Fatwa On The Payment of Zakat Using Dinar and Dirham - by Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo
Table of Contents
'Establish the prayer and pay zakat and obey the Messenger so that perhaps you may gain Mercy.' Umar Ibrahim Vadillo 2
Qur'an 24:54 (and 28 other similar references) 'The men and omen of the !elie"ers are friends of one another. They command the right and for!id the rong# and esta!lish the prayer and pay $a%at# and o!ey &llah and 'is Messenger. They are the people &llah ill ha"e Mercy on. &llah is &lmighty# &ll()ise.' Qur'an *:+2 'Ta%e sada,a from their ealth to purify and cleanse them.' Qur'an *:-.4 '/ollected sada,a is for: the poor# the destitute# those ho collect it# reconciling people's hearts# freeing sla"es# those in de!t# spending in the ay of &llah# and tra"elers. &n o!ligation imposed !y &llah. &llah is &ll(0no ing# &ll()ise.' Qur'an *:1. 23slam is !ased on fi"e: testifying that there is no god !ut &llah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of &llah# esta!lishing the prayer# paying the $a%at# the fast of 4amadhan and the 'a55.2 3!n '&!!as said# 2The Messenger of &llah# may &llah !less him and grant him peace# sent Mu'adh to 6emen and said# '/all on them to testify that there is no god !ut &llah and that 3 am the Messenger of &llah. 3f they o!ey you in respect of that# then tell them that &llah has made the fi"e prayers o!ligatory for them e"ery night and day. 3f they o!ey you in respect of that# inform them that &llah has made it o!ligatory for $a%at to !e ta%en from their property and gi"en to their poor.'2 3!n '7mar reported that the Messenger of &llah may &llah !less him and grant him peace# said# 23 ha"e !een commanded to fight people until they testify that there is no god !ut &llah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of &llah and esta!lish the prayer and pay the $a%at. 3f they do that# their li"es and property are protected from me e8cept for the right of 3slam9 and their rec%oning is up to &llah.2 1. The Present Mishandling of Zakat These ayats and hadiths referring to zakat are accepted by every Muslim. No Muslim denies the central role of zakat in Islam as an indispensable pillar of e ual importance to
the prayer! denial of "hich is tantamount to unbelief. Indeed! #llah couples prayer and zakat together in the $ur'an nearly thirty times and the mufassirun say that this indicates that the t"o actions are interdependent! meaning by that that your prayer is not acceptable unless your payment of zakat has been properly discharged and vice versa. %et in spite of its pivotal nature and people's nominal affirmation of it! it is absolutely clear that the vast ma&ority of Muslims do not give zakat the prime importance it is due. Most Muslims realise that they should pay something called zakat. 'ome think that they have fulfilled their obligation in full by paying their zakat al(fitr at the end of )amadan. Many more kno" that zakat has something to do "ith t"o and a half percent though fe" kno" e*actly of "hat. # large number even attempt to pay zakat! though usually in a very haphazard "ay! and! at best! it is considered in the light of an obligatory act of private charity. +eople certainly do not treat zakat as if the validity of their prayers depended upon its correct disbursement and many pay no attention to it "hatsoever. There are several reasons for this current disregard of zakat. ,oremost among them is the present dislocated political situation of the Muslims throughout the "orld. #s long as the -ar(al(Islam remained a unified political reality the institution of zakat retained its integral role as part of the economic fabric of Muslim society. .ith the fall of the /halifate! ho"ever! under the treacherous onslaught of #rab and Turkish constitutionalists and nationalists assisted and egged on by their kafir paymasters! and the subse uent dismemberment of the Muslim 0mmah! the shari'a lost its central position in Muslim society and one of the ma&or casualties of this "as the institution of zakat. The ne" post(colonial 1Muslim1 nation states "ere all founded upon kafir constitutions. #ll constitutions in the "orld are based on three universal pillars that preserve capitalism as the motor of the political and economic system. Those three pillars are2 3.Central 4ank 5.6a" of 6egal Tender 7.National -ebt These three elements are alien to Islam and forbidden by the 'haria. The first one institutionalises the banks even in so(called Islamic constitutions. The e*istence of the Central 4ank! "hich is the mother of riba institutions in every Muslim country guarantees the preservation in the la"! of all other banks. The 6a" of 6egal Tender! is against the fundamental principle of trade in the 'hariah! that stands for 8a an tarad dim minkum9! that is! :trading; "ith mutual consent. It is forbidden in Islam to impose any particular merchandise as a means of payment! even the -inar. The fundamental principle that governs #66 commercial transactions is freedom to choose. Thus the present system of paper money "hich has no value other than by the compulsion of the 'tate is in direct conflict "ith the fundamentals of freedom. 6egal Tender 6a" guarantees that the population is enslaved through inflation to a system of credit money dominated by the banks. The system also preserves the domination of foreign currencies in the international arena. #nd the 6a" of National -ebt makes every citizen liable to the debt incurred by the 'tate. This! needless to say! not only is forbidden because the debt carries riba! but as a principle making somebody else liable to someone else's debt has no basis in Islam.
This constitutional model has served to preserve capitalism as the ruling mechanism of our economic life. This inevitably denied zakat its vital fiscal status and turned it into the matter of private personal piety. 4ut zakat is definitively a political matter not a private one. It is a matter of the public sphere not the private sphere. Its collection and distribution are a matter of Muslim governance not private charity. This cannot be overstated because not only has zakat no" been removed from the public arena but nearly all the Muslims think that this is the "ay things should be. This is categorically not the case. ,ailure to grasp this has been a main contributory factor to the political "eakness of the Muslims in the "orld today. In one of the ayats from 'urat at(Ta"ba uoted above! #llah! tabaraka "a ta'ala! says to <is Messenger! may #llah bless him and grant him peace! 1Take sada a from their "ealth to purify and cleanse them.1 The "ord 1sada a1 is used in the $ur'an both in the general sense of all charitable giving and also in certain conte*ts "ith the specific meaning of the obligatory act of zakat and the mufassirun are agreed that this ayat can be taken as referring to zakat. The important point about it in the light of "hat "e have &ust been discussing is the use of the imperative tense in the verb 1take1. #llah ta'ala orders his Messenger to take zakat from the people. <e could have ordered people to give it! as <e does in other ayats. '=rder people' in a general sense! to take from "hat they have! and in this specific instance "here zakat is intended! <e orders it to be taken. Confirmation that this "as the generally understood meaning of the ayat can be gleaned from the fact that after the death of the +rophet! may #llah bless him and grant him peace! the #rabs "ho refused to pay zakat to #bu 4akr! may #llah be pleased "ith him! did so on the basis of this ayat! saying that because it "as in the singular tense it only referred to the +rophet himself and "as! therefore! abrogated by his death. This "as of course not applicable since there are many ayats addressed to the +rophet! may #llah bless him and grant him peace! "hich bear a general significance. The point here! ho"ever! is that it "as a recognised fact that the nature of zakat is that it is not something left to be given by those "ho o"e it but something "hich is taken by the leader of the Muslims. This construction is further strengthened by the famous "ords of #bu 4akr! the /halifa of the Muslims! to 0mar ibn al(/hattab during the incident referred above "hen 0mar counselled him against fighting the tribes "ho "ere refusing to pay zakat. #bu 4akr said! 14y #llah! I "ill fight anyone "ho makes a distinction bet"een the prayer and zakat. >akat is the right "hich is due on "ealth. 4y #llah! if they refuse me a hobbling rope "hich they used to pay to the Messenger of #llah! may #llah bless him and grant him peace! I "ill fight them for it?1 The important "ords for us in the present conte*t from this great statement are 1refuse me1. #bu 4akr "as obviously not referring to himself here as an individual but as the political leader of the Muslims and by doing so clearly sho"s the ine*tricable link bet"een zakat and Muslim governance. This link is also affirmed in the sources in the hadith uoted above from Ibn #bbas about
