In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

Book of Zakat

Abu Muhammad ibn Qutayba said: Zakat is derived from zakah, meaning growth, development, and increase; it is named so because it causes wealth to grow and develop. It is said: "zaka al-zar'u" (the crops grew/prospered) when their yield increases. "Zakat al-nafaqatu" (the expenditure was blessed) when blessing is placed in it. In the Shari'a, it is a right that is obligatory upon wealth, so when the term is used in the sources of the Shari'a, it refers to this. Zakat is one of the five pillars of Islam, and it is obligatory by the Book of Allah the Almighty, the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and the consensus of his Ummah. As for the Book, it is the saying of Allah the Almighty: {And establish the Zakat} (2). As for the Sunnah, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) sent Mu'adh to Yemen and said: "Inform them that Allah has obligated upon them a charity (Sadaqah) that is taken from their rich and given back to their poor." Agreed upon (3). This is in addition to many other verses and reports besides these two. The Muslims in all eras have reached consensus on its obligation, and the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) agreed upon fighting those who withhold it. Al-Bukhari narrated with his chain from Abu Hurayra, who said: "When the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) died, and Abu Bakr became [the Caliph], and those of the Arabs who apostatized did so, Umar said: 'How can you fight the people, when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "I have been commanded to fight the people until they say 'There is no god but Allah.' Whoever says it has protected his wealth and his life from me, except by its right, and his reckoning is with Allah"?' Abu Bakr replied: 'By Allah, I will surely fight those who separate between prayer and Zakat; for Zakat is the right of wealth. By Allah, if they were to withhold from me a young she-goat (4) that they used to pay to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), I would fight them (5) for withholding it.' Umar said: 'By Allah, it was nothing but that I saw that Allah had opened the breast of Abu Bakr for fighting, so I realized it was the truth' (6)." It was narrated by Abu Dawud, who said: "If they withhold from me an 'iqal (a cord)." Abu 'Ubayd said: "The 'iqal is the charity of the year" (7). The poet said (8): 'He sought an 'iqal and left us no fleece/ remnant... So how would it be if 'Amr sought two 'iqals?' (9). It is said: They used to take the 'iqal (cord) along with the obligatory charity when they collected it (10). Whoever narrated it as "'anaq" (young she-goat), his narration provides evidence for taking the young from the young animals.

Section: Whoever denies its obligation due to ignorance of it, and is of those who would be ignorant of such matters—either due to being a new convert to Islam or because they grew up in a desert region far from cities—they shall be taught its obligation, and no ruling of disbelief shall be passed against them, for they are excused, even if they are a Muslim raised in the lands of Islam among the people...