Zakat and sadaqah are ways to empty the ship of our heart from the weight of greed, attachment, and stinginess. The one who spends his wealth not for honor or praise, but rather to purify himself before God, is the one whose ship of faith will stay afloat. As Allah says, “He who spends his wealth in order to purify himself, not as payment for any favors received by anyone, but only seeking to gain the pleasure of his Lord Most High, and indeed he will eventually be satisfied” (92:18-21).