Mu'adh being sent to the %emen. #mong the instructions he "as given by the +rophet! may #llah bless him and grant him peace! are the "ords! 1#llah has made it obligatory for zakat to be taken from their property and given to their poor.1 The use of the passive tense 1to be taken... and given1 demonstrably reveals the governmental nature of the institution of zakat both in its collection and its distribution. It may seem that I am laying a great deal of stress on this point but it is necessary to do so because the organic connection bet"een zakat and Muslim governance has been all but completely lost. It is not that zakat may be collected and distributed by the Muslim authorities! it is that from the very beginning it has been in the very nature of zakat that! that is the case. There is certainly an aspect of zakat "hereby it is an individual act of "orship! in the "ords of a "ell(kno"n definition! 1the giving! as an act of piety! of a legally stated portion of one's "ealth to be distributed among those categories designated by #llah in <is 4ook!1 and certainly its payment is a purification of the "ealth of the payers and a means of re"ard for them in the Ne*t .orld &ust as its "ithholding is a cause of terrible punishment! but unlike other acts of "orship it is ine*tricably binded "ith the governance of the Muslim community. #ll the books of fi h of all the schools and all the books of history of the Muslims sho" that this connection "as taken for granted throughout all the centuries of Muslim rule until the present time. Centrally appointed collection and distribution is assumed in all the traditional literature on the sub&ect. Imam al('arakhsi says in his book al(Mabsut2 1>akat is a right of #llah and is to be collected and distributed by the leader of the Muslims or his appointees. If anyone pays his zakat to anyone else! it does not remove from him the obligation of zakat.1 Imam Malik says in the Mu"atta'2 1The distribution of zakat is up to the individual &udgement of the man in charge. There is no fi*ed share for the collector of zakat e*cept as the leader of the Muslims sees fit.1 Imam ash('hafi'i says in al(0mm about the $ur'anic category! 1those "ho collect it1! that they are those appointed by the /halifa of the Muslims to collect and distribute zakat. Imam #hmad is uoted in the book ash('harih ar()abbani li Musnad #hmad as saying! 1The khalifa alone has the authority and responsibility to collect and distribute zakat! "hether by himself or through those he appoints! and he has the authority and responsibility to fight those "ho refuse to pay it.1 These are merely four representative e*amples from literally thousands of other possibilities. ,rom all this it must be abundantly clear that from its origins that the collection and distribution of zakat "as an integral and inseparable function of Muslim governance. #ll the other pillars of Islam have an interface "hich connects them "ith the central authority2 the shahadatayn through its e*plicit ackno"ledgement of the acceptance of the authority of Muslim governance@ the prayer through the official appointment of khatibs to take the
&umu'a prayer@ the fast of )amadan for the official announcement of its beginning and end@ and the ha&& for its appointed leadership. It is! ho"ever! possible for all these rites to be carried out by Muslims "ho are not being governed according the the shari'a! as the present secularisation of the Muslim "orld and the many Muslims sub&ect to kafir rule in the "orld today make plain! though the lack of recognised Muslim authority makes itself painfully felt at the beginning and end of every )amadan. =nly in the case of zakat is this not possible. >akat cannot be divorced from active Muslim governance. =nce the vital link bet"een zakat and governance has been severed it means that the pillar of zakat! as it has al"ays been understood by all the Muslims throughout the "hole history of Islam! has been eliminated. #ny pretence of the payment and distribution of zakat in the present circumstances can only be precisely that A nothing more than a "ell( intentioned pretence. -enial of the integral connection bet"een zakat and central Muslim government necessarily means that the nature of zakat has been altered beyond any recognition from its original function and practice. #nother ma&or factor in the subversion of zakat has been the change in the nature of "ealth and money during the last t"o centuries! "hich also has more than an incidental connection "ith the change in the political situation of the Muslims "e have &ust noted. The institution of zakat "as originally prescribed for! and "ithin! a human situation in "hich "ealth "as measured by the natural factors "hich had al"ays been considered the gauge of human prosperity and indeed continued to be throughout the "orld up until the end of the 3Bth century. #llah ta'ala delineates these things clearly in 'ura #l('Imran "hen <e says2 1To mankind the love of "orldly appetites is painted in glo"ing colours2 "omen and children! and heaped(up mounds of gold and silver! and horses "ith fine markings! and livestock! and fertile farmland. #ll that is merely the en&oyment of the life of this "orld.1 $ur'an 723C In every traditional human society the basic measures of "ealth "ere al"ays land! livestock and gold and silver! and it is these things on "hich zakat on superfluous "ealth! is levied. ,or this reason! all the te*ts dealing "ith zakat concentrate on these things. They talk of the different kinds of agricultural produce and the details of the zakat due on them "ith all the variable factors dependent on the type of produce! the uantity! the type of land and "hether it is irrigated or not and many other factors. They go into immense detail about livestock and e*actly "hat animals must be taken for zakat given the numbers and ages of the animals in each herd or flock under consideration. .ith respect to gold and silver the te*ts specify the e*act "eight of each on "hich zakat is due and make it clear that it is the metal itself "hich is being ta*ed since it does not matter "hether it takes the form of coins! bullion! nuggets or dust. The only other thing sub&ect to zakat is trade goods under certain circumstances and the zakat on those must also be paid in either gold or silver. The problem is that most of this has little! if any! relevance to the 5Dth century urban lives of EDF of the Muslims in the "orld today. They have no land or animals or gold or silver. That is because the vast ma&ority of the human race no longer have any access to "ealth in its natural or real forms. #ny "ealth "e may have is in fact unnatural! or you might say
unreal! "ealth. 4eginning "ith the legalisation of usury in Europe in the 3Gth century and e*pedited by the gro"th of banking and the unrestricted use of usurious financial instruments and techni ues ever since! the nature of both political po"er! personal "ealth and money itself has undergone a total change in the course of the last three centuries. )eal "ealth! that is the o"nership of the earth's natural resources! has fallen into fe"er and fe"er hands! "hile most people are left "ith! at best! tokens of "ealth in the form of bank balances! share certificates! insurance policies and other financial instruments! "ith no" fre uently no more real e*istence than flickering figures passing electronically from one computer screen to another. #t the same time money has turned from being gold and silver coins to being paper representing gold and silver coins to being simply paper tokens "hose value is totally dependent on the "hims of international speculators. There is no doubt that usury penetrates every aspect of the financial system "hich no" dominates every part of the globe! "hich means that all its instruments and institutions A paper money! credit cards! bonds! stock markets! currency e*changes A are in fact also haram. This is not the place to go into this sub&ect in detail but a good deal of "ork has been done on it and is essential reading for every Muslim. ,or some time the Muslims! under the protection of the shari'a! managed to stay free of the tentacles of the usurers but first Egypt! through an unholy alliance bet"een the 4ritish and constitutionalist Muslims! and then the heart of the /halifate in Istanbul fell into the banker's trap and "ithin a short time sovereignty over the Muslims had passed into the financiers' hands "here it remains to this day. 'o there is no doubt that the "orld financial system has had a devastating effect on the Muslims. It has been the means by "hich political autonomy has been rested from their hands and it has removed Islam from all the day to day business! trading and shopping transactions "hich form such a large part of most people's lives. It is clear that it represents the main bastion of the enemies of Islam and it is "here their spurious po"er resides. It constitutes! therefore! the ma&or battle(ground on "hich the fight to re(establish #llah's deen in this time! is going to be fought. In the case of zakat! ho"ever! "e can see ho" it strikes at the very foundations of Islam because it has made it virtually impossible for the vast ma&ority of the Muslims to fulfil one of the primary! foundational obligations of their -een. This has been done by changing the nature of monetary "ealth! e*changing gold and silver coinage for paper currencies. #s "e have noted above! the zakat of "ealth has to be paid "ith gold and silver. That it is the metals themselves "hich are sub&ect to zakat and not their value as money is conclusively sho"n by the fact that zakat is o"ed on them no matter "hat form of "ealth they take. It is further substantiated by the traditional "ay of treating fulus "hich "ere coins made of base metal used for lesser transactions "hen only fractions of gold and silver coins "ere re uired. If someone possessed a large number of fulus coins "hich together added up to an amount e uivalent to the nisab in gold or silver! then according to some 'ulama zakat "ould have to be paid on that amount in gold or silver. 4ut even if they had ten times the amount by "eight of the same base metal of "hich the coins "ere made then no zakat "ould be due. In this case it "ould mean that the fulus coin concerned "as being
