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Problem # 1 Zakãt is obligatory on three cattle, namely, camels, cows and sheep (male and female both), two rich minerals, namely, gold and silver, and four cereals, namely, wheat, barley, dates and raisins (or currants), and it is not obligatory except on these nine items. Zakãt is approved on fruits and other things grown on land including even saitwort excluding vegetables or green crops (of grain) like Qatt (a grain eaten by desert people after pounding it), brinjal (or aubergine), cucumber, melon and the like. It is not free from difficulty in declaring payment of Zakät to be approved in case of (other) grains The same is the case with merchandise and mares. As regards horses, ponies and donkeys, Zakãt is not approved in their case. The rules relating to the nine items on which Zakãt is obligatory are given in the following three sub-chapters.
Sub-Chapter One — Payment of Zakat on Cattle
There are four conditions for the obligation of Zakat on cattle in addition to those mentioned earlier. They are: the Nisabs (criteria of payment of Zakat), grazing in the pastures, completion of one full year and their not being employed for service.
I - Detailed Rules about Nisâbs
Problem # 1 There are the following Nisãbs for camels, cows and sheep
(A- Nisãbs of Zakat on Camels)
There are the following twelve Nisäbs on camels:
1. One sheep on each unit of 5 camels.
2. Two sheep on each unit of 10 camels.
3. Three sheep on each unit of 15 camels.
4. Four sheep on each unit of 20 camels.
5. Five sheep on each unit of 25 camels.
6. One Bint-i Mukhãd on each unit of 26 camels.
7. One Bint-i Labun on each unit of 36 camels.
8. One Hiqqah on each unit of 46 camels.
9. One Jadha’ah on each unit of 6l camels.
10. Two Bint-i Labun on each unit of 76 camels
11 Two Hiqqah on each unit of 91 camels.
12. On each unit of 121 camels Zakãt shall be charged in the following way one Hiqqah on each 50 camels, one Bint-i Labun on each 40 camels, which means that it shall be obligatory to charge the Zakãt according to the rates of these numbers wherever applicable. If action cannot be taken without both these numbers, both of them shall be taken into account. One may take into account either or both of them Therefore, one cannot imagine a case where action cannot be taken accordingly; rather, it can be attained in one of the ways in case of groups of ten Of course, in case of a number consisting of units (i. e., numbers from one to nine) lying between two groups of ten, one cannot imagine action on them .So action shall be taken by counting in a way that may take in all the numbers without taking into account the units So in case of the number being 121 camels, three forties shall be taken into account and three Bint-i Labuns shall be payable as Zakãt.
Again, in case of the number being 130 camels, two forties and one fifty shall be taken into account, and two Bint-i Labuns and one Hiqqah shall be payable as Zakãt. In case there are 140 camels, two fifties and one forty shall be taken into account, and two Hiqqahs and one Bint-i Labun shall be payable as Zakãt In case there are 150 camels, three fifties shall be taken into account, and three Hiqqahs shall be payable as Zakãt Where there are 160 camels, four forties shall be taken into account, and four Bint Labuns shall be payable as Zakãt. Action shall be taken in a similar way until the number reaches 200 camels, when one may account for five forties and pay five Bint-i Labuns, or account for four fifties, and pay four Hiqqahs.
(B-Nisãbs of Zakát on Cows & Buffaloes)
There are two Nisabs for cows including buffaloes, one where they are 30 and the other where they are 40. So for each 30 cows one Tabi’ or one Tabi’ah, and for each 40 cows one Musnah shall be paid as Zakãt. Here too the rule should be applied, as far as possible, taking into account the above standard of payment of one Tabi’ or Tabi’ah for each 30 Cows and one Musnah for each 40 cows. There is no Zakãt until the number reaches sixty. When the number reaches sixty one cannot imagine that the rule cannot be applied to groups of ten, when they are accounted for according to thirty - thirty or forty - forty or they may be together (i.e.30-40). So in case of 60 cows, they shall be counted as two thirties, and two Tabi’s shall be paid as Zakät. In case of 70 cows, they shall be accounted for as 30 and 40, and one Tabi’ and one Musnah shall be paid as Zakãt. In case of 80 cows, they shall accounted for as two forties, and two Musnahs shall be paid as Zakat. In case of 90 cows, they shall be accounted for as three thirties, and three Tabi shall be paid as Zakät. In case of 100 cows, they shall be accounted for as two thirties and one forty, and two Tabi’ahs and one Musnah shall be paid as Zakãt. In case of 110 cows, they shall be accounted for as two forties and one thirty. (and two Musnahs and one Tabi’ah shall be paid as Zakat). In case of 120 cows, one may either account for as four thirties or three forties (and make payment accordingly)
(C-Nisãbs of Zakãt on Sheep)
There are five Nisãbs of Zakãt on Sheep.
