Zakah can only be given to muslims.
Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,
As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
(May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)
One of our brothers/sisters has asked
this question:
salaam
aleikum
well, I have also been told that zakat can be given only to a muslim. In the 8
categories listed as criterion for being able to take zakat, no where does it
say that Zakat needs to be given only to believers. You may have a non-muslim
who is Poor, Needy, In Bondage or in Debt.
I feel the idea of giving zakat only to muslims is quite restricted in a moral
sense. What is the difference in helping a muslim and a non-muslim? Sure u can
help by supererogatory charity but why the denotion, why the split?
(There may be some grammatical and spelling
errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from
questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in
confidentiality.)
Answer:
Zakah can only be
given to muslims
In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His
help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide,
and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear
witness that there is none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear
witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His
Messengers.
Although time and time again, Allah Subhanah in His
Glorious Quran and the Messenger of Allah (saws) in his Sunnah has exhorted the
believers to spend in charity, it is indeed true there is no specific injunction
in the Glorious Quran that charity should only be spent on the believers. There are numerous examples in the authentic
and established Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saws) where he (saws) openly
exhorted the believers to spend in charity on even those who choose to disbelieve
in Allah and the Last Day.
The literal meaning of the Arabic term ‘zakah’ is to
purify, to cleanse, or to increase…..and although ‘zakah’ is generally regarded
as ‘charity’, and finds mention in association with the obligation of ‘salah’
(prayers) in the Glorious Quran no less than eighty-two times….the Messenger of
Allah (saws) time and time again made it clear that the ‘zakah’ is an
obligation and a right which the Lord Most High has kept for the poor amongst
the believers in the wealth of those believers whom He has blessed with
abundance….so much so that ‘zakah’ is considered one of the five inviolable
pillars upon which the deen of Islam stands.
Secondly, ‘zakah’ is only collected from the rich amongst
the believers; the disbelievers living in an Islamic State are exempt from
paying any ‘zakah’ on their wealth to the Islamic State.
Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 5.634 Narrated by Ibn Abbas
Allah's Messenger (saws) said to Hadrat Muadh
bin Jabal (r.a.) when he sent him (as a governor) to Yemen, "You will come
to the people of Scripture, and when you reach them, invite them to testify
that none has the right to be worshipped except Allah and that Muhammad (saws)
is His Messenger. And if they obey you in that, then tell them that Allah has
enjoined on them five prayers to be performed every day and night. And if they obey you in that, then tell
them that Allah has enjoined on them ‘zakah’ which is to be taken from the rich
amongst them (the believers) and given to the poor amongst them (the
believers). And if they obey you in that, then be cautious! Don't take
their best properties (as Zakah), and be afraid of the curse of an oppressed
person, as there is no screen between his invocation and Allah."
Allah Subhanah has declared it obligatory upon the
eligible believers to fulfill the obligation of ‘zakah’; the Messenger of Allah
(saws) corroborated it by his example and his Sunnah; and the scholars and
jurists in Islam are in absolute consensus that although one is at liberty to
spend on anyone and anything for the Sake of Allah Subahnah through ‘sadaqah’
(voluntary charity); ‘zakah’ (or obligatory charity) can and should only be
collected from the rich amongst the believers and distributed amongst the poor
and needy amongst the believing society.
It is reported on
the authority of Hadrat Ali (r.a.) ibn Abi Taalib, that the Prophet (saws)
said: "Allah has enjoined upon
rich Muslims a due to be taken from their properties corresponding to the needs
of the poor among them (the believers). The poor will never suffer from
starvation or lack of clothes unless the rich neglect their due. If they do,
Allah will surely hold them (the rich believers) accountable and punish them
severely.”
Related by Tabarani.
Although in almost all civil matters there is no
distinction in dealings between a believer and a disbeliever in Shariah Law,
some specific matters like marriage, inheritance, entrance to the Sacred House
of Allah in Makkah, legality of food, etc. there is a clear and precise distinction
by Allah and His Messenger (saws) between believers and disbelievers…..and
there is an absolute consensus amongst scholars and jurists in Islam, without
exception, that the obligatory ‘zakah’ can only be collected from the believers
and spent on the believers. And Allah
Alone Knows Best.
Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only
due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me
alone. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is
the Only Source of Strength.
Your brother and
well wisher in Islam,
Burhan