The Prophetic Asymptotic Ideal: Feeding the servant what you eat and clothing them with what you wear

I went out with my father (Ubadah b. Samit) when I was a young boy, and we met an old man. I said, “Uncle, what kept you from giving your servant this long striped cloak and taking the mantle, so that you would have two mantles and he would have a striped cloak ˹so that he will be fully covered˺?” He turned to my father and said, “Is this your son?” He said, “Yes.” So he stroked my head and said, “May Allah bless you. I bear witness that I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say: ‘Feed them from what you eat, and clothe them from what you wear.’ O son of my brother, losing the goods of this world is dearer to me than that he should take from the goods of the Hereafter.” I said, “Father, who is this man?” He said, “Abu al-Yusr Ka‘b b. Amr.”

خَرَجْتُ مَعَ أَبِي وَأَنَا غُلَامٌ شَابٌّ، فَنَلْقَى شَيْخًا، قُلْتُ: أَيْ عَمِّ، مَا مَنَعَكَ أَنْ تُعْطِيَ غُلَامَكَ هَذِهِ النَّمِرَةَ، وَتَأْخُذَ الْبُرْدَةَ، فَتَكُونُ عَلَيْكَ بُرْدَتَانِ، وَعَلَيْهِ نَمِرَةٌ؟ فَأَقْبَلَ عَلَى أَبِي، فَقَالَ: ابْنُكَ هَذَا؟ قَالَ: نَعَمْ. قَالَ: فَمَسَحَ عَلَى رَأْسِي، وَقَالَ: بَارَكَ اللَّهُ فِيكَ، أَشْهَدُ لَسَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ يَقُولُ: «أَطْعِمُوهُمْ مِمَّا تَأْكُلُونَ، وَاكْسُوهُمْ مِمَّا تَكْتَسُونَ». يَا ابْنَ أَخِي، ذَهَابُ مَتَاعِ الدُّنْيَا أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ مِنْ أَنْ يَأْخُذَ مِنْ مَتَاعِ الْآخِرَةِ. قُلْتُ: أَيْ أَبَتَاهُ، مَنْ هَذَا الرَّجُلُ؟ قَالَ: أَبُو الْيَسَرِ كَعْبِ بْنُ عَمْرٍو.