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Zakah – Its Concept and Purpose in Islam – Part 1 (Dr. Mansoor Alam, Ohio, USA)



Religious Vs Secular Arguments 



In regard to the prevailing system in many so-called Muslim countries, strangely enough, zakah is based on the way it was set up by the Imams under the direction of the Abbasid kings.  Since the Quran does not recognize the existence of kings and priests, they had no authority to develop a Shari’ah for the Muslim masses.  Yet, today, we do have a Shari’ah in our hands, which we accept unquestioningly.  How was this done?   In the first place, the Shari’ah of the Abbasid kings and priests was sanctified by attributing it to the Prophet (pbuh).  Secondly, any critics of the time were silenced by the proverbial carrot and stick.  This method was just as effective then, as it is now.  Those who refused to bow to any form of pressure would be labeled as infidels and put to death; their writings would be destroyed.  In this way, the kings and the priests established their version of the Shari’ah as the truth, to the extent that today, many religious Muslims find the following statements very strange: only the Quran is sufficient for us; we can implement true Islam based solely on the Quran; the prophet (pbuh) left only the written Quran to the Ummah; the Prophet told Muslims to follow only the Quran; the Prophet gradually abolished slavery; the companions of the Prophet (pbuh) were true Mumins who did not deviate from the Quran and the true faith.  Well-meaning religious Muslims will quickly quote Shari’ah to refute the above statements, which are perfectly true and found in the Quran.  How ironic that the Quran has been made to appear strange and the man-made Shari’ah made to look like the truth.

The Real Zakah – The First Universal Welfare System 




 What Happened?

Muslims and non-Muslims alike ask the question: If the system implemented by our Prophet (pbuh) and Sahabaa (r) was so good, why did it not continue? The answer is simple: we changed or abandoned the system implemented by the Prophet. Instead of deciding matters with open consultation, as the Quran requires, the Ummayad and Abbasid dynastic rulers created a dictatorship under the guise of  “Shari‘iah” and “Ijma‘a”. This was a ploy to fool the people. The rulers first acquired illegal political authority, and then delegated religious authority to Imams appointed by themselves.  Thus they hijacked the train of Islam from the track of our Prophet (pbuh) and his Sahabba (r) and put it on a new track called “Shari‘ah.” Since then, a minority of the rich and powerful has been riding this train and entertaining their friends while exploiting the vast majority of Muslims along the way. Consequently, common Muslims have continued to live in poverty and to suffer intergenerational economic misery.  Islam’s system of zakah has had nothing to do with this sad state of affairs.

But The Sermons Go On …


Status Quo Vs Change

The big question now looms before us: when and how should we confront these defenders of the status quo?  When will we implement the economic system of zakah so effectively demonstrated by our Prophet (pbuh)? To answer these questions, it is essential that we differentiate between our current concept of zakah and the real meaning and significance of zakah.

Our Present Approach to Zakah

Today, we are taught that zakah is one of the pillars of Islam. zakah is generally translated as charity or poor-due and it is required to be distributed according to the details given in the Shari’ah. However, the descendents of the Prophet (pbuh), generally known as “Syeds” in the Indian subcontinent, are forbidden to take zakah according to this Shari‘ah. No matter how poor, they are considered superior by birth compared to other Muslims due to their supposed relationship with the Prophet (pbuh). Obviously, this is against our Prophet’s Sunnah since he proclaimed justice, fairness, and equality for all, regardless of family or blood relationship.

The dispensation of zakah is regulated by different rates (called shar‘h) for different items (called nisaab) whose details are given in books of hadith and Fiqh.  Zakah on money is 2.5% of the savings over a period of one year according to the Shari’ah.  There are many conditions attached to the giving and receiving of zakah.  There is no uniformity even among the Sunnis in the restrictions, rates, and even the items of zakah.

In addition, there are different books of Fiqh and Shari’ah for different Muslim sects or schools of thought! Although Islamic scholars know about these differences in zakah among the Muslim sects, they rarely bring them out into the open, since it is in the interest of these scholars to keep the people ignorant.

The differences in zakah among the four Sunni Imams are not as major as among the Sunni and Shi’ia Imams. For example, in Fiqh Jaffariah, there is no zakah on paper currency. So, for the followers of this Fiqh there is no Zakah on bank accounts. When General Zia-ul-Haq, the Pakistani military ruler instituted compulsory zakah in Pakistan, the Shi’ia ‘Ulema revolted against it and refused to abide by the government’s zakah ordinance. Ultimately, the government excluded Shi’ias from the yearly bank account deductions. This led many Sunnis to declare themselves Shi’iason their bank forms to avoid paying zakah on their bank accounts.

Religious Tricks to Avoid Zakah

Some Sunni jurists have been very creative in teaching people how to avoid paying zakah.  The Kitab-ul-‘Heil or Book of Tricks teaches Muslims how to avoid zakah while technically fulfilling the requirements of the Sharia’h.  In other words, how they can have their wine but not lose jannah:  Rind ke rind rahe haath se Jannat na gayee.

Many religious Muslims, who are very particular about prayers, are quick to take advantage of the tricks specified in these books.  Like the Jews fishing on the Sabbath, this is tantamount to playing games with the verses of Allah.   The Quran reminds us: “In the long run evil in the extreme will be the end of those who do evil; for that they rejected the Signs of Allah, and held them up to ridicule” (30:10). “And when he learns something of Our Signs, he takes them in jest: For such there will be a humiliating penalty” (45:9). [Yusuf ‘Ali]


Dear sisters and brothers!  We must re-turn to the true spirit of the Quran; we must have the courage to follow the Islam of our Prophet (pbuh), which requires real sacrifice and a drastic change in our lifestyles. We must go back to the Quran as the primary source, and not to the rulings of Islamic scholars from the time of the Ummayad and Abbasid rulers.
