Like many other concepts of faith and acts of worship in Islam, Zakat too has been severely distorted and misjudged by our "scholars" throughout the history.
Zakat along with Contact Prayer (Salat) is one of THE most important acts of worship for a believer. GOD tells:
"My mercy encompasses all things, but I will specify it for the righteous who give Zakat" (7:156).
Do you think such a high importance of Zakat and the fact that it is mentioned almost always along with Salat in Quran only points out to a meager annual 2.5 % charity and that too only on your savings, as most people claim? Isn't that ridiculous? What should poor people do the rest of year? Do they have to eat only once a year at the end, don't they have needs all along?? This is a gross distortion of the whole concept of Zakat.
Let's see the correct concept of Zakat according to Quran.
Allah says:
6:141. Render the dues that are proper on the day that the harvest is gathered.
now, we don't harvest crops in cities, do we? We rather 'harvest' pay checks! Or the salaries. We work the whole month, or after every 2 weeks, we harvest income/salary, SO ZAKAT IS DUE WHENEVER YOU RECEIVE THE PAYCHECK or the net income.
How much Zakat should you pay? : Quran does not specify a rate for Zakat. The usual 2.5% concept does not come from Quran and is not valid therefore. Please note If GOD wanted to specify the rate of this extremely important act of worship, He could have as HE clearly specified the rate of Fay/spoils of war:
8:41. And know that out of all the booty that ye may acquire (in war), a fifth share is assigned to Allah....
This means that GOD has left it upto you to decide according to your needs and circumstances how much you can spare for charity on regular bases. And this is the most logical explanation, because there are people who can easily spare large %age of their incomes because they have a small family and high income, someone could spare as high as 50% of their income. But there are people who have low incomes and large families to support, and even 2.5% rate is too much for them to bear. Thats why it is your subjective decision how much to pay. But a beautiful principle has been laid out by GOD:
25:67. Those who, when they spend, are not extravagant and not niggardly, but hold a just (balance) between those (extremes)
6:141. It is He who produceth gardens, with trellises and without, and dates, and tilth with produce of all kinds, and olives and pomegranates, similar (in kind) and different (in variety): eat of their fruit in their season, but render the dues that are proper on the day that the harvest is gathered. But WASTE NOT BY EXCESS: for Allah loveth not the wasters.
Zakat along with Contact Prayer (Salat) is one of THE most important acts of worship for a believer. GOD tells:
"My mercy encompasses all things, but I will specify it for the righteous who give Zakat" (7:156).
Do you think such a high importance of Zakat and the fact that it is mentioned almost always along with Salat in Quran only points out to a meager annual 2.5 % charity and that too only on your savings, as most people claim? Isn't that ridiculous? What should poor people do the rest of year? Do they have to eat only once a year at the end, don't they have needs all along?? This is a gross distortion of the whole concept of Zakat.
Let's see the correct concept of Zakat according to Quran.
Allah says:
6:141. Render the dues that are proper on the day that the harvest is gathered.
now, we don't harvest crops in cities, do we? We rather 'harvest' pay checks! Or the salaries. We work the whole month, or after every 2 weeks, we harvest income/salary, SO ZAKAT IS DUE WHENEVER YOU RECEIVE THE PAYCHECK or the net income.
How much Zakat should you pay? : Quran does not specify a rate for Zakat. The usual 2.5% concept does not come from Quran and is not valid therefore. Please note If GOD wanted to specify the rate of this extremely important act of worship, He could have as HE clearly specified the rate of Fay/spoils of war:
8:41. And know that out of all the booty that ye may acquire (in war), a fifth share is assigned to Allah....
This means that GOD has left it upto you to decide according to your needs and circumstances how much you can spare for charity on regular bases. And this is the most logical explanation, because there are people who can easily spare large %age of their incomes because they have a small family and high income, someone could spare as high as 50% of their income. But there are people who have low incomes and large families to support, and even 2.5% rate is too much for them to bear. Thats why it is your subjective decision how much to pay. But a beautiful principle has been laid out by GOD:
25:67. Those who, when they spend, are not extravagant and not niggardly, but hold a just (balance) between those (extremes)
6:141. It is He who produceth gardens, with trellises and without, and dates, and tilth with produce of all kinds, and olives and pomegranates, similar (in kind) and different (in variety): eat of their fruit in their season, but render the dues that are proper on the day that the harvest is gathered. But WASTE NOT BY EXCESS: for Allah loveth not the wasters.
I completely agree... I just wanted to add that you overlooked one verse dealing with the subject on "how much to give"... The verse in Qurstion is 2:219and the answer is SURPLUS... We, who will be judged, best know what our surplus is... Sincerety is the key with sadaqa and zakat...
ReplyDelete[2:219] They ask you about intoxicants and gambling: say, "In them there is a gross sin, and some benefits for the people. But their sinfulness far outweighs their benefit." They also ask you what to give: say, "SURPLUS." GOD thus clarifies the revelations for you, that you may reflect,
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