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Zakāh

Zakāh (zakāh — "purification, growth") is, in the Qur'an, a core financial act of worship, named beside faith and prayer.

Elements in the Qur'an

  • Commanded with prayer: "Establish the prayer and give the zakāh…" (2:43; also 2:110, 2:177, 22:78).
  • Eight categories: "The ṣadaqāt (zakāh) are only for the poor, the needy, those who collect it, those whose hearts are to be reconciled, freeing the enslaved, the debtors, the cause of God, and the traveller." (9:60)
  • It purifies wealth: "Take from their wealth a charity by which you cleanse and purify them." (9:103)
  • Increase: the zakāh "given seeking God's face" multiplies, while ribā does not grow with God (30:39).

An honest limit

The Qur'an gives the command, recipients and spirit of zakāh; but numeric measures such as the niṣāb (threshold) and rate (e.g. 2.5%) are not stated in the Qur'an — they were fixed by the Sunnah and fiqh, and are a matter of opinion.

Source: Qur'anic verses (M. Okuyan meal).

Related verses