They were always ready to face hardships in order to save others. Sometimes, they would even give to the needy the food or clothing which they themselves urgently needed. There are many of such happenings that took place in the life of our religious leaders.

For instance, once Imam Ali's (A.S.) children were sick. Their mother, daughter of the Prophet, vowed to fast three days on the recovery of her children, in thanksgiving to Allah.

Imam Ali (A.S.) and the children all joined Lady Fatema (S.A.) in thanksgiving. All of them fasted. It was sunset and they had only a few barley loaves of bread for their breakfast. As they were about to eat their food, someone knocked at their door, saying I am a poor man. Please give me some food. The food, which the whole family had, was very little. They gave it all to the poor man.

Again on next day, when the family wanted to break their fast an orphan began knocking at the door asking for food. The same thing happened on the third day also with a stranger. Each time they gave their food to the needy and they, themselves, remained hungry continuing their fast.

Muslim commentators say, The next day, the Holy Prophet (S.A.W) came to the family with these verses of the Holy Qur'an: "Surely the righteous shall drink of a cup the admixture of which is camphor, a fountain from which the servants of Allah shall drink; they make it to flow a (goodly) flowing forth. They fulfil vows and fear a day the evil of which shall be spreading far and wide. And they give food out of love for Allah to the poor and the orphan and the Active: We only feed you for Allah's sake. We desire from you neither reward nor thanks: Surely we fear from our Allah a stern, distressful day. Therefore, Allah will guard them from the evil of that day and cause them to meet with ease and happiness; And reward them because they were patient, with garden and silk." (Holy Qur'an, 76:5-12)

"Salamun Alaikum" (Peace be on you)

And finding a vacant place comfortably sat down.

The Prophet (S.A.W.) had taught them that all Muslims were brothers and in an assembly one should sit wherever one finds a place, regardless of any status. Now, it so happened that this poor man was seated next to a very rich man. The rich man felt very disturbed and tried to collect the edges of his dress around himself, so that the poor man didn't touch them. The Prophet (S.A.W.) observed this and addressing the rich man he (S.A.W.) said:

" Perhaps you are afraid that his poverty would affect you?"

" No, O Messenger of Allah," he said.

"Then perhaps you were apprehensive about some of your wealth flying away to him?"

" No, O Messenger of Allah."

"Or you feared that your clothes would become dirty if he touched them?"

" No, O Messenger of Allah."

" Then why did you draw yourself and your clothes away from him?"

The rich man said:

"I admit that was the most undesirable thing to do. It was an error and I confess my guilt. Now to make amends for it I will give away half of my wealth to this Muslim brother so that I may be forgiven."

Just as he said this, the poor man rose and said,

" O Prophet of Allah, I do not accept this offer."

People present were taken by surprise, they thought that the poor man was a fool, but then he explained:

" O Prophet of Allah, I refuse to accept this offer because I fear that I might then become arrogant and ill-treat my Muslim brothers the way he did to me."

The Prophet (S.A.W.) took the Bedouin to his home, and gave him some more. The Bedouin saw that the residence of the Prophet (S.A.W.) wasn't like those of the heads of governments, and there is no luxury in his home.

The Bedouin became content with the share, and thanked the Prophet (S.A.W.). At this time, the Prophet (S.A.W.) asked him: "You said a harsh word yesterday, which caused anger in my companions. I fear that they will hurt you. Would you be willing to show your appreciation in front of them, so that their anger be resolved, and they don't hurt you?" The Bedouin said: "Sure."

The next day, the Bedouin came to the Masjid. The Prophet (S.A.W.) addressed his companions: "This man says, he is content with his share, is it true?" The Bedouin said: "That is true." Then he repeated the appreciation that he had shared with Prophet (S.A.W.). The companions smiled.

The Prophet (S.A.W.) addressed the group: "The parable of me and these types of individuals is like that of the man whose camel was running away from him. With the [thought] they could help the owner, people were running after the camel. The camel was frightened and ran faster. The owner called on the people, please leave my camel alone, I know better how to calm it. When the people stopped chasing the camel, the owner followed it calmly, with a fistful of grass. Then without the need for running, yelling, he showed the grass to it.

Once the Prophet (S.A.W.) entered the Mosque before the prayer time. He found two groups in the Mosque. One group was busy with its own act of worship, some were reading the Qur'an while the others were supplicating. The other group was in a corner busy learning. They learnt how to read and write and discussed the teachings of Islam and their application to their daily lives.

Looking at both, the Prophet (S.A.W.) said:

"They are both engaged in useful pursuits. But I am a teacher. I shall join the group assembled to learn."

And so he (S.A.W.) sat with the group of students.

He accepted the gift, tasted it and then went on eating it alone while the companions watched. One of those present meekly said: O Prophet of Allah, you have over looked the right of those who watch while you eat?

The Prophet (S.A.W.) smiled and waited till the man who had brought the fruit had gone. He said:

I tasted the fruit and it was not yet ripe. Had I allowed you to have some of it, someone would have definitely shown his distaste, thus disappointing the poor man who had brought the gift. Rather than make him feel better, my palate accepted the bitterness.