considered as a kind of receipt e*changeable for a certain "eight of gold or silver. =ther 'ulama held them to be simply numbered symbolic tokens of no intrinsic value "hatsoever and maintained that no zakat "as due on them "hatever uantity they reached. +aper money should be considered in e*actly the same light. =ne great traditional 'alim "ho sa" paper money as "orthless tokens "as the last great 'haykh al(#zhar! 'haykh 'Illaysh! before the 4ritish succeeded in corrupting that great institution of learning in the mid 3Eth century. <e said in a landmark fat"a on the sub&ect2 'I "as asked "hat is your finding as to the role of the 'ultan's seal Ha kind of paper money used in the =smani khalifateI "hich circulates as dirhams and dinarsJ Must >akat be paid on it! as if it "ere gold or silver or merchandise! or notJ I replied as follo"s2 +raise be to #llah and may blessings and peace be upon =ur 6ord Muhammad! the Messenger of #llah. No >akat is paid on it! as >akat is restricted to cattle! certain types of grain and fruit! gold! silver! the value of turnover stock and the price of stored goods. The items mentioned are not included in any of the above categories. ' %ou "ill find an e*planation for this in the fractionary copper coins minted "ith the seal of the 'ultan "hich are in circulation! on "hich no >akat "hatsoever is paid! as they are not included in any of the categories mentioned. The Muda""ana states that2 1.hoever possesses minor coins amounting to t"o hundred dirhams during one year! is not obliged to pay any >akat "hatsoever on them! unless they are turnover stock. Then! "hat he "ould do is to value it as if it "ere merchandise1. In #l(Tiraz! after mentioning that #bu <anifa and #sh('hafi'i demanded payment of >akat on minor coins! as both considered that "hat is of importance in payment of >akat is their value! and mentioning that #sh('hafi'i has t"o contradictory opinions thereon! he affirms that the posture of the madhhab is that it is not obligatory to pay >akat on minor coins! as there is no disagreement "hatsoever that "hat is of importance in minor coins is not their "eight! or their amount! but their value. If >akat "ere obligatory! "hatever substance "ere concerned! the nisab "ould not be stipulated according to the value thereof! but according to the substance and amount! as in the case of silver! gold! grain! fruit. #s its substance lacks relevance as far as >akat is concerned! it is treated in the same manner as copper! iron and similar substances. #nd #llah! to "hom praise and "orship are due! is most .ise. May #llah bless and grant peace to =ur 6ord Muhammad and his family. ' ,rom this it is clear that in the opinion of 'haykh 'Illaysh! no zakat "hatsoever should be paid on paper money. It must be remembered! ho"ever! that at the time this fat"a "as pronounced! the shari'a "as still in place and gold and silver coinage in plentiful circulation. The other "ay of looking at paper money! e uivalent to the first vie" of fulus outlined above! takes it back to its avo"ed origins as representing gold and silver. It "as initially issued as so(called bankers money in the form of a fully redeemable receipt for a certain uantity of gold or silver. In other "ords any bank note could be taken to the bank "hich
issued it and e*changed for the amount of gold or silver it purported to represent. 'ome banknotes still retain the echo of this original function! so you find the "ords 1I promise to pay the bearer1 or some similar statement printed on them. 'een from this perspective! banknotes are in reality ackno"ledgements of debt A the bank o"es the possessor of the note the stated value printed on it. This constitutes! of course! further evidence of its status being haram. The status of paper money under the shari'a! as debt! is only permitted to be used in very specific and restricted circumstances. ,rom the vie"point of 'haykh 'Illaysh and those like him the only possible "ay of taking zakat from paper money "ould be to treat it as merchandise! in other "ords "aste paper. The value you "ould need to make up the nisab makes it! it is for "hat it is! "here zakat is concerned. If! ho"ever! paper money is understood to be a debt! then zakat definitely does come into the frame. In that case any paper money you have in your possession represents gold or silver "hich you in fact o"n but "hich is held for the moment by someone else. The authority "hich has issued the paper money o"es you the amount of gold and silver it represents. >akat is o"ed on debts due to you so if the amount of paper money in your possession reaches the nisab and remains "ith you for a year or more then you o"e zakat on it even though it in fact remains in the form of an unpaid debt. 4ut zakat may only be paid in gold and silver@ it is not permitted to pay zakat "ith a debt. In this situation the only "ay for people to pay zakat is for them to e*change some of the paper money in their possession for the specific amount of gold or silver needed to cover the zakat o"ed by them on the unpaid debt o"ed to them! "hich is represented by the total amount of paper currency in their possession. ,rom all of this it is clear that the present "orld dominating kafir economic system of banking capitalism has destroyed the pillar of zakat. This is partly because it has displaced all economic transactions into the arena of the haram by involving them ine*tricably in a usurious "eb "hich it is at present virtually impossible to escape. 4ut it has done it more directly by redefining the nature of "ealth and specifically by changing the nature of money in a "ay "hich prevents Muslims from paying their zakat in accordance "ith the conditions laid do"n by the shari'a. # further factor in the subversion of the socially beneficial and politically unifying role played by zakat in the Muslim community has been a particular method of categorising and dealing "ith different kinds of property developed by the Muslims themselves. In the earliest days no distinction "as made bet"een the various kinds of "ealth but at a comparatively early stage "ealth became divided into t"o categories2 apparent "ealth Ham"al dhahiraI and non(apparent "ealth Ham"al batinaI. #pparent "ealth constituted animals and agricultural produce! "hich "ere basically in the open and there for all to see! and non(apparent "ealth constituted gold! silver and trade goods! "hich "ere not open to public inspection in the same "ay. Non(apparent "ealth could become apparent if its possessor took it out of the city on the public high"ay to sell it or trade "ith it else"here. #t first all categories of "ealth "ere treated in the same "ay "ith regard to the collection and distribution of any zakat "hich "as "as due on them and it "as the duty of the officially appointed zakat collectors to collect all the various types of zakat from all Muslims
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"ho o"ed it. It "as their responsibility to make sure that it reached the governmental institution of the bayt al(mal "hich "as the ackno"ledged official repository into "hich zakat "as collected and from "hich it "as distributed to the eight categories of people entitled to receive it. .here apparent "ealth "as concerned this continued to be the case by the agreement of all the Muslims until the fall of the /halifate and the concomitant abandonment of the shari'a at the beginning of this century. 4ut in the case of non( apparent "ealth a dispensation "as made allo"ing people! under certain circumstances! to distribute their o"n zakat on the gold! silver and trade goods they possessed. This dispensation "as certainly not an instruction! and indeed never took the form of anything more than a ualified permission! yet it is no" used by many Muslims to &ustify the present privatisation of zakat "hich in the present situation is tantamount to abandoning zakat altogether since the other types of zakat are not being officially collected any"here. Certainly those "ho take this position have played right into the hands of the secularists "ho no" rule the Muslims in every Muslim land and has made it far easier for them to gain and retain po"er. .e must first remember that the dispensation "as given in an environment "here the rule of shari'a "as total and the political reality of zakat on all types of "ealth "as established beyond doubt so that there "as no uestion of the individual distribution of non(apparent "ealth endangering the e*istence of the the "hole institution of zakat as is no" the case. #lthough it "as accepted as a possibility by some scholars! all allo"ed! and many preferred! the zakat of non(apparent "ealth to be paid to the official collectors. The great 'hafi'i scholar al(Ma"ardi said that the collector should accept the zakat of non( apparent "ealth and assist people in assessing it! and some 'hafi'ites say that zakat should be paid to the leader of the Muslims in every case. The <anafi al('arakhsi "as of the opinion that no property o"ner has the authority to invalidate the right of collection "hich belongs to the leader of the Muslims! having been besto"ed on him by the shari'a! and even goes so far as to say that if it is not paid to him then the obligation of zakat has not been settled. #lthough the people of Imam Malik recognised the distinction bet"een apparent and non(apparent "ealth! as far as collection "as concerned they considered virtually all "ealth to be apparent. In their vie" all zakat of every type is re uired to be paid to the leader of the Muslims via the official collectors unless he is kno"n to be un&ust in the sense of not distributing it correctly. #nother very unfortunate factor in the corruption of zakat has been the recent part played by Islamic charities and other similar organisations "ho purport to collect and distribute zakat. It is particularly detrimental because they make other Muslims think that by giving them their money they are discharging their zakat obligation! "hereas! as "e have seen! they are in reality doing no such thing. In their literature these organisations specifically ask people for their zakat and go as far as telling them ho" to assess it. This means that they are e*plicitly appointing themselves as zakat collectors. 4ut it is absolutely clear in the shari'a that zakat collectors may only be appointed by the legitimate political leader of the Muslims@ no one may appoint themselves to this duty. #ccording to most authorities if a person pays zakat to someone "ho has no right to collect it! they have to pay it again! so not only do charities "ho pretend to collect people's zakat not do so! they may even have prevented other Muslims from fulfilling their obligation correctly and by doing that commit a very grave "rong action in the process.