1. For each unit of 40 sheep - one sheep.
2. For each unit of 121 sheep - two sheep.
3. For each unit of 201 sheep - three sheep.
4. For each unit of 301 sheep - 4 sheep, according to the more cautious opinion The problem is, however, very difficult.
5. For 400 sheep or above, for each 100 sheep - one sheep,how high so ever the number may be.
Problem # 2 Payment of Zakãt is obligatory on each of the Nisabs mentioned above, and it is not obligatory on what falls short of the Nisäb, as also no payment of Zakat is obligatory on what falls between two Nisabs except what was obligatory on the previous Nisãb, which means that whatever payment of Zakãt was obligatory on the previous Nisab shall remain payable on whatever falls between two Nisabs till it reaches the next Nisab. Thus, whatever falls between two Nisabs shall be exempted in the sense that nothing shall be payable on it more than the previous Nisãb, not in the sense that nothing shall be payable on it at all.
Problem # 3 A Bint-i Mukhad is a she-camel which has entered her second year. So also a Tabi’ or Tabi’ah (is a bull or cow that has entered his/her second year Again, a Bint-i Labun is a she-camel that has entered her third year, and so is a Musnah (a cow which has entered her third year). A Hiqqah is a she-camel that has entered her fourth year, while a Jadha’ah is a she-camel that has entered her fifth year.
Problem # 4 If it is obligatory on a person to pay a she-camel, for example, which has entered her second year, but he has a she-camel of three years. He shall pay the she-camel of three years (as Zakŕt) and take back two sheep or twenty Dirhams.
If, on the contrary, a person has a she-camel of a younger age, he shall pay it (as Zakat), and shall pay two sheep or twenty Dirhams in addition. According to the stronger opinion, (if it is obligatory on a person to pay a she - camel which has entered her second year), it shall not be permissible for him to pay voluntarily a she-camel which has entered her third year in place of a she-camel which has entered her second year If, however, the person has neither, then he may purchase which ever of the two categories he likes, though he should not give up caution by purchasing the she-camel which has entered her second year (which it is obligatory on him to pay).
Problem # 5 (As regards the payment of Zakãt according to the Nisäb), the property of one person shall not be merged with that belonging to another, although both may have a common or combined pasture, resting place, drinking place, male animals, a milking person or a milking place. Rather it is a condition that both of them should have attained the obligation for the payment of Zakãt, even if the aggregate of the shares of both may have reached the amount of Nisab. It shall make no difference if the owner of two (or more) properties is the same, even if they are situated at a distance from each other.
II - Detailed Rules Concerning Grazing in Pastures
Problem # 1 It is a condition that the cattle (on which payment of Zakãt is obligatory) should have grazed in the pasture throughout the year, so that if it happens to be fed on fodder during the year in a way that according to the custom or tradition it may cease to be called a cattle grazing in the pasture, it shall not be obligatory to pay Zakat on it. Of course, there shall be bad effect if the interval lasts for one or two days; rather even if it lasts for a few days; and rather, it shall not be far from having no bad effect if it takes place on different times.
Problem # 2 It makes no difference in dropping the payment of Zakat if the cattle has taken the fodder by itself or it has been given the fodder by its owner or some other person from his own property or the property belonging to the cattle’s owner with his permission or without it. So also it makes no difference whether the fodder has been given of one’s own accord, or in an emergency, or due to some hindrance in grazing, such as snow or the like. Similarly, it shall make no difference whether the cattle is fed on chopped fodder, or it is set free to graze by itself in the farm owned (by its owner), as in all these cases, the cattle shall be considered to have ceased to be grazing (in the pasture). Of course, apparently it shall not cease to be considered to be grazing (in the pasture) if the pasture is obtained on lease, or it is purchased, provided that it is not a cultivated farm.
