No extravagance in charitable acts

The life of this world: Our passage from this world to the Hereafter is called “life”. The life in this world means the period , the length or portion of time between birth and death. Time is here never resting. There are many amusements in this world. Life of this world is a business bargain, an inevitable battle, a long series of tests, a part of Pilgrimage, an opportunity of service. 
Never-resting time : The life in this world means the period , the length or portion of time between birth and death. It is our capital and a present from our Creator. We are passing through and losing the years, months, days, hours, minutes and seconds. Time searches out and destroys everything material. If we merely run a race against Time , we shall lose. This life is ever full of toil and misery , if looked at as empty of the Eternal Hope which Revelation gives us. It is only our spiritual part that conquers Time. The Holy Qur’an says: “ By the time , verily Man is in loss , except such as have faith and do righteous deeds, and (join together) in the mutual enjoining of Truth , and of Patience and Constancy.

Amusements: The Holy Qur’an says: ““Know ye (all), that the life of this world is but play and pastime, adornment and mutual boasting and multiplying, (in rivalry) among yourselves, riches and children.

In this life , some people not only play and amuse themselves and each other , but they show off, and boast , and pile up riches and man-power and influence , in rivalry with each other. Allah’s mercies are free and open to all , like His rain. But how do men make use of them? The good men take the real spiritual harvest and store the spiritual grain. The men who are in love with ephemeral are delighted with the green of the tares and grass ; but such things give no nourishment ; they soon wither , dry , and crumble to pieces , like the worldly pleasures and pomps , boasting and tumults, possessions and friends. Many of the attractive vanities of this world are but nets set by Satan to deceive man. The only thing real and lasting is the Good Life lived in the Light of Allah. 
Business bargain: The Almighty says: ““Allah hath purchased of the Believers their persons and their goods; for their (in return) is the Garden (of Paradise): They fight in His Cause, and slay and are slain...

In a human bargain both sides give something and receive some advantage. In the divine bargain of Allah with man, Allah takes man’s will and soul and his wealth and goods, and gives him in return ever-lasting Felicity. Man fights in Allah’s Cause and carries out His will. all that he has to give up is the ephemeral things of this world, while he gains eternal salvation , the fulfillment of his highest spiritual hopes, a supreme achievement indeed. 
If life be considered under the metaphor of a business bargain , man, by merely attending to his material gains , will lose. When he makes up his day’s account, it will show a loss. It will only show profit if he has Faith , leads a good life, and contributes to the mankind’s welfare by directing and encouraging other people on the Path of Truth and Constancy. Faith is his armor , which wards off the wounds of the material world ; and his righteous life is his positive contribution to spiritual ascent. He carry the Banner of Truth against all odds and in all positions of danger whether by pen or speech , or deed or counsel. If he lived only for himself , he would not fulfill his whole duty. Whatever good he has , especially in moral and spiritual life, he must spread among his brothers and sisters , so that they may see the Truth and stand by it in patient hope and unshaken constancy amidst all the storm and stress of outer life. For he and they have attained Peace within. The man of God takes Allah’s Revelation (“the Book”) to heart , ever seeks to get closer and closer to Allah (“regular Prayer”), and in doing so , is moved more and more to practical Charity for his fellow-creatures. He just does what he can and is necessary for his fellow-creatures , whether people talk about it or not. 
Inevitable battle: The history of man on the earth starts from the time when Satan made Adam and Eve slip from the Garden and got them out of the state of felicity in which they had been. This denotes the idea of evil gradually tempting man from a higher to a lower state. Evidently Adam is a type of all mankind, and the sexes go together in all spiritual matters. Moreover, the expulsion applied to Adam, Eve, Satan and their children. Man’s sojourn in this lower state, where he is partly an animal of this earth, is for a time. But he must fulfil his lower duties also, for they too are a part of his spiritual training. In spite of Man’s fall, and in consequence of it, assurance of guidance is given. In case man follows the guidance he is free from any fear for the present or the future, and any grief or sorrow for past. The soul freed grows nearer to Allah. But those who deliberately reject Faith and definitely belie God’s signs, the consequences will be a punishment of abiding characters. 
During the History, some people have followed the divine guidance and some others have violated it and then the two opposite hidden parties have been gradually set up. Each of them has had its own ideals, guidelines, leaders , systems, methods, partisans, etc. Satan, Cain, Nimrod, Pharaoh, other rebels, their followers, the pagans, hypocrites and tyrants have been ever confronting Allah, Abel, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Christ, Muhammad, Ali (A.S.) other saint leaders of mankind and the believers. Regardless of the time and place, the party of Allah has included all of the organizations, companies, schools and persons who think and behave according to the divine systems and methods in order to realize the strategy of Islam. Also, the party of Satan has covered all of its subordinate individuals and groups who make, treat and serve in order to deviate the people from the Right Path and to perform the evil ideals. And this will continue up to the time when Satan as the main leader of Evil party will be killed by our Holy Prophet (S.A.) in Raj’at period. 
So life of this world is an inevitable battle between these two organized and armed forces: the party of Allah and the party of Satan. The Holy Qur’an states: “ We said: “ Get ye down all from here; and if , as is sure , there comes to you Guidance from Me, whosoever follows My guidance , on them shall be no fear , nor shall they grieve.* But those who reject Faith and belie Our Signs, they shall be Companions of the Fire; they shall abide therein.