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#lso since they have no right in the shari'a to call themselves zakat collectors! they certainly have no right to any zakat funds on that basis! and any money collected as zakat "hich they then use for their o"n e*penses has been misappropriated. .orst of all! ho"ever! is the fact that by doing "hat they do these organisations actively aid the enemies of Islam by preventing the true position of the Muslims from coming to light. 4y making it appear to the generality of the Muslims that it is correct and even desirable to pay zakat in the "ay they suggest! they collude "ith the enemies of Islam! "hether consciously or not! by actively confirming that the present political sub&ugation of the Muslims under non(Muslim rule is an acceptable state of affairs. The only "ay that a charity could &ustify its right to collect zakat "ould be for it to claim political leadership of the Muslim community "hich is impossible because to do so "ould entail immediately forfeiting its charitable status. Therefore Islamic charities should cease forth"ith from their false claim to be collectors of zakat. #ny"ay "hat has hopefully be made very clear by all that has preceded is that! not"ithstanding the undoubtedly sincere intentions of many millions of Muslims throughout the "orld! "ho do their best to put aside an amount of their "ealth every year to fulfill their obligation to #llah of paying zakat A and #llah best kno"s our hearts and is able to do "hat <e "ills A the truth is that the obligation of zakat! as it has al"ays been understood by the Muslims! is not being correctly discharged any"here. This is because the necessary connection bet"een zakat and Muslim governance has been severed and because the zakat of non(apparent "ealth! that of money and merchandise! is not being paid in the only acceptable form in "hich it is permitted to be paid A gold and silver. >akat truly is the missing pillar of Islam. 2. The Fiqh of Zakat 6inguistically zakat means gro"th! increase and purification. In the shari'a the term refers to the amount of money or kind taken from specific types of "ealth "hen they reach a specific amount at a specific time "hich must be spent on specific categories in specific "ays. It is called zakat because the "ealth of the the one "ho pays it is purified by it and because the payer gains increase "ith #llah #lmighty by it! in that his rank "ith #llah is raised through it. This is attested to by the "ords of the #lmighty! 1Take sada a from their "ealth to purify and cleanse them1 HE23D7I and 14ut anything you give as zakat! seeking the ,ace of #llah A "hoever does that "ill get back t"ice as much.1 $ur'an 7D2 CD The types of "ealth on "hich zakat must be paid are monetary "ealth! crops and livestock. Monetary "ealth refers to gold and silver! in "hatever form they take! and trade goods@ crops comprise agricultural produce of the kind "hich can be stored for e*tended periods@ and livestock refers to camels! cattle! and sheep and goats. >akat became a legal obligation in the second year of <i&ra. The evidence of its obligatory nature is the 4ook! the 'unna and the consensus of all the Muslims. #nyone "ho disputes the fact that it is obligatory! is an unbeliever. If someone affirms that it is obligatory and then refuses to pay it! he should be punished and it should be taken from him by force! but he is not considered an unbeliever. There are certain conditions "hich make zakat obligatory and certain other conditions
12
"hich make it valid. The conditions "hich make zakat obligatory are five in number. 3.Islam2 non(Muslims do not pay zakat. 5.,reedom2 slaves do not pay zakat. 7.Nisab2 all types of "ealth must reach a certain minimum amount before zakat becomes applicable C.="nership2 zakat is only o"ed on "ealth "hich is completely o"ned by the payer and completely at their disposal. K.# year's possession2 monetary "ealth and livestock must have been o"ned for a complete lunar year before zakat is o"ed. This condition does not apply to agricultural produce. There are five conditions "hich make zakat valid. 3.Intention2 it must be remembered that zakat is an act of "orship and re uires a specific intention like all other acts of "orship. 5.Collection2 zakat should be paid to a collector appointed by the leader of the Muslim community. 7.6ocal distribution2 zakat should be distributed among the community in "hich it is collected unless it is not possible to do so because none of the recipient categories e*ist there "hen it may be sent else"here. C.Correct time2 zakat should be paid promptly at! but not before! the time it falls due. K.Correct elements2 zakat should be paid "ith the correct means according to the type of "ealth in uestion2 the right age and kind of animal in the case of livestock@ the right uality in the case of agricultural produce@ and the right "eight of gold and silver in the case of monetary "ealth. #lthough it is true that the nature of "ealth has changed and that for the vast ma&ority only monetary "ealth "ill come into the frame as far as zakat is concerned! there are still millions of Muslims throughout the "orld "ho are involved in agriculture and animal husbandry and so! "ithout going into too much detail! it is appropriate to give the basic rules of zakat for these kinds of "ealth. The uite comple* specifications involved in the zakat on these types of "ealth! "hich are outlined in many traditional books of fi h! sho" ho" essential it is to have officially appointed collectors "ho have the kno"ledge and e*perience necessary to ensure that correct and fair assessments are both made and carried out. The >akat of 6ivestock #s mentioned earlier zakat must be paid on camels! cattle! sheep and goats provided that they reach the minimum number on "hich zakat is due. It makes no difference "hether they are foddered or put out to grass nor "hether they are used for milk! "ool! meat! riding! as "ork animals or for any other purpose. #s "ith monetary "ealth! no zakat is o"ed unless the minimum HnisabI number of animals has been in the possession of the o"ner for a full year. No zakat is due on horses unless they are kept or bred for trading purposes in "hich case they become classified as trading goods! enter the category of monetary "ealth! and are assessed accordingly. Camels The minimum number of camels on "hich zakat is due is five. 4et"een five and t"enty( five! depending on the number! a certain number of sheep or goats must be paid as zakat.
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#fter t"enty(five the zakat must be paid in camels of a particular age and se* depending on the number in the herd. Cattle #ll types of cattle are considered together for zakat purposes. The minimum number of cattle on "hich zakat is due is thirty. Thereafter zakat must be paid in co"s of particular ages according to the number in the herd. 'heep and Loats 'heep and goats are considered together for zakat purposes. The minimum number on "hich zakat is due is forty! "hen one animal of a particular age must be paid as zakat. #nother animal is due "hen the herd reaches one hundred and t"enty in number and then more according to the size of the herd. +artnerships In the case that animals are &ointly o"ned by t"o or more partners zakat is o"ed on the "hole flock or herd provided that each partner is a free Muslim and that their share individually reaches the minimum number on "hich zakat is due. The zakat should be shared bet"een the partners according to the proportion "hich each o"ns of the "hole flock or herd. Leneral The official collector should visit each location at a given time each year in order to assess and take the zakat from every flock and herd. The animals taken as zakat should be of average size and in good condition. If the collector is late! zakat only has to be paid on the number of animals he finds! not on the number that may have been there "hen zakat fell due. If the o"ner has died and the animals have been inherited by a ne" o"ner he only pays zakat after the animals have been in his possession for a full year. It is not permitted for the o"ner of animals to assess his o"n zakat and give it out before the arrival of the collector! but if t"o years or more elapse "ithout the collector coming then the o"ner of the animals may assess and pay the zakat he o"es to the appropriate recipients. The >akat of #gricultural +roduce Marious types of agricultural produce are sub&ect to zakat and they are largely those foodstuffs "hich can be stored for e*tended periods. No zakat is due on fresh fruit and vegetables intended for immediate consumption. In agricultural zakat the nisab is the same for every type of produce namely five "as s. The "as "as a measure "hich corresponded to roughly a camel(load and "as a measure of volume made up of si*ty sa'as. The sa'a is e uivalent to 5.D7K litres so one "as e uals 355 litres. 'o this makes the minimum amount of any type of agricultural produce on "hich zakat is due G3D litres by volume. This is sometimes e*pressed in terms of "eight as G3D kgs. The problem is that the same volumes of different kinds of produce vary considerably in "eight so that it is better to hold to the volume measure "henever possible. The amount of zakat payable on agricultural produce varies according to ho" the land in
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"hich the particular crop is being gro"n is irrigated. The basic rule is that "hen the land is naturally irrigated! "hether by rain or surface "ater such as rivers or springs! then one tenth of any crop "hich reaches the amount of the nisab is taken as zakat. .hen artificial means of irrigation have to be used at the e*pense of the cultivator to bring "ater to the land the zakat is only one t"entieth of the crop. The zakat of agricultural produce should be assessed and collected by an officially appointed collector and none of a crop on "hich zakat is due may be consumed or sold until the zakat on it has been properly assessed. Cereals .here cereals are concerned! zakat is assessed on the amount of actual grain "hich has been harvested after threshing has taken place. The zakat on cereals falls due once the crops have ripened in the field and should be paid immediately the harvest process has been completed. Certain grains are considered as forming a single category for zakat purposes! namely "heat! barley and rye. These are added together and if the combined uantity reaches the nisab! zakat is taken proportionally from each type of grain. =ther types of grain are considered as forming separate categories and are not added together for zakat purposes! namely rice! sorghum! millet and maize! so that crops of these must each individually amount to the nisab before any zakat falls due on them. +ulses 6entils! chick(peas! peas! and various kinds of beans are also considered as forming a single category for zakat purposes and so crops of these gro"n by a single gro"er should be added together "hen calculating zakat. If the combined crop reaches the amount of the nisab! zakat is due on it and should be taken proportionally from each individual type of pulse. =il crops >akat is due on olives and various types of seed gro"n for their oil content. They are not added together! each being considered separate for zakat purposes. The nisab is calculated on the basis of the amount of actual fruit or seed harvested but the zakat should be paid in oil after pressing has taken place. -ates and raisins >akat must also be paid on dates and grapes "hen they are intended to be consumed as dried fruit. The zakat on them falls due "hen they are ripe on the branch but is! of course! paid after they have dried. The >akat of Monetary .ealth The +roblem of +aper Money #s "as noted above the last couple of centuries have "itnessed a radical change in the "ay that "ealth is vie"ed and that rather than being seen in terms of o"nership of land! and thus e*pressed largely in agricultural produce and livestock holdings! "ealth is no" seen in almost e*clusively monetary terms. The "hole sub&ect is! ho"ever! from the zakat point of vie"! further complicated by the fact that the nature of money has also