Again, there shall be an impediment if the cattle were grazing in the field ready for farming, and it happens to be one meant for farming in the usual and customary way. If, however, a seed is spread in the field that produces herbage in the pasture without any further labor for its growth, then it shall not be far from being no hindrance in considering it to fall under the category of grazing in the pasture if the cattle were grazing in it. Similarly it shall not cease to be considered to be grazing in the pasture if an oppressor (or usurper) is paid (by the cattle’s owner) to let the cattle graze in a lawful (Mubäh) land (or an ownerless land).
III - Detailed Rules Concerning (Completion of a Whole) Year
Problem # 1 A year is considered to be complete after the passage of eleven months. Apparently the Zakãt is shifted to its owners (i.e. those who are entitled to receive it) at the start of the twelfth year when it becomes their wavering ownership and its payment becomes obligatory unwaveringly, and so it is not permissible for the owner of the property to make any changes in it which may deprive those entitled to receive it of their right. In case he does, he shall be held responsible for it. Of course, if any of the conditions are not fulfilled unintentionally in a way that the property falls short of the Nisab during the twelfth month, the property shall return to its previous owner, and the obligation for the payment of Zakãt shall be dropped. According to the stronger opinion, twelfth month shall be counted in the first year and not in the second.
As regards the eleventh month, so in the same way as the year is dropped due to the unintentional non-fulfillment of any of its conditions, it shall be permissible for him to make any change in the Nisab which may cause its non-fulfillment, in a way that he exchanges it with another kind of property even if it also belongs to the category falling under Zakät, or of the same kind as, for example, he exchanges a sheep which has grazed in the pasture for six months with another sheep, or by a similar sheep as when he changes a sheep with a round, fat tail with another sheep of the same type or another type of sheep, rather apparently the year shall thereby be cancelled, even if a person has done it in order to escape payment of Zakat.
Problem # 2 If a person is the owner of not more than a Nisãb, and several years have passed, while he has been paying Zakãt every year for something else, he shall be liable for the payment of the Zakãt continuously due to the subsistence of the Nisab all the time and without there being any decrease in it. Of course, if a person delays the payment of Zakãt at the end of the year, even for a short while, as it generally happens, the beginning of the next year shall be counted in consideration of the delay in the previous year. So the Nisab for the next year shall not begin unless he has taken out its Zakãt from some other kind. In case he takes out the Zakãt from the same kind, or he does not take it out at all, he shall not be liable for the payment of Zakãt except for a single year. If a person owns a property which exceeds the Nisab and several years have passed and he has not paid its Zakãt, he shall be liable to pay Zakat for one year in addition to the Zakãt for that period. If a person owns forty-one sheep, and several years have passed since he has not paid Zakãt for them, he shall be liable to pay Zakãt for two years. If a person has forty-two sheep, several years have passed since he has not paid their Zakãt), he shall be bound to pay Zakãt for three years, and so on. If the years exceed this number, he shall not be bound to pay Zakãt for them, due to the insufficiency of the Nisãb.
Section # 3 If, during the year, the owner of a Nisäb happens to receive some new property due to the birth of some new offspring, inheritance, purchase or the like, and it is upto an amount enjoying exemption, and does not form an independent Nisäb, nor one supplementing another Nisãb, he shall not be liable to pay anything, as, for example, he has forty sheep, and then forty other sheep are born, or he has five camels and four other camels are born. If, however, the new acquisition forms an independent Nisäb, as, for example, he had five camels at the beginning of the year, and after six months, he has had twenty-six camels. Or it may have supplemented another Nisab so that its amount is such that if it is added to the original one after deduction of what is obligatory it ceases to be a part of that Nisäb, and forms another (independent) Nisab, as, for example, when thirty-one cows beget ten, or thirty of them beget eleven. In the same way, if a person has five camels, and, after six months, he happens to have, for example, (another) five, then the latter five shall supplement the former five, and shall not be treated as an independent (Nisab) So five camels form one Nisab, while the ten camel form another single Nisäb, and are not treated to form two (separate) Nisab So also there is a separate single Nisab for fifteen camels, that is three sheep. So in the first case, for each old and new Nisab a year shall be counted separately, while in the preceding example, he (i.e. the owner) shall be bound to pay one sheep for five camels at the end of the year, while at the end of the new year, he shall pay a she-camel which has entered her second year (for twenty-six camels) at the end of the year. Then he shall give up counting five camels separately, and shall account for one year for all of them denovo.
