Maimun bin Abu Shabib (May Allah had mercy upon him) reported: A begger asked `Aishah (May Allah be pleased with her) for charity and she gave him a piece of bread. Thereafter, one well-dressed person asked her for charity and she invited him to sit down and served him food. When she was asked about the reason for the difference in treatment, she said: "Messenger of Allah (PBUH) instructed us: `Treat people according to their status".[Abu Dawud].
Commentary:
This Hadith stresses that: 1. One should neither belittle a respectable person nor should one elevate a mean one. Everyone should be treated according to his real status. 2. It is unbecoming to take support from the Qur'an and Hadith and twist it to substantiate one's own views. 3. The Hadith, however, is classified as Da`if (weak) as there is no link in the chain of its narrators between `Aishah and Maimun.
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