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concurrently undergone a total transformation! gold and silver having been replaced by paper and electronic currencies. 'ince it is also clear that the zakat of monetary "ealth may only be paid in gold and silver! it no" becomes a uestion! given the current nature of money! of ho" that can! and indeed if it should! be brought about. To start "ith it must be understood that! economically speaking! the current situation of the Muslims throughout the "orld! both because of our ine*tricable relationship "ith the openly usurious global economic system and also because of the nature of paper money itself! has clearly moved us into the realm of the haram. This puts us in "hat should be e*perienced by all of us as an absolutely intolerable situation and it must be the e*plicit intention of every Muslim to do everything in his po"er to combat this abominable system and take all the necessary steps to disconnect from it in the shortest possible time. =nly then "ill it be possible to re(establish the pillar of zakat in a complete "ay. .e must! ho"ever! start from "here "e are! and so "e must deal "ith the change that has taken place in the nature of money and see ho" zakat can be best applied to the type of currencies "e are at present faced "ith. #s "e sa" "ith the fat"a of 'haykh 'Illaysh! if paper money is vie"ed logically as numbered tokens "orth in reality no more than the value of the paper they are printed on! then zakat does not come into the picture at all. 4ut as "e also sa"! paper money "as originally intended to directly represent certain specific amounts of gold and silver and if "e take that vie" of it banknotes are! as "as noted earlier! in reality ackno"ledgements of a debt o"ed by a bank to the bearer of the note. ,rom the standpoint of zakat there are t"o difficulties in taking this position. The first is that "hile this specific goldNsilver e uivalence "as the initial intention of paper money! it is clearly no longer the case since paper currencies have long since given up any pretence of being tied to their original direct connection "ith gold and silver coinage. The second is that "hile it is true that creditors must pay zakat on debts o"ed to them they do not have to do so until the debt has been repaid! since! although they o"n the money! they do not have full use of it until it returns to their possession. 4ut in the case of paper money no such restriction e*ists because the possessors of the banknotes have full use of the value they represent! by their use of them as a medium of e*change in the country in "hich they live! even though they do not have possession of it in real terms. 'o for zakat purposes it is better to vie" paper money as being like bond certificates "hose value is more or less guaranteed by the government. This does not legitimise their use as a medium of e*change! since there is no "ay under the la"s of Islam that such financial instruments can be employed to replace gold and silver coinage as money! but it does give us a "ay of understanding their usage and of making it possible to assess them for zakat purposes. This is because although they are forbidden by the shari'a they have been imposed on us by force as being the sole means of e*change "hereby "e are able to conduct all the financial transactions necessary for our lives. This brings the principle of darura into play! "hereby the forbidden becomes temporarily permissible if it is a uestion of preserving life. =n this basis alone the use of paper money has gained a temporary! but e*tremely reluctant! permissibility for the Muslim community. =ther e*amples of the application of the principle of darura are the drinking of "ine to preserve one's life in the absence of "ater or any other permitted beverage or eating pig( meat "hen absolutely no other food is available. In such e*treme situations these other"ise forbidden and abhorrent acts become not only permitted but in the eyes of some
16
authorities mandatory. They are! of course! conditional on the fact that no other means e*ist and they must be abandoned the moment that any permitted forms of sustenance appear. +aper money should be vie"ed by the Muslims in e*actly the same light! something abhorrent "hich no Muslim "ould use unless absolutely forced to do so! and even then "ith e*treme reluctance! and something for "hich a halal replacement must be found at the earliest possible opportunity. #lthough paper money may be used and assessed for zakat purposes on this basis! that still does not make it permissible to pay any zakat o"ed in any other form than the actual gold and silver "hich the shari'a re uires! since for one thing there has never been any evidence that anything else has ever been acceptable and secondly there is no difficulty in obtaining the gold and silver necessary to fulfil the obligation. The nisab for the zakat of monetary "ealth The nisab for monetary "ealth in silver is t"o hundred dirhams and in gold it is t"enty dinars. )ecords of the respective "eights of the silver dirham and the gold dinar have been kept from the earliest times and it is kno"n that a dirham "eighed the e uivalent of 5.EGK grammes and a dinar the e uivalent of C.57K grammes on the basis of a ratio of seven dinars to ten dirhams. This means that the nisab in terms of silver is KE7 grammes or 5D.E5 ounces and in terms of gold it is BC.O grammes or 5.EE ounces. >akat on savings In the light of the above it is! therefore! appropriate for zakat to be taken from "ealth held in paper currencies! "hether in the form of actual banknotes! bank accounts! or other kinds of savings accounts! provided they amount to at least the value of the nisab and have been continuously in the possession of their o"ner for at least a year. If that is the case then one fortieth or t"o and a half percent of their value must be paid in gold or silver as zakat. In vie" of the current e*tremely lo" price of silver it "ould seem better to take the gold nisab for zakat purposes! but "hich ever nisab is chosen zakat should be paid in the metal "hose nisab is selected! so that if zakat is calculated using the silver nisab it must be paid in silver and if zakat is calculated using the gold nisab it must be paid in gold. >akat on trade goods #s "e sa" at the beginning of this section trade goods are also considered by the shari'a as monetary "ealth on "hich zakat is due. Trade goods are all goods "hich have been purchased or ac uired or manufactured "ith the primary intention of resale. There are basically t"o kinds of trade goods. The first are the kind of goods "hich are bought "ith future resale in mind but "hich may stay in the possession of the purchaser for a considerable period before he sells them. If the value of such goods amounts to the nisab or more and they remain in your possession for at least a year then zakat should be paid in gold or silver on the price received "hen they are sold. The second type of trade goods are those goods sub&ect to constant turnover! such as the stock of a shop or a market stall or any other kind of trading or manufacturing business. .hen someone has such stock zakat is assessed on the basis of a regular annual valuation on a particular selected date of the stock and li uid capital in hand. The valuation
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is made on the current market price of the goods concerned. If the stock and accumulated capital combined amount to the nisab or more! then one fortieth of their value must be paid in gold or silver as zakat. -ebts There are t"o kinds of debts! those you o"e to other people and those other people o"e to you! and both kinds of debts have a bearing on the zakat of monetary "ealth. If you o"e money to others then the amount you o"e is subtracted from the amount of monetary "ealth you possess before your zakat is assessed so that! for instance! if you possess monetary "ealth adding up to more than the nisab but "hen your outstanding debts are taken into account the amount is reduced to less than the nisab! then you dont have to pay zakat. If! ho"ever! you have disposable assets! "hich are not liable to zakat and "hich could be sold to pay off all or some of "hat you o"e! then your debt is considered to have been reduced by the amount of the combined market value of those assets. In the case of agricultural produce and livestock debt is not taken into account "hen assessing the amount of zakat o"ed. If money amounting to the value of the nisab or more is o"ed to you and remains outstanding for a year or more! you o"e zakat on it but do not have to pay that zakat until the loan is repaid to you. 4usiness investments Investments are basically of t"o kinds! those "hose primary purpose is to produce profit through resale and those "hose primary purpose is to produce income. They are treated for zakat purposes in a similar "ay to trade goods. 'o that if! for instance! you o"e a property company "hose principal activity is buying and selling houses then your "hole property portfolio is vie"ed as turnover stock "hich should be valued annually and zakat paid on the total value. If! ho"ever! your main intention is to produce income through letting out the properties you o"n! then you "ill only pay zakat on the price you receive if and "hen you sell one of those properties. The basic principle applies that zakat is only due on goods or property ac uired "ith the intention of resale in mind. +ersonal property Loing by this principle no zakat is o"ed on personal property such as house! furniture! household goods! transport! land "hich are regularly used by you and your family and not intended for trade. The same applies to gold and silver &e"ellery "hich are regularly "orn and not intended for trading purposes. The same also applies to tools you o"n "hich you use to earn your living and! in the case of a business! buildings and plant used in the carrying on of the business. #s mentioned earlier! ho"ever! the value of disposable personal assets "hich could be sold to pay debts is set against outstanding debts "hen zakat is being assessed. Leneral This contains all the general principles pertaining to the zakat of monetary "ealth and they seem fairly straightfor"ard on the surface. .hat you find! ho"ever! "hen you go into the details of people's individual circumstances! is that there are endless anomalies and
