of helping others. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said, “the most loved ones in the sight of God are those who are most beneficial to people”. In another Prophetic tradition Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said, “Whoever alleviate the burden of someone in this life, God will alleviate his/her burden on the Day of Judgment”. Therefore whoever eases a difficulty or lift a burden off some body’s shoulder, his/her reward is immense in God’s sight.

Lifting the burden is a wide field which includes for sure helping out those in need, feeding the hungry, dressing the destitute, curing the sick, visiting relatives and elderly among many other charity works which entails mercy and compassion. Funding medical research and scientific centers which care for developing new cures for chronic diseases or manufacturing new medical machines to alleviate people’s pain along with new agricultural developments to end the hunger of people worldwide among other magnanimous projects which need a lot of funding and its benefit is far reaching is an obligation on humanity altogether. Therefore, contributing to any of the many forms of charity is an obligation upon every Muslim by the virtue of his/her religion. As God the Almighty introduced Himself in the Quran with “the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful” and we as Muslims ought to follow suit. Also God described his beloved Prophet Muhammad in the Quran by stating, “And we have not sent you, O Muhammad, except to be a mercy to the whole worlds”. Therefore, Prophet Muhammad showed mercy not only to humans but also to animals, plants and inanimate objects. Mercy and compassion is a universal concept which entails at its core loving and extending the hands of mercy to those who are around us.