The same shall be the case if a person happens to have an independent Nisãb during the year, as for example, he happens to have thirty-six or forty-six camels, and so on. In case of the birth of an offspring, or the acquisition of a new property, the basis for counting the year shall be the time since the Nisab is thereby completed, provided that the Nisab is completed in a different way, while in the latter case, (when the Nisab is completed by the acquisition of the new property), a single year shall be counted for all after the completion of one original year, and the beginning of the year for all shall be the end of the original year. The year of the offspring is not counted from the time they start grazing, and no more depend on their mothers’ milk, even in case their mother lives upon fodder.
IV — Detailed Rules Concerning the Last Condition
Problem It is also a condition (for the payment of Zakat) that the cattle (on which Zakãt is to be charged) should not have been employed for service throughout the year. In case they are employed for service, although for a short period of time, no Zakat shall be payable for them, even if they happen to be grazing (in the pasture). The criterion for determining whether they are employed for service is the prevalent or usual practice.
Rules Concerning Cattle accepted as Zakät (Contd.)
Problem # 1 Neither sick cattle shall be accepted as Zakät for healthy cattle, nor shall old cattle for the Zakät of young cattle. Similarly, defective cattle shall also not be accepted as Zakãt for sound cattle, even if they fall under the Nisãb. In case, however, all the cattle in the Nisab are sick, suffering from a common disease, their owner shall not be required to buy healthy ones (for payment of their Zakãt), and it shall be sufficient for him to give the sick ones (as Zakat). If some of the cattle are healthy while others are sick, then according to the more cautious, if not stronger, opinion, the owner should take out the average cattle without taking into consideration their respective category (as to their being sick or healthy). Likewise, a sheep that has given birth to a young one shall not be accepted (as Zakat) until fifteen days of the delivery, even if the owner has paid her, except when the whole flock happens to be of the same type. Nor shall the fat sheep which is reared for food (be accepted as Zakat}; nor a ram which is meant for copulation. Rather, according to the stronger opinion, such type of cattle shall not be counted among the Nisab, though, according to the more cautious opinion, they are counted as part of the Nisãb.
Problem # 2 A sheep which is taken as Zakãt for sheep or camels or as a compensation, if it were a sheep with a large, round and fat tail, she should have completed one year and entered her second year. If it were a he-goat, it should have entered its third year. This is the minimum which is accepted (as Zakat) for sheep. A male cattle is accepted (as Zakat) for a female one and vice versa. So is a he-goat accepted (as Zakãt) for a sheep with a large, round and fat tail, and vice versa, as they are treated as belonging to the same category for the purpose of Zakãt, as is the case with a cow and a buffalo, or an Arabian camel and a non-Arabian one.
Problem # 3 If an owner has different types of property in different places, he shall be at liberty to take out any of the property of his own accord, and he is not bound to pay Zakãt from the same Nisãb, or the same category falling under Zakat. Rather, he may even pay the market price of the articles in Dirhams and Dinars. So also, he may pay Zakãt from other categories, if it is better for the poor; otherwise, there is hesitation in doing so, though it is not devoid of force. The best thing is to take out Zakãt from the property itself. The criterion for the determination of the price is the market price of the article at the time of its payment, and the place in which it lies, if the property itself subsists. In case it was in compensation for the property destroyed, then the criterion shall be the price as on the day of its destruction and in its place (or situation). It is more cautious to opt for the higher of the two, namely the price as on the day of the destruction of the article and in its place and as on the day of its payment and in its place (or situation).
Following are some conditions in addition to the general conditions already understood.