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e*ceptions and it "ould be impossible to cover all of them. This is a further reason "hy it is indispensable to have officially appointed zakat assessors and collectors "ith a thorough kno"ledge of all the la"s of zakat and e*perience in dealing "ith zakat in the light of the many and varied financial circumstances "hich people face in the "orld today. The )ecipients of >akat There are eight categories of people to "hom the collected zakat must be distributed by the leader of the Muslims and #llah! may <e be e*alted and glorified! lists them for us in the $ur'an "hen <e says2 1Collected sada a is for2 the poor! the destitute! those "ho collect it! reconciling people's hearts! freeing slaves! those in debt! spending in the "ay of #llah! and travellers.1 $ur'an E2GD The poor The poor are considered to be those muslims "ho have some means of support but not sufficient to cover their needs! so they may have a &ob or a business but their income is not enough to pay the basic living e*penses of themselves and their families. 'uch people are entitled to enough zakat to bring their income up to a level "hich enables them to meet their basic needs. This may "ell be the case "ith a merchant "hose capital and stock reach the amount of the nisab. In that case he must pay "hatever zakat he o"es but "ill also be entitled to receive zakat on the basis of his personal financial situation. The destitute The destitute are Muslims "ho have no property and no income "hatsoever. There are! of course! many reasons "hich might bring this situation about. It might be due to a calamity that has befallen them or a disability "hich prevents them from earning or they may be people "ho have some property to "hich for some reason they temporarily have no access. 'tudents might also fall into this category if their studies genuinely prevent them from earning and they have no other means of support. The collectors The collectors and the distributors of zakat are also entitled to a share of it. 'uch men must! ho"ever! be Muslims! free men! upright and &ust! and "ell versed in all the prescriptions of the shari'a relative to the assessment and collection of zakat. This applies even if they have other means since it is in the nature of a salary for the "ork they do. No zakat! ho"ever! may be given to those "ho are placed in the position of being its custodians. They must be paid from other sources. +eople "hose hearts are to be reconciled This can apply firstly to people "ho have &ust become Muslim or are on the point of doing so and "ho may be strengthened or s"ayed by help from zakat funds! and secondly to non(Muslims "ho are friendly to"ards the Muslims and "ho can be of some help in a "ar situation. This permission of the la" is dependent upon close e*amination of the circumstances of those involved because zakat grants should only be made to non( Muslims "hen there is real necessity for their services or "hen there is a certainty of their
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sincere desire to become Muslims. ,reeing slaves >akat may be employed to help Muslim slaves to buy their freedom. 'laves freed by this means remain under the clientage of the Muslim community. Those in debt >akat may be given to an individual to pay his debts! as long as these are not debts connected "ith the deen. This applies even to debtors "ho have died. >akat to debtors is conditional on them already having handed over to their creditors all the spare money and property in their possession. In the "ay of #llah This category is generally considered to be confined to those fighting &ihad to enable them to mount and e uip themselves properly. 'uch grants may be made to fighting men even if they are "ell off. No part of the zakat may! ho"ever be used for the construction and upkeep of fortifications! nor for "orks entailed by a defensive "ar! nor for the construction of "arships! nor for the building of mos ues or any other public "orks. Travellers >akat may also be used for the support and repatriation of travellers! providing they are free Muslims! "ho have need of such help. This is dependent on them not being able to find anyone "ho can lend them "hat they re uire. Leneral .hat is clear from the above categories is that zakat acts in Muslim society as the helper of last resort! a kind of final social safety net. The recipients of zakat are all people "ho have no access to any other source of help in their particular situation. It is important to understand that zakat is not charity. +rivate giving and the establishment of a" af take care of all the ordinary charitable needs of the Muslim community. >akat is there see to the needs of all those "ho have no "here else to go. This is another reason "hy it is important that zakat should be collected communally and distributed locally since it is only communally that sufficient funds can be gathered and efficiently distributed and only at a local level that people's real needs can be properly recognised and taken care of. # political leader is necessary in each community to oversee the collection and distribution of zakat in each locality. Normally some of the the zakat! although not a fi*ed share! is allocated to the collectors and then the needs of the community's poor and destitute taken care of! and then those of the other categories "hen and "here appropriate. The decision about this rests in the hands of the political leader of the Muslims and such a leader must e*ist in every community to enable zakat to be distributed properly. Imam Malik puts the "hole matter of distribution very clearly in the Mu"atta "hen he says in the 4ook of >akat in the section on those entitled to receive zakat2 The position "ith us concerning the dividing up of zakat is that it is up to the individual &udgement of the man in charge. .hichever categories of people are in most need and are
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most numerous are given preference! according to ho" the man in charge sees fit. It is possible that this may change after a year! or t"o! or more! but it is al"ays those "ho are in need and are most numerous that are given preference! "hatever category they may belong to. This is "hat I have seen done by people of kno"ledge "ith "hom I am satisfied. >akat al(,itr >akat al(fitr is fundamentally different from the types of zakat "e have been looking at previously. The zakat "e have looked at so far has been zakat on superfluous "ealth "hereas zakat al(fitr is a poll ta*! a ta* on the individual! in "hich the amount of "ealth they have plays no part. The t"o types of zakat are also completely independent of one another. +ayment of the zakat on your "ealth does not absolve you from paying zakat al( fitr and payment of zakat al(fitr does not absolve you from having to pay zakat on your "ealth if you have sufficient to "arrant it. .ho pays zakat al(fitr >akat al(fitr "as imposed by the +rophet! may #llah bless him and grant him peace! as an obligation to be paid by or on behalf of every Muslim at the end of )amadan! no matter "hat their age! se*! economic circumstances or social status. # man must pay for all those for "hose upkeep he is normally responsible A "ives! children! slaves or other dependents. +eople "ho live alone must! of course! pay for themselves individually. The point is that zakat al(fitr is o"ed by every single Muslim at the conclusion of the month of fasting and its importance is made clear by the fact that in one hadith the +rophet! may #llah bless him and grant him peace! made the acceptance of the fast by #llah dependent upon its payment. The amount and form of payment of zakat al(fitr The amount o"ed by every individual as zakat al(fitr is one sa'a of the staple food of the people in the locality "here they live. #s "e sa" above the sa'a is a measure e uivalent to &ust over t"o litres! so in a place "here the staple food is bread the zakat al(fitr is that uantity of "heat per person! "here it is rice! then it is rice! and so on. .here various foods are eaten then it could take the form of "hatever grain or pulse or dried fruit are acceptable in that area. The time of payment and distribution of zakat al(fitr >akat al(fitr falls due on the last evening of the fast of )amadan after the 'Id has been announced and is best discharged before the 'Id prayer the follo"ing morning! although there is no harm in paying it after the prayer. It is also permitted to pay it during the last couple of days of )amadan. It should be given to people in the community "ho are kno"n to be poor. 0nlike other types of zakat it can be distributed individually and does not have to be centrally collected! although there is no harm in doing that. 3. The Issue of Dayn and Ayn ,rom "hat "e have seen it is clear that in order for the fi h of zakat to be properly applied again and the pillar of zakat restored to its pivotal position at the centre of Muslim society! t"o main factors must be radically addressed A the necessary link bet"een zakat and
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Muslim governance and the re(introduction of -inar and -irham coinage as a medium of e*change among the Muslims to enable the zakat of monetary "ealth to be correctly paid. # third corollary factor should be added to these t"o and that is the re(establishment of a" af among the Muslims. This is partly because zakat is no" vie"ed as charity and used for purposes that have traditionally been undertaken in Muslim society by the establishment of a" af and partly because the re(establishment of a" af is absolutely necessary ne*t step beyond the restoration of zakat to the proper functioning of a Muslim society. >akat is paid in Payn! not dayn >akat in Islam must be paid in Payn! that is tangible merchandise and cannot be paid in dayn! that is! a debt! a liability or a promisory note. This important matter has been ignored for many years appealing to darurah He*ceptionalityI! since the -inar and -irham "ere not available. The fact that the -inar and -irham are available again bring this matter for"ard once again. +roperty HmalI is o"ned HmilkI as either Payn or dayn. P#yn is a specific e*isting thing! considered as uni ue ob&ect and not merely as a member of a category H8this horse9! not 8a thoroughbred mare9I. -ayn is any property! not an Payn! that a debtor o"es! either no" or in the future@ or it can refer to such property ony "hen due in the future. +roperty o"ned as dayn is usually fungible! such as gold or "heat. 'ometimes non(fungible manufactured goods defined by specification are treated as dayn. #lthough dayn! literally means 8debt9! in fi h it refers not to the 8obligation9 per se! but rather to the property the sub&ect of the obligation! "hich is considered to be already o"ned by the creditor. Clearly! since such property is not yet identified and may not even e*ist Hit is not an PaynI! referring to dayn as present property is fictive. -ayn means "ealth! the payment of "hich attaches as a liability to a legal person HdhimmahI! as the result of a transaction HPa dI or a loan! or as damages for property destroyed HistihlakI. -ayn by e*tension means the class of goods called mithli HfungibleI@ that is ! goods "hose price HthamanI in sale is determined on the basis of "eight H"aznI! or volume HkaylI! or number HPadadI! and among the various units of "hich there is no difference of value due to human art. The definition of dayn given in the Ma&allah in a "ay combines these t"o meanings. #ccording to it! a stated portion of a heap of "heat is dayn before it has been set off. P#yn is the opposite of dayn in the last sense! meaning that is definite and has a bodily e*istence. Thus! in the above e*ample! the said portion becomes Payn by being set off. It follo"s a te*t of the Lreat 'cholar Imam #bu 4akr al(/asani Hd. KBO<I "rote2 8If the property on "hich zakat fell due is dayn! as distinguished from Payn! its zakat may be settled in terms of Payn "ealth. Thus a person having a claim of t"o hundred dirhams on "hich zakat is due! may give! in settlement of the same! five dirhams in cash! because dayn as compared "ith Payn is defective Hna isI and the Payn is complete HkamilI! and a settlement of the defective in terms of the complete is valid. =n the contrary! the settlement of the complete Payn in terms of the defective is not valid! and therefore! the zakat debt is not discharged if a person "ants to pay the zakat of t"o hundred dirhams "hich he possesses Hi.e. PaynI in terms of the five dirhams "hich a poor person o"es him
