[Pooya/Ali Commentary 2:265] Spending and giving of what one wants to keep, benefits man twice over; it speeds up the process of inner purification as well as promotes the welfare of the human society. Islam lays special stress on the spending in the way of Allah because it is a universal religion, perfected and completed by Allah who has prescribed mercy for Himself in verses 12 and 54 of al An-am. Islam, when translated into action, takes the form of salat, Zakat and sadqa. And faith, unless proved by actions, is a bogus claim. Neither Allah accepts it nor His servants give it any importance. If the spirit or the intention behind the spending is to seek pleasure of Allah, then. if the means are large the corresponding spending will also be substantial and big-hearted and if the means are moderate, even then the spending will be sufficient. When heavy rain falls the tall trees of a garden bring forth their fruit twofold, but even light rain is sufficient, because rooted very deep, they draw adequate nutrition from the soil. In the days of the Holy Prophet, the early Muslims lived in a hostile environment. It was a period of test and trial. The overwhelming forces of falsehood made their lives a bed of thorns, their relentless persecution hunted them, therefore, in the face of the preponderant danger to their lives and property, they had to sacrifice whatever they owned, lives as well as possessions, whenever either or both of them were needed. Under such circumstances the minimum sacrifice deserves maximum reward. This verse assures the sincere believers in particular and other members of the human society in general that every act of virtue has its own energy to make both the lives (here and hereafter) meaningful and rewarding, even if there were no external agents to nourish them.