"And whoever is rich, let him abstain [from taking from the orphan's wealth], and whoever is poor, let him eat according to what is fair." The interpretation of Qatadah: He said: A man would be in charge of an orphan's wealth, and it might consist of a palm orchard. He would attend to its maintenance and irrigation, and he would consume some of its dates. He might also have livestock, and he would attend to their well-being, managing their care and provisions, and he would consume some of their wool, their young, and their milk [meaning by 'awariḍ' (accidents/peripheral yield): the lambs, and by 'rusul': the clarified butter and milk]. As for the principal wealth itself, it is not permissible for him to consume it.

Yahya [narrated] from Ibn Lahi'ah, from Yazid ibn Abi Habib, from Abu al-Khayr, that he asked some of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) from the Ansar about the saying of Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He): "And whoever is poor, let him eat according to what is fair." They said: "By Allah, it was revealed regarding us. A man would be in charge of an orphan's wealth that included palm trees, and he would attend to them for him. When the fruit became ripe, his hand would participate with their hands [in taking a portion] equivalent to what they would have hired someone else to perform in the way of caring for them."

Yahya [narrated] from Nasr ibn Tarif, from 'Amr ibn Dinar, from al-Hasan al-'Urani: A man said: "O Messenger of Allah, I have an orphan under my guardianship; may I strike him?" He said: "Strike him from what you would strike your own child." He asked: "May I eat from his wealth?" He said: "According to what is fair, without accumulating wealth [for yourself]."