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Hi.e. daynI@ namely! by absolving him from the debt intending it for his o"n zakat debt on the t"o hundred dirhams. ,inally! as regards the settlement of the zakat of dayn "ealth in terms of dayn "ealth! if the "ealth on "hich zakat is due of the kind of dayn "hich becomes Payn is not valid@ other"ise is valid. Thus if a person has five dirhams o"ed to him by a person and t"o hundred dirhams by another person! he cannot settle the zakat of the t"o hundred by making a present of five to the debtor as alms! because the t"o hundred dirhams "ill become Payn "hen collected! and the settlement of the zakat of Payn "ealth in terms of dayn is not valid. #n e*ample of the opposite case "ould be that a person "ho "anted to settle the zakat of t"o hundred dirhams o"ed him by another by making a present of those dirhams to the debtor and intending it for his zakat debt. <o"ever! this is allo"ed only in case of the debtor is a poor person! although there is also a vie" to the contrary. It goes "ithout saying that the zakat of Payn "ealth is discharged if paid in terms of Payn "ealth@ if! for instance! one pays the zakat of t"o hundred dirhams he posseses by paying five out of those t"o hundred.9 /asani! pp. C5(7. $uoted in Islamic Theories of ,inance by Nicolas #ghnides! Ne" %ork 2 Columbia 0niversity! 3E3G@ pp 77C(77K. -ayn and )iba )iba al(nasiah has been forgotten in the modern interpretation of the fi h. )iba al(nasiah is an e*cess in time HdelayI artificially added to the transaction. It is an un&ustified delay. This refers to the possession H'aynI and its non(possession HdaynI of the medium of payment Hgold! silver and food stuff ("hich "as used as moneyI. '#yn is tangible merchandise! often is referred as cash. -ayn is a promise of payment or a debt on anything "hose delivery or payment is delayed. To e*change HsafrI dayn for 'ayn of the same genus is )iba al(nasiah. To e*change dayn for dayn is also forbidden. In an e*change it is only allo"ed to e*change 'ayn for 'ayn. This is supported by many hadith on this issue. Imam Malik related2 %ahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that al($asim ibn Muhammad said! 1'0mar ibn al(/hattab said! '# dinar for a dinar! and a dirham for a dirham! and a sa' for a sa'. 'omething to be collected later is not to be sold for something at hand.1 %ahya related to me from Malik that #bu'z(>inad heard 'a'id al Musayyab say 1There is usury only in gold or silver or "hat is "eighed and measured of "hat is eaten and drunk.1 Imam #l(/asani "rote2 1#s for riba al(nasa' it is the difference He*cessI bet"een the termination of delay and the period of delay and the difference He*cessI bet"een the possession H'aynI and non( possession in things measured and "eighed "ith different genera as "ell as in things measured and "eighed "ith the uniformity of genera. This is according to al('hafi'i H#llah bless himI! it is the difference bet"een the termination of the period and the delay in foodstuff and precious metals H"ith currency(valueI specifically.1 )iba al(nasiah refers particularly to the use of dayn in the e*change HsarfI of the same genera. 4ut the prohibition is e*tended to sales in general "hen the dayn representing money! overpasses its private nature and replaces the 'ayn as a medium of payment. Imam Malik! #llah be merciful to him! illustrates this point in his 1al(Mu"atta12
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1%ahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that receipts HsukukunI "ere given to people in the time of Mar"an ibn al(<akam for the produce of the market of al(Qar. +eople bought and sold the receipts among themselves before they took delivery of the goods. >ayd ibn Thabit! one of the Companions of the Messenger of #llah! may #llah bless him and grant him peace! "ent to Mar"an ibn <akam and said! 1Mar"an? -o you make usury halalJ1 <e said! 1I seek refuge "ith #llah? .hat is thatJ1 <e said! 1These receipts "hich people buy and sell before they take delivery of the goods.1 Mar"an therefore sent guards to follo" them and take them from people's hands and return them to their o"ners.1 >ayd ibn Thabit! specifically calls riba those receipts HdaynI '"hich people buy and sell before taking delivery of the goods'. It is allo"ed to use gold and silver or food to make a payment! but you cannot 0'E the promise of payment. In it there is an e*cess that is not allo"ed. If you have dayn! you have to take possession of the 'ayn it represents and then you can transact. %ou cannot use the dayn as money. In general the rule is that you should not sell something "hich is there! for something "hich is not. This practice is called )ama' and it is )iba. %ahya related to me from Malik from '#bdullah ibn -inar from '#bdullah ibn '0mar that '0mar ibn al(/hattab said2 1-o not sell gold for gold e*cept like for like. -o not increase part of it over another part. -o not sell silver for silver e*cept for like! and do not increase part of it over another part. -o not sell some of it "hich is there for some of it "hich is not. If someone asks you to "ait for payment until he has been to his house! do not leave him. I fear rama' for you. )ama' is usury.1 )ama' is today the common practice in all our markets. -ayn currency Hpaper money! receiptsI has replaced the use of 'ayn currency H-inar! -irhamI. This practice is "hat 0mar ibn al(/hattab meant "hen he said 1I fear rama' for you.1 'elling "ith deferment is not restricted to metals it also includes food. Malik said! 1the Messenger of #llah! may #llah bless him and grant him peace! forbade selling food before getting delivery of it1. Therefore! "hat is prohibited in )iba al(nasiah! is the addition of an artificial deferment that does not belong to the nature of the transaction. .hat does 'arfiticial' and 'the nature of the transaction' meanJ It means that every transaction has its o"n natural conditions of timing and price. The Issues "ith +aper Money The $uestion of -ayn 4y ignoring the true nature of )iba an(nasiah! modernist and constitutionalist scholars have avoided confronting the issue of paper money. 6et us look at this issue "hich the modernists have missed. +aper money can be considered as Payn or as dayn. #; If "e accept the fact that paper money is dayn! it means that it is an obligation to pay a certain amount of Payn. Then paper money cannot be used in e*change and it is forbidden in t"o practices2 3I -ayn cannot be e*change for dayn. +aper money for paper money is a debt for a debt! "hich is prohibited. Malik said2
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P:the disapproved transaction; -elay for delay is to sell a debt against another man for a debt against another man.R 5I -ayn based on gold and silver cannot be e*changed against gold or silver! because that is against the fundamental command related by Imam Malik2 P%ahya related to me from Malik from NafiR from #bu 'aRid al(/hudri that the Messenger of #llah! may #llah bless him and grant him peace! said! 8-o not sell gold for gold e*cept like for like and do not increase one part over another. -o not sell silver for silver! e*cept like for like and do not increase one part over another part. -o not sell some of it "hich is not there for some of it "hich is.99 4; If "e accept that paper money is Payn! its value is the "eight of the paper! not "hat is "ritten on it. If the value of the paper is increased by compulsion! the value is corrupted and the transaction is void according to Islamic 6a". +aper money is used by the 'tate as an HillegalI ta* and it cannot be presented as an Islamic means of payment. 0nderstanding )iba an(nasiah is fundamental to being able to understand our position regarding paper money. The reason "hy the modernist ulema took their t"isted position on )iba "as clearly to validate the unthinkable2 banking. This &ustification later turned into Islamic banking. The principle of darurah combined "ith the elimination of )iba an(nasiah has allo"ed them to &ustify the use of paper money and in turn to &ustify fractional reserve banking "hich is the basis of the modern banking system. # proper understanding of )iba an(nasiah reveals paper money to be a form of )iba in itself! because it is intended to be used in a "ay that is not permitted. The $uestion of Qurisdiction #llah says in the $ur'an2 #nd amongst the +eople of the 4ook there are those "ho! if you "ere to entrust them "ith a treasure H intarI! he "ould return it to you. #nd amongst them is he "ho! if you "ere to entrust him "ith a dinar "ould not return it to you! unless you kept standing over him. $ur'an H7!OKI $adi #bu 4akr Ibn al(#rabi! the greatest authority on $ur'anic 6a" "rote in his famous 1#hkam al($ur'an1 about this ayat2 1The benefit that can be taken from this is the prohibition of entrusting the +eople of the 4ook "ith goods1. $adi #bu 4akr said2 1The uestion concerning entrusting property is legislated by the te*t of $ur'an.1 This means that the ayat is a legal &udgement of absolute validity and of the greatest importance to the deen. Entrusting "ealth to non(Muslims is not allo"ed! but furthermore! taking a non(Muslim as a partner outside -ar al(Islam H"here "e stand over themI is e*tremely restricted! because they might be un&ust or might use our "ealth in forbidden transactions. 'ince paper(money is a promise of payment! can it be permitted to trust the issuers "hile they hold the payment Hour propertyI outside our &urisdictionJ <istory has also demonstrated repeatedly that paper money has been a permanent instrument of default and cheating the Muslims. In addition! Islamic 6a" does not permit the use of a promise of payment as a medium of e*change. This means that foreign paper money cannot be
