with the fifth of its spoils for which they have no other spoils. Thus, what is taken from the spoils of the Romans is for the people of the Levant and Iraq, and what is taken from the spoils of the Turks is for those among the kin who are in Khurasan; this is due to the hardship involved in transporting it from the East to the West, and because it is impossible to encompass all of them with it, so it is not mandatory, like the rest of the share-holders. The argument for the first view is that it is a share deserved by paternal kinship, so it is mandatory to distribute it to all who are entitled to it, like inheritance. According to this, the Imam sends word to his agents in the provinces and examines how much has been acquired from it; if they are equal in it, he distributes every fifth among those near to it, and if they differ, he orders the surplus to be carried to be given to [those who deserve it], like inheritance. It differs from almsgiving (Sadaqa), which is not transferred; this is because every land hardly lacks alms to be distributed among the poor of its people, whereas the fifth is taken in some provinces, so if it were not transferred, it would lead to giving to some and depriving others. The correct view, God willing, is that it is not mandatory to encompass all, because it is impossible, so it is not mandatory, like encompassing all the needy. As for what was mentioned regarding the Imam sending his agents and tax collectors, this is impossible in our time, because the Imam no longer has authority except in a small portion of the lands of Islam, and he has no role in military expeditions, nor does he have any command over it, and because this is a share from the shares of the fifth, so it is not mandatory to encompass all, like the rest of its shares. Based on this, every ruler distributes it in his lands as much as possible.

The fifth section: That their rich and poor are equal in it. This is the view of al-Shafi'i and Abu Thawr. It was said: A rich person has no right to it, by analogy to the rest of the shares. Our argument is the generality of His saying, the Almighty: "and to the near of kin" [Quran 8:41]. This is general and it is not permissible to specify it without evidence, and because the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, used to give