The New Wealth of Fayʾ

These ayahs concern the ruling on fayʾ. Ghanīmah is the name given to spoils of war taken by an army after a fight; fayʾ is what is taken without a fight. Since no fighting occurred with Banū al-Naḍīr — they surrendered and agreed to evacuate, leaving their property behind except for what they could carry — the ruling on what they left behind is that it went to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). So the ruling on ghanīmah, which is to divide the spoils into five portions, four of those portions going to the fighters, does not apply here: the entire amount went to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), his to distribute as he saw fit. This was a new source of income for the Muslims. Ibn Isḥāq says that Banū al-Naḍīr left their properties for the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him); these consisted of their palm trees and their farms, and these became his personal property, his to dispose of as he wished.

So it was up to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). He called the Anṣār — al-Aws and al-Khazraj — and told them: "If you want, I can split this money among you all, and the Muhājirūn continue living in your houses and working in your farms; or, if you want, I can distribute this money among the Muhājirūn only, and they would leave your houses and not take any share of your harvest." This was put to them because, as already described, the Anṣār had offered — something they did not have to do — to share the harvest of their land with the Muhājirūn. So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, in substance, "It is up to you: I could distribute this among you all and the Muhājirūn continue living in your houses, or they can move out, and I will give them this money of Banū al-Naḍīr." The Anṣār agreed that it should be distributed to their brothers among the Muhājirūn, and said that if the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) wished them to carry on giving the Muhājirūn a share of their farms as well, they had no objection to that either — a further sign of the generosity of the Anṣār (may Allah be pleased with them). So the Muhājirūn moved into the houses of Banū al-Naḍīr, and the difficult financial situation of the Muhājirūn was lifted; their position improved. Now they had both the houses and the farms of Banū al-Naḍīr, divided among the Muhājirūn alone, and only two men of the Anṣār were given a share: Sahl ibn Ḥunayf and Abū Dujānah, because they complained of their poverty. Ibn Kathīr says that from this wealth the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) would set aside his family's expenses for a year, and whatever riding-beasts or weapons remained he would treat as military supplies for use in the cause of Allah (swt), the Almighty and Glorious.

So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) now, finally, had some wealth. Before this he lived on gifts he received from the Companions. Consider the Messenger of Allah's (peace be upon him) livelihood across his life: he began as a shepherd — that was his first profession. After that he worked as a businessman, and came to work for Khadījah (may Allah be pleased with her), becoming her business manager, taking care of her trade for her. But when he was given prophethood, he stopped that work; the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) discontinued working as either a shepherd or in business, and devoted his whole time to daʿwah. So he lived on the wealth of Khadījah (may Allah be pleased with her) and of his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Then, when he moved to Madīnah, the Anṣār would help him — since he was the Messenger of Allah, he could not accept charity, but they would give him gifts. Now, since this wealth of fayʾ all came back to him, he would take from it his own expenses for a year, and spend the rest in the cause of Allah (swt), in jihād. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, juʿila rizqī taḥta ẓilli rumḥī — "my provision has been placed beneath my spear" — meaning his provision came from fighting in the cause of Allah (swt): that was the Messenger of Allah's (peace be upon him) source of income. He was not an employee, and he did not run a business; all his income came from jihād in the cause of Allah (swt), from the spoils of war. Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) said that a man might donate to him his palm trees, or whatever else Allah willed, up until Quraysh and Banū al-Naḍīr were conquered for him — and thereafter he began giving rather than receiving.