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accept as a means of payment! let alone! to be used as a reserve for our o"n issuing of paper money. The $uestion of 6egal Tender #ny 6a" that restricts imposes a particular medium of e*change has no basis in Islam. The 6a"s of 6egal Tender are alien to Islam. The present paper money has its value only because of legal compulsion and this has no basis in Islam. #ll transactions must be conducted as #llah mentions in $urRan2 '%a ayyuha allathSna amanT la taNkulT am"alakum baynakum bialbatili illa an takTna ti&aratan ##an taradin minkum "ala ta tulT anfusakum inna #llaha kana bikum rahSman.' 1Eat not up your property among yourselves in vanities by let there be amongst you trade by mutual good "ill.1 $ur'an C! 5E The Tafsir al(Qalalayn says! '= you "ho believe! consume not your goods bet"een you "rongly! unla"fully according to the 6a"! through usury or usurpation! e*cept it be trading Hti&aratan! also read ti&aratunI! so that the goods be from trade effected! through mutual agreement! through mutual good( "ill2 such :goods; you may consume. #nd kill not yourselves! by committing "hat leads to"ards destruction on account of some affiliation! be it in this "orld or the <ereafter. 'urely Lod is ever Merciful to you! "hen <e forbids you such things.' The Tafsir Ibn #bbas 'H= ye "ho believe? ' uander not your "ealth among yourselves in vanityI through transgression! usurpation! false testimony! lying in oath or through other unla"ful means! He*cept it be a trade by mutual consentI e*cept if there is mutual agreement bet"een you in the course of buying and selling or in abating the price in selling HMuhabatI! Hand kill not one anotherI "ithout &ustified right. H6o? #llah is ever Merciful unto youI "hen <e forbade you to kill one another "ithout such a &ustification. Trading has to happen by mutual consent. Therefore the 6a" 6egal Tender is not acceptable in Islamic 6a". The )e(introduction of -inar and -irham In his tafsir of the ayat in 'urat an(Nisa! 1= you "ho believe? =bey #llah and obey the Messenger and those in command among you!1 HC2KBI! the great mufassir! al($urtubi lists the seven main responsibilities of the sultan of the Muslims and the first of them is the minting of the dinar and the dirham. The pride of place given to this matter sho"s ho" important it is to the establishment of the deen and this is due in a large part to the fact that! as "e have seen! gold and silver as a medium of e*change are essential to the payment of zakat. This is no less the case today than it ever has been and so it remains one of the primary responsibilities of all Muslim leaders! "hether on a national or local level! to make sure that gold and silver coinage is available to those in their charge so that zakat can be paid in their communities in the "ay re uired by the shari'a. =n a national level the need to return to gold and silver is beginning to be recognised in Muslim lands at a governmental level. -uring his prime ministership of Turkey! Ne&mettin Erbakan held up a gold dinar in the mos ue and declared it to be the currency of the
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Muslims. Lold and silver coinage have been proclaimed the official medium of e*change in one of the states of Malaysia. #n official announcement in the Egyptian press recently called for a return to gold currency. .hile this is an encouraging sign that things are moving in the right direction! it still does not meet the immediate and urgent re uirement for gold and silver currency to make it possible to pay zakat as the shari'a demands. #nd it does not even begin to address the needs of the millions of Muslims living under overtly non(Muslim governments in other parts of the "orld. In later years! the +rime Minister of Malaysia Tun Muhammad Mahathir called for the reintroduction of the -inar and -irham. 0nfortunately his efforts did not materialise. Instead! a so(called 8Lold -inar +roposal9 "as issued by the Central 4ank "hich failed. =nly the Malaysian people can restore the Lold -inar and 'ilver -irham! despite the Central 4ank. More recently the Lovernment of /elantan has taken the unprecedented decision to bring the gold -inar as the means to pay >akat. The Introduction of the -inar and the -irham "ill be the first step to"ards the restoration of >akat in accordance to Islamic 6a". The -inar and the -irham The -inar is a specific "eight of gold kno"n as the mith al. The mith al is C.5K grams. The Islamic dirham coin is 5.EOK grams of pure silver. Caliph 0mar Ibn al(/hattab established the kno"n standard relationship bet"een them based on their "eights2 1O dinars must be e uivalent Hin "eightI to 3D dirhams.1 Ibn /haldun "rote in the Mu addimah2 The )evelation undertook to mention them and attached many &udgements to them! for e*ample zakat! marriage! and hudud! etc.! therefore "ithin the )evelation they have to have a reality and specific measure for assessment of zakat! etc. upon "hich its &udgements may be based rather than on the non(shari'i other coins. /no" that there is consensus :i&ma; since the beginning of Islam and the age of the Companions and the ,ollo"ers that the dirham of the shari'ah is that of "hich ten "eigh seven mith als "eight of the dinar of gold... The "eight of a mith al of gold is seventy(t"o grains of barley! so that the dirham "hich is seven(tenths of it is fifty and t"o(fifths grains. #ll these measurements are firmly established by consensus. The -inar and -irham in <istory ,irst -ated Coins The first dated coins that can be assigned to the Muslims are copies of silver -irhams of the 'asanian %ezdigird III! struck during the Caliphate of '0thman! radiallahu anhu. These coins differ from the original ones in that an #rabic inscription is found in the obverse margins! normally reading 1In the Name of #llah1. The subse uent series "as issued using types based on drachmas of /husru II! "hose coins probably represented a significant proportion of the currency in circulation. In parallel "ith the later /husru(type #rab( 'asanian coins first issued under the .ell(Luided Caliphs of Islam! a more e*tensive series "as struck "ith /husru's name replaced by that of the local #rab governor or! in t"o cases! that of the Caliph. <istorical evidence makes it clear that most of these coins bear <i&ra dates. The earliest Muslim copper coins are anonymous and undated but a series e*ists "hich may have been issued during the Caliphates of '0thman or '#li! radiallahu
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anhum. These are crude copies of 4yzantine 35(nummi pieces of <eraclius from #le*andria. The ,irst 'ilver -irham 4y the year OK #<N GEK CE #bd al(Malik had decided on changes to the coinage. # scattering of patterned pieces in silver e*ist from this date! based on 'asanian prototypes but "ith distinctive #rabic reverses. This e*periment! "hich maintained the 'asanian "eight standard of 7.K(C.D grams "as not proceeded "ith and in OE #<NGEB CE a completely ne" type of silver coin "as struck at 3C mints to a ne" nominal "eight of 5.EO grams. 0nlike the contemporary gold coinage! this figure does not seem to have been achieved in practice. The average "eight of si*ty undamaged specimens of OE(BC #< is only 5.O3 grams! a figure very close to that for a uni ue coin of OE #< struck "ith no mint name Has "as the standard procedure for the gold -inars produced in -amascusI. These ne" coins "hich bore the name of '-irham'! established the style of the #rab('asanian predecessors at 5K to 5B mm. in diameter. Their design is composed of #rabic inscriptions surrounded by circles and annulets. =n each side there is a three or four line legend "ith a single circular inscription. =utside this are three line circles "ith! at first! five annulets surrounding them. The side normally taken as the obverse has as its central legend the /alima or shahada2 1There is no god e*cept #llah alone! there is no partner "ith <im'. #round it is the mintN date formula reading 1In the Name of #llah2 this -irham "as struck in :mint name e.g. -amascus; in the year :e.g. OE #<;1. The reverse has a four line central inscription taken from the 'urah 335 of the $uran@ 1#llahu #had! #hallu('amad! 6am yalid "a lam yulad "a lam yakul(lahu kufu(an ahad1'. The marginal legend states2 1Muhammad is the Messenger of #llah! he "as sent "ith guidance and the religion of truth to make it prevail over every other religion! averse though the idolaters may be1 H$uran E277I The ,irst Lold -inar 'ome gold coins "ere struck to the contemporary standard of C.C grams and "ith one or more #rabic 'tanding figures on the obverse and an #rabic legend on the reverse. -ated coins e*ist from OC #< and are named as '-inars'. These e*perimental issues "ere replaced in OO #<! e*cept in North #frica and 'pain! by completely epigraphical designs very similar to the designs adopted for the silver pieces but "ith a shorter reverse legend and no annulets or inner circles. This type "as used "ithout appreciable change for the "hole of 0mayyad period! the coins being struck to a ne" and carefully controlled standard of C.5K grams. This "eight "as reputed to be based on the average of the current 4yzantine solidi! "as called a mith al! a term used earlier for 3NO5 of a ratl. Evidence of the importance attached to the close control of the ne" -inars is provided by the e*istence of glass "eights! mainly from Egypt. They usually sho" the governor's name! sometimes the date but all marked "ith coin denomination. The issues in gold from North #frica began as copies of the coins of <eraclius and his son Hbut "ith an abbreviated /alima in 6atinI! the reverse 'cross on steps' losing in most cases its cross piece. -inars! halves and thirds "ere struck! all to the ne" "eight standard. 6ater coins are dated by the Indiction Number Method! from Indiction II HBKNCI changing to the <i&ra date in )oman numerals in EC #< "ith #rabic phrases appearing in the field from EO #<. In the year 3DD! North #frica came into line "ith the eastern issues although the mint is named as Ifri uiyah. The legends are shorter and the reverse has a ne" central inscription2 1In the Name of #llah! the Merciful! the Compassionate1. This "as used also on
28
the coins from #l(#ndalus! and on the half and third -inars! most of "hich sho" no mint but may "ell have been struck in #l(#ndalus. #lthough there "as a dictum that solidii "ere not to be used outside of the 4yzantine empire! there "as some trade that involved these coins "hich then did not get re(minted by the emperors minting operations! and uickly became "orn. Through the end of the Oth century! #rabic copies of solidii ( dinars minted by the caliph #bd al(Malik! "ho had access to supplies of gold from the upper Nile ( began to circulate in areas outside of the 4yzantine empire. These corresponded in "eight to only 5D carats HC.D gI! but matched "ith the "eight of the "orn solidii that "ere circulating in those areas at the time. The t"o coins circulated together in these areas for a time. . !on"lusion The payment of >akat cannot be made "ith paper money. It must be made using Payn! that is! using Lold -inar and 'ilver -irham. If the coins are not available is an obligation to mint them and make them available. They are the 'hariah currency as stated by Ibn /haldun. 4ecause they are mentioned in $urRan! they should be present and the payment of >akat must be established once again using the 'hariah currency. The introduction of the 'hariah currency is the most important political event of our days. It reinstates the 'unnah of currency and it eliminates our dependency on the riba system. #t the same time it is the first step to"ards the political and economic integration of the Muslim nation.
29

Fatwa On The Payment of Zakat Using Dinar and Dirham - by Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

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Fatwa On The Payment of Zakat Using Dinar and Dirham - by Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

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Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

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