Where are the liberal rich people?

TEHRAN, Nov. 6 (MNA) -- Where are the liberal rich people? Where are the liberal rich people who spend their money freely to help the poor, to feed the hungry orphan, to create job opportunities for the unemployed, and to create social programs to uplift the downtrodden masses? Some would say that such a creature does not exist. In his book Golistan, the Iranian poet Saadi wrote: The liberal have no money. The wealthy have no liberality. However, Saadi, who was one of the giants of Persian literature, knew that there are exceptions and mentioned this fact in the same passage of the book. Yes, there are a few rich people who make charitable donations and work to uplift the downtrodden masses. But most of them are humble and pious people who conceal their noble actions. They do not want to make a show of their good deeds. If we want to uplift the downtrodden masses, we should not wait until a large number of rich people decide to be generous and share their wealth. Middle class, working class, and even poor people must start working together to build up their local economies and the world economy. Unfortunately, many middle class people do not want to help the poor. One political activist once said, “Many middle class people tell me, ‘I’ll help the poor when I’m rich.’ Unfortunately, most of them will chase after money for all of their lives but they will never become rich, and hence they will never help the poor.” So what is the root of the problem? The root of the problem is the fact that most people do not empathize with their fellow human beings. They have become greedy and selfish. The global haves are not concerned about the plight of the global have-nots. In Islam, there is a concept called jihad-i-nafs, which could be translated as “the struggle against the self” or “the struggle against the desires of the lower self.” In jihad-i-nafs, Muslims strive to become selfless servants of God and altruistic helpers of the downtrodden masses. And Islam is not the only religion that talks about altruism. The concept of sharing the wealth is universal in all of the world’s various cultures, even if few people practice what they preach. Indeed, all of the world’s religions require their followers to give alms to the needy. In Islam, the alms are called zakat and sadaqat. The earnings of a Muslim must be halal, which means that all income must be honestly earned through an occupation that is legal according to Islamic law, and a portion of that honestly earned income must be set aside for the needy in order to purify it. Other religions have similar injunctions. Even progressives and secular humanists who are atheist or agnostic or who have no religion believe in helping the less fortunate. Now all of these groups together account for at least 90 percent of the world population. So why are so few people helping the poor? The answer is not too difficult to ascertain. Most people are not true to what they claim to believe in. Thus, everyone who is true to their professed beliefs must encourage the others to get real and to stop being hypocrites. Some people claim they do not have enough money to give alms, and some of them are telling the truth when they say that. However, giving away money or material things is not the only way to give alms. An encouraging word, a kind gesture, or a display of empathy can also be acts of charity. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him and his household) said that even a smile is charity. Upon hearing Saadi’s verses about wealth and liberality, one seeker of truth once said, “If liberal people have no money and people with money have no liberality, then I don’t want to ever have a lot of money.” And perhaps he is on the right path. But then again, perhaps it is possible to have a reasonable amount of money, or even a lot of money, and to spend a good share on the poor. But whatever the case may be, all of us should work hard to maintain our liberality and our humanity.