First - Nisäb
(I. Nisãb of Zakat on Gold)
In case of gold, the Nisãb of Zakat is twenty Dinars, whose Zakãt is ten Qirats which is equal to half a Dinar, and one Dinar is one Shar’i Mithqal which is equal to 3/4th of a Sayrafi Mithqal. So twenty Dinars come to fifteen Sayrafi Mithqals, and its Zakãt amounts to 4/8th of a Mithqal. There shall be no Zakat on less than twenty Dinars of gold, nor if it exceeds a little until the excess reaches four Dinars, and that is equal to three Sayrafi Mithqals whose Zakãt is two Qirats, as one Dinar = 20 Qirãts. The same amount shall be payable for each excess of four Dinars, and there shall be no Zakãt on any amount of gold which is less than four Dinars, but not in the sense that there shall be no Zakãt on it at all, as is the case when gold is less than twenty Dinars, but what is meant by exemption of whatever lies between two Nisabs is whatever exceeds the amount of Nisãb until its reaches another Nisab shall be supposed to belong to the previous one. So the first Nisab of gold begins from twenty Dinars until twenty-four Dinars, and it falls under the first amount of Zakãt that is half a Dinar.
Once the amount reaches twenty-four Dinars, two Qirats shall be added to the amount of Zakãt, and it shall remain so until it reaches twenty-eight Dinars, when another two Qirats shall be added to the amount of Zakãt, and so on.
II— Nisãb of Zakat on Silver
The Nisãb of Zakãt on Silver is two hundred Dirhams of which Zakãt is five Dirhams. Then on each amount exceeding forty Dirhams, there shall be an addition of one Dirham in the amount of Zakãt, whatever the amount may be. There shall be (initially) no Zakãt on silver of less than two hundred Dirhams, and so also there shall be no Zakãt on an excess of less than forty Dirhams, in the sense already explained under the rules relating to the Zakãt on gold. A Dirham is equal to six Dawaniq, which is equal to half of one-fifth Shar’i Mithqal, as each ten Dirhams are equal to seven Shar’i Mithqals.
Explanation The general rule in the payment of Zakãt on gold and silver is that when each of them reaches the Nisab i.e. twenty Dinars in case of gold and two hundred Dirhams in case of silver, 1/40th of the amount of gold or silver, as the case may be, shall be paid as Zakãt, and so its owner shall be considered to have paid what was due. If a person pays a bit more than the due amount of Zakãt, there shall be no objection, rather it shall be better and shall add to the beneficence.
Second - For the obligation of payment of Zakãt on a gold or silver coin, it should bear the seal of a king or somebody like him of whatever time or place, belonging to Islam, or a non-believer, with writing on it or without it, even if the writing has been obliterated for some reason. In case a coin of gold or silver does not originally bear a seal or writing, payment of Zakãt shall not be obligatory on it, except when it was in currency, in which case, according to the more cautious opinion, it shall be obligatory to pay Zakát on it. If a coin (of gold or silver) is used, for example, as an ornament for decoration, then it shall not be obligatory to pay Zakãt on it, regardless whether its value exceeds (the limit of Nisäb) or falls short of it, and whether it was used in a way as transaction or not.
Third - Completion of a year. It is also a condition that the whole Nisab should subsist for a full year. If, therefore, during the year it falls short of the required limit or it is changed in substance, etc., or by means of casting, even if in order to escape payment of Zakãt, it shall not be obligatory to pay Zakãt for it, though, in such case too, it is approved to pay Zakãt for it; rather, according to the more cautious opinion, Zakãt should be paid for it. If, however, after the turn of the year the coin is cast (into another one), the obligation for payment of Zakãt for it shall not drop.
Problem # 1 Dirhams and Dinars are put together in a way that they may fall under the Nisãb, although they may differ in denomination and coins, rather even as regards their value or demand. So an Iranian coin shall be put together with a Majidi or (Indo-Pak)
Rupee; rather, a current coin shall be put together with one which is no more in currency. As regards taking out of Zakãt, if the owner himself pays it in the best and fullest way, it shall be better and raise its good reward; otherwise, according to the stronger opinion, Zakãt shall be taken out from each category and according to the required proportion, and it would not be permissible to suffice with the lowest kind.
