Zakat
and Charity
By Haider Zaman
The Qur’an exhorts
the believers to spend in the way of Allah from
whatever He has given them. It emphasizes two kinds
of spending. One is specifically termed as zakat
the payment of which, at the specified rate, is
obligatory on those who can afford it. The other
refers to spending out of whatever wealth or substance
one has got, which is not obligatory. This is evident
from the Qur’anic verse (2:177) which speaks
of both.
Zakat is payable once
a year on gold, silver, cash, cattle and goods used
for trading purposes. Its rate in the case of cash
amount is 2.5 per cent of the total amount in hand
at the time of payment. In the case of gold and
silver, the rate is also 2.5 per cent of the total
current value of the gold and silver in excess of
a certain quantity in hand. There is yet another
kind levied on the produce of land at a different
rate called ushr.
Zakat may be paid
directly to the deserving persons or may be spent
on such persons through an institution set up for
the purpose. The fact that the Qur’an provides
for the payment of salaries of the persons responsible
for collection and administration of the zakat fund,
indicates that the system can be institutionalized
where possible.
It was, in fact, institutionalized
after the establishment of a Muslim state in Madinah
when its rate was fixed. Persons were appointed
for its collection, and its payment was made obligatory
on those who were in a position to afford it, and
arrangements were made for spending the amount in
the manner prescribed in the Qur’an.
The Qur’an specifies
the persons and purposes on whom and on which the
amount of zakat should be spent. They are the needy,
the poor, the salaries of persons who collect and
administer the zakat fund, those whose hearts have
to be reconciled, i.e. those who have just embraced
Islam, the liberation of slaves, payment of debts
and fines on behalf of those who are unable to do
so, sponsoring those who have dedicated themselves
to serving and defending the faith and wayfarers
(9:60).
As regards spending
otherwise, rather than by way of zakat and ushr,
neither the Qur’an nor the Sunnah prescribe
a rate or mode - whether payment should be in cash
or kind. But the Qur’an clearly indicates
that only that much of one’s wealth or substance
should be spent which is over and above one’s
needs (2:219). Likewise, it specifically emphasizes
exercise of moderation in spending, whether by way
of charity or otherwise, when it says “do
not tie your hands to your neck nor stretch them
without restraint lest you should become blameworthy
and left destitute” (17:29).
The Qur’an specifies
the persons and purposes on whom or for which such
wealth or substance shall be spent. They include
parents, relatives, orphans, the poor, those who
ask for it, wayfarers and the liberation of slaves
(2:177 and 2:215). It means that the main object
of spending in the way of Allah, whether by way
of zakat or otherwise, as enjoined by the Qur’an,
could be to meet the essential physiological, economic
or social needs of those who are unable to meet
such needs for genuine reasons.
For the acceptability
of spending, whether by way of zakat or otherwise,
the Qur’an lays down certain conditions. It
says, “Those people who expend their wealth
in the way of Allah, and they do not follow their
charity with reminders of their generosity nor injure
the feelings of the recipient, shall get their reward
from their Lord: they will have no fear and no grief
of any kind” (2:262). In fact, spending in
the way of Allah means that whatever one spends
should be spent on the persons and for the purposes
in the manner specified or prescribed by the Qur’an
or Sunnah.
There is yet another
condition for the acceptability of such spending
and it is that anything that one may like to give
as charity should be such that if it were offered
to him, he would have gladly accepted it. In this
connection the Qur’an says, “O believers,
expend in the way of Allah the best portion of the
wealth you have earned and of that we have produced
for you from the earth, and do not pick up for charity
those worthless things which you yourselves will
only accept in disdain by connivance, if they were
offered to you” (2:267).
A question that strikes
one in this connection is that why should have Allah
placed the obligation of meeting some of the basic
needs of those who are unable to meet them for some
reason on others when He Himself is the Creator,
Nourisher and Provider of everything? It is true
that Allah is the Creator and Provider of everything
but the object of spending in the way of Allah,
whether through zakat or otherwise, is not simply
to meet some of the basic needs of those who are
unable to meet them. The Qur’an repeatedly
says that Allah is trying human beings in whatever
He has given them (2:155).
Wealth is one of those
few things that people love most. As the Qur’an
says, “Man is blind in the love of wealth”
(100:8). Besides, wealth is generally earned through
putting in great efforts and hard labor. If, in
spite of that, a person parts with a portion of
his wealth and spends it in the way of Allah, it
could be only reflective of firm faith in the Omnipresence,
Mercy and Graciousness of Allah.
He believes that whatever
he has got could be given only by Allah and that
whatever he spends is in response to the command
of Allah. That’s why the Qur’an says,
“You can never attain piety unless you spend
(in the way of Allah) of that you love” (3:92)
which could be wealth.
Spending in the way
of Allah could also be of great help in discouraging
hoarding and encouraging equitable distribution
of wealth in society. The Qur’an condemns
the hoarding of wealth. It may also remove hatred
and envy from the hearts of the have-nots towards
those who possess wealth, and foster in its stead,
a sense of goodwill among the recipients towards
the givers. Besides, it is also likely to curb the
tendency towards the commission of crimes in society
as the root causes of most crimes committed are
poverty and hunger.
That is why the Qur’an
promises rewards, both in this world and in the
hereafter, for whatever is spent in the way of Allah.
It says, “The charity of those who spend their
wealth in the way of Allah may be likened to a grain
of corn, which produces seven ears and each year
yields hundred grains” (2:261).
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