It is narrated from Sayyiduna Awf bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that when wealth of fay’ would come to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), he (peace and blessings be upon him) would distribute it on the same day in such a way that the married person would be given two shares and the unmarried one share. So one day we were called, and I would be called before Sayyiduna Ammar bin Yasir (may Allah be pleased with him). So I was called, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) gave me two shares because I had a family. Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) called Sayyiduna Ammar bin Yasir (may Allah be pleased with him) and gave him one share. A piece of a gold chain was left, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would lift it with the end of his staff, but it would fall. Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) picked it up, and at that time he (peace and blessings be upon him) was saying: What will become of you when this gold becomes abundant for you?

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Umar bin Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, that the wealth of Banu Nadir was that which Allah Almighty gave to His Messenger as fay’ (spoils of war without battle). The Muslims had not made their horses and riding animals run to acquire this wealth, so this wealth was purely for the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him (and he could dispose of it as he wished). Thus, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, would keep provisions for his family for one year from it, and whatever remained, he would spend on horses and weapons in preparation for the cause of Allah.

It is narrated from Malik bin Aws bin Hadthan that Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) used to swear oaths on three matters and would say: By Allah! No one is more entitled to this wealth of fay’ than anyone else, and I myself do not have more right to it than anyone else. By Allah, every Muslim has a share in this wealth, except for a slave. Yes, according to the details of the Book of Allah and the distribution of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), our ranks are different. For example: one man and his being tested in Islam, one man and his precedence in accepting Islam, one man and his wealth, and one man and his neediness. By Allah, if I remain alive, even the shepherd of goats in the mountains of Sana’a will receive his share, while he is grazing his goats right there.

Narrated from Nashirah bin Sami Yazni, he says: On the day of Jabiyah, Sayyiduna Umar bin Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) addressed the people and said: Indeed, Allah Almighty has made me the treasurer of this wealth and the one who distributes it; rather, understand that Allah Almighty Himself is the distributor, and now I will begin with the family of the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and after them, with the people of honor. Then he gave ten thousand dirhams to the Mothers of the Believers, except for Sayyida Juwayriya, Sayyida Safiyya, and Sayyida Maymuna. But when Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to treat us equally, he gave them all equal wealth. Then Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: After this, I will begin with the companions who migrated first, because we were driven out of our homes due to oppression and excess. Then, after them, he considered the companions of greater honor, and fixed five thousand dirhams for the Muhajireen of Badr and four thousand dirhams for the Ansar, and gave three thousand dirhams to those who participated in Uhud. Then Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Whoever hastened in migration, his grant will be hastened, and whoever delayed in migration, his grant will also be delayed. Thus, no man should blame anyone except the place where his camel sits (i.e., if someone receives a smaller share due to migrating late, he should blame himself for staying behind).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: If the wealth of Bahrain comes, I will give you such and such. After the death of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), when the wealth of Bahrain arrived, Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Whoever has a debt upon the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) or to whom he (peace and blessings be upon him) made a promise, let him come to me. So I went to him and said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to me that if the wealth of Bahrain comes, I will give you such and such. Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Then take it. So I took it and found that share to be five hundred dirhams. Then when I came to him, he did not give me anything, then I came again and he did not give me anything, then when I came the third time and he did not give me anything, I said: Either give me or refuse me out of miserliness. Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Do you say that I am miserly? What disease can be greater than miserliness? Whenever you asked me, I intended to give you (but finding others more in need, I gave it to them).

It is narrated from Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) that a small water skin was brought to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), in which there were pearls. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) distributed it between a free woman and a slave woman. Sayyida says: My father also used to distribute for the free and the slave. The words of the narrator Yazid bin Harun are: He used to distribute equally between the free woman and the slave woman.