Al-Kāfi - The Book of Zakat

Chapter: Unpleasantness of Begging ِنْ أَصْحَابِنَا عَنْ أَحْ٠َدَ بْنِ أَبِي عَبْدِ الله عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَ٠َّنْ ذَكَرَهُ عَنِ الْحُسَيْنِ بْنِ أَبِي الْعَلاءِ قَالَ قَالَ أَبُو عَبْدِ الله (عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَ٠َ الله عَبْداً عَفَّ وَتَعَفَّفَ وَكَفَّ عَنِ الْ٠َسْأَلَةِ فَإِنَّهُ يَتَعَجَّلُ الدَّنِيَّةَ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَلا يُغْنِي النَّاسُ عَنْهُ شَيْئاً قَالَ ثُ٠َثَّلَ أَبُو عَبْدِ الله (عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَ٠َا عَرَفْتُ الْيَأْسَ أَلْفَيْتُهُ الْغِنَى إِذَا عَرَفَتْهُ النَّفْسُ وَالطَّ٠6.

A number of our people have narrated from Ahmad ibn abu ‘Abd Allah from his father from those whom he has mentioned (in his book) from al-Husayn ibn abu al-‘Ala’ who has said the following: “Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘Allah grants mercy to one of His servants who has maintained chastity, continues to do so, and abstains from asking (people) for a favor; doing so brings lowliness for one in this world quickly, and people cannot make him self-sufficient.’ Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), then mentioned a line of the poems of Hatim (a famous generous person) as an example: ‘Once I understood “giving up all hope” properly, I found it to be self-sufficiency and wealth when the soul also understood it as well; (it ) found that greed is not anything other than poverty.’” رسل - Allamah Baqir al-Majlisi (Mirʾāt al-ʿUqūl fī Sharḥ Akhbār Āl al-Rasūl (16/148))