Problem # 2 It shall not be obligatory to pay Zakãt on impure (or counterfeit) Dirhams that cannot be considered pure silver even nominally, and even of a baser quality, except if when pure, they would fall within the Nisab. If there is doubt (as to the purity or impurity of a Dinar), and there is no way to determine it, it shall not be obligatory to pay Zakãt on it. It is more cautious to resort to refinement or the like in order to test it, although. according to the stronger opinion, it is not obligatory (to pay Zakat for it).
Problem # 3 If a person pays Zakãt in impure (or counterfeit) coins for pure or impure coins, then if he knows that it contains pure silver upto the quantity on which payment of Zakãt is obligatory, well and good; otherwise, it shall be indispensable for him to obtain knowledge about it, even if the knowledge as to its content of pure silver being upto the required quantity and not less than that is obtained against some payment.
Problem # 4 If a person owns an article falling within the Nisäb, but does not know whether it contains some alloy or not, then, according to the stronger opinion, it shall not be obligatory to pay Zakat on it, though, it is more cautious to pay the Zakãt.
Problem # 5 lf a person takes a loan amounting to Nisab of Zakat and keeps it with himself as it is until the completion of one year, then the borrower shall be required to pay Zakãt on it and not the lender. Rather, even if he has made it a condition (that the lender shall have to pay the Zakät in such an event), even then the condition shall not be binding, though the tenor of the condition were also that the lender shall be liable for the payment of the Zakät (in such a case). If, however, the borrower stipulates that the lender shall pay the Zakãt due on the loan voluntarily, the condition shall be binding. If the lender does not fulfill the condition, the condition shall not drop, and he shall be bound to pay the Zakŕt (due on the loan)
It has already been mentioned that payment of Zakat is not obligatory except on four kinds of grains or cereals, namely, wheat, barley, dates and raisins (or currants) Payment of Zakät is not applicable to “Sult” which is like barley in nature according to what is said about it and like wheat in softness and in not having a husk, and so Zakät is not payable for it, though it is more cautious to do so. Caution should not be given up by affiliating “Alas” (a kind of pulse) with wheat, but payment of Zakät is not obligatory on grains other than it, though it is approved to pay Zakãt for some things, as already mentioned. As regards the conditions relating to the amount falling under Nisab and the amount to be taken out of it as Zakät, etc., in case of the articles on which payment of Zakãt is approved, they are the same as applicable to those on which payment of Zakat is obligatory.
Some Issues Concerning Zakat on Grains (or Cereals)
Following are some issues Concerning payment of Zakãt on grains (or cereals).
The First Issue:
Here are two conditions in the application of Zakãt on grains (or cereals).
First - Attainment of Nisãb The Nisab in case of grains (or cereals) is five Wasaq, which is equal to sixty Sã and a Sä’= 9 Iraqi Ratls and 60 Medinese Ratls, as it is equal to four Mudds, and a Mudd = 21/4 Iraqi Ratls and 11/2 Medinese Ratls. So the Nisab for the grains (or cereals) comes to one thousand seven hundred Iraqi Ratls and one thousand and eight hundred Medinese Ratls. An Iraqi Ratl = 130 Dirhams which is equal to 91 Shari Mithqals and 68 1/4 Sayrafi Mithqals, and according to Hiqqah of Najaf which is equal to 933 1/3 Sayrafi Mithqals it is 8 Wazns and 5 ˝ /-Hiqqahs minus 58 1/3 Mithqãls. According to the Istambuli Hiqqah that is equal to 280 Mithqals it comes to 27 Wazns, 10 Hiqqahs and 35 Mithqals. According to the Shãhi Maunds which is current in some parts of Iran and which is equal to 1280 Sayrafi Mithqals, it comes to 144 Maunds minus 45 Sayrafi Mithqals. According to the Tabrizi Maunds that is current in some parts of Iran, it comes to 288 Maunds minus 45 Sayrafi Mithqal. According to Kilograms, which is current today, it comes to 847 Kilograms and 207 grams approximately. There is no Zakãt on whatever falls short of the above Nisab even if a little, as it is obligatory on the Nisãb and whatever is in excess, though a little.
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