Al-Baqarah 265: The example of those who strive to earn the contentedness of Allah and strengthen themselves by spending for charity is the one of a beautiful garden on top of a hill which had plenty of rain pouring on it and hence yields a double harvest. Even if rain doesn’t pour down but just drizzles (it will yield harvest). Allah sees what you are doing.

Verse 265, we have come to it. Verse 265. The case of those who, to win Allah's pleasure and to root and strengthen their faith, spend their wealth on good, is like a fine garden set on a hill, on which heavy rain has fallen, so it has yielded a double harvest. Even if heavy rain does not fall, a drizzle falls and it still yields fruit. Allah sees what you do. In this verse Allah Almighty likens a person's striving to win Allah's pleasure, using the opportunities in his hands, striving with material means in Allah's way — this to a garden set on a hill, that is, set up high. Because much rain falls on high places.

It yields a double harvest, He says.

If, for Allah's pleasure, this person cannot find means and cannot spend his means, and his heart desires it, but because he has no means he cannot do it, then his garden, his vineyard too, is set on that hill; even without rain, between the heat of the day and the coolness of evening a drizzle forms. This mostly happens toward morning. Because land heats quickly and cools quickly. Seas heat slowly and cool slowly. In this case, with the land cooling late, with the quickly warming land, because of this clash of air, on the hill, on those high vineyards drizzle falls. And that benefits the crop.

Yes, and your Lord says He sees what we do; He does not mean one person, two people; whatever exists in the universe He sees it all. He is al-Basîr; there is no place He does not see. He is as-Samî'; there is nothing He does not hear. Yes. Allah Almighty, to those who spend their wealth on good, gives here a fine example. As I always remind you, the verses I fear most — I mean, I fear for the religion of Islam. Otherwise wealth and property are Allah's; in a way that you are not harmed, taking your precautions, so that you never have to hold out your hand to anyone, spend what exceeds your needs in the way of Allah.

That is my advice. Something I never used to say. But now we are reading the verses all together.

Help the poor, the needy, the stranded (?). Allah's mosques that He wants built up, (?), the children studying at Quran courses,

help these.

Allah Almighty gives here a fine example to those who spend their wealth on good. To strengthen one's faith for Allah, to win Allah's pleasure and to send provision ahead to the hereafter, those who spend their wealth in Allah's way beyond their needs — Allah Almighty, with a fine example, describes their state.

A person should neither open his hand too wide and become needy, nor clench it so tight and become stingy. The Prophet (peace be upon him) says in his hadiths: Satan frightens you with stinginess. I come across such people. They have wealth, they have property. In a verse our Lord says this: Although you cannot use up in a lifetime the wealth I have given you, you still say 'we have nothing', He says. You act stingily. Although you cannot use up in a lifetime the wealth I gave you. Yes. So to man in this situation Allah Almighty also says this in a verse, to people in that state: in the mornings do you not see the birds flying off to the deserts with empty crops?

In the evenings they come back to their nests with full crops, He says. Yes.

Our Lord shows us many things through His miracles and says in a verse: before your eyes thousands of miracles appear every day. You are blind, you do not see, He says. This blindness is that of the seeing blind. Not that a closed eye is blind.

A garden that is set on a hill.

Why is it set on a hill? Hills are cooler than valleys and get more rain. Also, hills are seen by everyone.

If a stream also flows through this well-kept vineyard and garden on the hill, it becomes something desired and envied by everyone. If on this hill there is a spring, a gushing spring, what is this gushing spring? Allah's inspiration to that sincere servant of His.

As you know, waters come down from the tops of mountains. Because mountaintops are the weakest points of the earth. Take the earth as round:

its most pointed part is its weakest part. And the waters pour down from there. Indeed, beneath the mountains there is water. Beneath the mountains there is water.

The earth, around its own axis, in 24 hours travels 40,000 kilometres.

Its speed per hour comes to 1,666 and some.

As the earth turns around its own axis, it is flung by centrifugal force.

Resulting from this flinging, by the earth's (?) force it zeroes its balance, holds it steady, and any imbalance made on the earth — the earth that by this gravitational force is balanced — cannot upset that balance. For example, volcanic eruptions, continents separating, atoms exploding. That is, they cannot upset this imbalance. Resulting from the earth being flung by centrifugal force, around its own axis the earth keeps its own balance. By Allah's knowledge, the magnetism He has placed, at the North Pole and the South Pole, because of the magnetism's (?) the earth turns around its own axis at forty thousand kilometres in 24 hours. And these (?) being calculated precisely — there are (?) beyond comprehension.

Being calculated precisely. First a miracle beyond reason makes known to us the existence of our Lord. That is, it proves the existence of our Lord. It proves it with knowledge.

That is why Yunus Emre put it so beautifully: Knowledge is knowing knowledge. Knowledge is knowing oneself. If you do not know yourself, what kind of knowledge is this? Yes.

So if through this well-kept vineyard and garden on the hill a stream also flows, that is, a bubbling spring, it becomes a place desired and envied by everyone. With this example Allah tells us that those who spend their wealth on good, who spend in Allah's way, in the hereafter will have a rank that others will envy like this — this is what He tells us. So what does He say? Those righteous servants are in gardens beneath which rivers flow, He says. Yes.

Even if there is no rain there, the drizzle that falls with the coolness there makes the (?) and the garden more splendid and enviable than the others.

Its plants, its fruits are fresh, its leaves dark and lush green, its fruit large and firm.

This is how faith takes root. Yes.

The meaning of comparing the drizzle here with rain, the meaning of the comparison: rain is the one who has much wealth and spends much on good; drizzle is the one who has little wealth and, beyond his needs, spends — people whose hearts long to be servants of Allah — that their state does not differ; that all who, each according to their means, beyond their needs give their wealth in charity for Allah are no different from one another; that the aim is to hold fast to Allah's rope; and helping people for Allah, and also giving charity for the upkeep of Allah's religion — through this Allah Almighty makes known to us their place in His sight.

How well we explained this part. Yes.

Allah sees what you do. Surely, wherever you are in the universe, Allah is aware of His creatures. They are under His sight. Besides this, the meaning here: the wealth we spent, did we spend it for Allah or did we spend it for show? Allah knows this. Because He knows the (?) of hearts. He knows the (?) of hearts. Yes.