وَأَمَّا حَقُّ الصَّدَقَةِ فَأَنْ تَعْلَمَ أنَّها ذُخرُكَ عِنْدَ رَبكَ وَوَديعَتُكَ الَّتِي لا تَحْتَاجُ إلَى الإشْهَادِ، فَإذا عَلِمْتَ ذَلِك كُنْتَ بمَا اسْتَودَعْتَهُ سِرًّا أَوْثقَ بمَا اسْتَوْدَعْتَهُ عَلانِيَةً، وَكُنْتَ جَدِيرًا أَنْ تَكونَ أَسْرَرْتَ إلَيْهِ أَمْرًا أَعْلَنْتَهُ، وَكَانَ الأَمْرُ بَيْنَكَ وبَيْنَهُ فِيهَا سِرًّا عَلَى كُلِّ حَالٍ وَلَمْ تَسْتَظْهِرْ عَلَيْهِ فِيمَا اسْتَوْدَعْتَهُ مِنْهَا بإشْهَادِ الأَسْمَاعِ وَالأَبْصَارِ عَلَيْهِ بهَا كَأنَّهَا أَوْثقُ فِي نَفْسِكَ لا كَأنَّكَ لا تثِقُ بهِ فِي تَأْديَةِ وَديعَتِكَ إلَيْكَ، ثُمَّ لَمْ تَمْتَنَّ بهَا عَلَى أَحَدٍ لأَنّهَا لَكَ فَإذا امْتَنَنْتَ بهَا لَمْ تَأْمَنْ أَنْ تَكُونَ بهَا مِثْلَ تَهْـجِينِ حَالِكَ مِنْهَا إلَى مَنْ مَنَنْتَ بهَا عَلَيْهِ لأَنَّ فِي ذلِكَ دَلِيلاً عَلَى أَنّكَ لَمْ تُرِدْ نفْسَكَ بهَـا، وَلَوْ أَرَدْتَ نفْسَكَ بهَا لَمْ تَمْتَنَّ بهَا عَلَى أَحَدٍ. وَلا قُوَّةَ إلا باللهِ.
And the right of charity is that you should know that it is a storing away with your Lord and a deposit for which you will have no need for witnesses. Then once you know this you will
be more confident of it if you donate it in secret than if you donate it in public. It is more appropriate for you to do privately what you now do in public and keep the affairs
between you and Him secret under all circumstances. And you should also not take your hearing and sight as witnesses for the donations that you make in charity as if you have the most
trust yourself. It should not be as if you are not sure that your donations will be returned to you. Finally you should not remind others of your favors since you have
done so for yourself. If you remind them of your favors, you will not be immune from being similarly reminded of others' favors to you. Moreover this will prove that your intentions were not
pure. If you had pure intentions you would not remind anyone of it. And there is no power but in God.
