Zakaat: A Source Of Welfare For The Muslim Community; But It Requires An Overhaul In Muslim Mindset From The Flawed Notion Of 'Piety' And 'Righteousness' To Genuine Concepts Islamic Charity And Purification Of Heart
By
Ghulam Rasool Dehlvi, New Age Islam
21 April
2023
Viewed
From The Perspective Of “Fi Sabilil-Allah” (In The Path Of God), Zakaat
Is A Source Of Welfare For The Muslim Community.
Main
Points:
1. Common
perception of 'righteousness' which consists of extreme externalism, an outward
conformism or formal conformity to the legal codes and customs.
2. What was
reflected in the attitude of the Pre-Islamic traditionalist Jews is deeply
entrenched in the common mindset of Muslims today.
3. A flawed
notion of 'piety' and 'righteousness' is deeply seated in the majority of the
contemporary Muslim society across the world.
4. The
institution of Zakaat as the fifth pillar of Islam, is an important case in
point.
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“You
shall not attain righteousness unless you spend on others of that which you
love, and whatever you spend, verily God has knowledge of it.”
(Qur’an:
3:92)
Shaan-e-Nuzool--context of the revelation-- of
this verse was basically to disabuse the false notion of 'righteousness'
perpetuated by the highly textualist legalism of the then jurists [among the
Jews and Christians].
In a
strikingly similar way, today's Muslims have developed a common perception of
'righteousness' which consists of extreme externalism, an outward conformism or
formal conformity to the legal codes and customs derived from the outdated laws
of the Fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence).
What was
reflected in the attitude of the Pre-Islamic traditionalist Jews is deeply
entrenched in the common mindset of Muslims today. In the words of Maulana Abul
A'ala Maududi who wrote an Urdu commentary on the Qur'an, Tafheem-ul-Qur'an
(Towards Understanding the Quran): "Narrow-mindedness, greed,
covetousness, meanness, concealment of the Truth and readiness to barter with
it lay beneath this veneer of formal piety. They were, nevertheless, considered
pious in the minds of the people; Jewish public opinion condoned their conduct
because it conformed to its concept of 'righteousness'."
This flawed
notion of 'piety' and 'righteousness' is deeply seated in the majority of the
contemporary Muslim society across the world. As a result, basic tenets, key
precepts and principles of the Islamic faith and creed have lost their actual
essence which is miserably missing from their actions. The institution of
Zakaat as the fifth pillar of Islam, is an important case in point.
Literally,
Zakaat means “purification” or “cleansing”. Though it encompasses the
purification of all of one’s possession, it refers, most specifically, to one’s
enormous wealth. However, it purifies not only the wealth of the giver but also
his heart and mind from miserliness, greed and all selfish tendencies.
Imam
Ghazali states in his spiritual discourses (Ihya Ulum al-Din): “The divine
decree by which Allah bids His servants to spend their wealth, is also
significant in purging the habit of miserliness, which is a deadly evil. It can
only be eliminated by making oneself accustomed to spending money. The purity
he acquires is in proportion to his expenditure, to his delight in giving away
and to his joy in spending for the sake of God.”
Zakaat
actually awakens and enlightens a humane spirit within us. It tells us that the
acquisition of wealth is not an end in itself, nor is it to be squandered for
lower motives. Almighty Allah has endowed it to certain people with it, to
serve higher spiritual purposes. Clearly, it is not meant to gain power over
the less fortunate through monopolization of the means of livelihood. Rather,
the will of the endower, the Almighty, is to ensure kindness and charity from
the rich to the poor. As clearly stated in the Qur'an (3:134): “Those who spend
[in Allah's Cause – deeds of charity, alms, etc.] in prosperity and in
adversity, who repress anger, and who pardon people; verily, Allah loves
Al-Muhsinun (the good-doers).
Significantly
enough, Zakaat also purifies the hearts of the poor recipients from hostility,
envy and all ill feelings that they harbour towards the rich. Instead, it
fosters in their hearts goodwill and warm wishes for the contributors. Most
remarkably, it instigates them to do special dua (prayer) for their helpers.
And a prayer from a Faqir (poor), Yateem (orphan) or Miskeen
(beggar) will never be rejected in the court of Allah.
But the
greed, covetousness and meanness as exhibited by the pre-Islamic Jews have
encouraged some Muslims today to misuse the Islamic charity and alms (Zakat o
Sadqaat) for their petty interests. Fake Madrasas and fictitious organisations
are booming and mushrooming on Zakaat in various parts of the country. They can
be found collecting Zakaat during the holy month of Ramadan especially in metro
cities. Those who work with such organisations as Chanda-takers or Muhasailin
are making their living, while the poor, for whose betterment Allah has
ordered Muslims to pay Zakat, remain hungry, homeless and sick.
Many
rectors of madrasas [Mohtamims] and the management committee [Nazims] send out
the Zakaat collectors on hefty commissions, sometimes even more than 60 percent
of the collected Zakat. They also perform something called Heela-e- Shari'ee
on part of their Safeers (salaried representatives) to collect Zakaat.
Now the
question is: why is Zakaat being donated to the Madrasas, and if they are
worthy of receiving the Zakaat, then why not the modern Muslim educational
institutions?
As a matter
of fact, Zakaat can be distributed only to deserving individuals or groups who
belong to any of the eight categories mentioned in the Quran (Surah Al-Tawbah,
9:60). These are: Faqirs, Miskeens, Yateems (orphans), Musafir (helpless
travellers), Maqrooz (debtors), etc. It was also given as a ransom to
free the slaves. The holy Prophet (PBUH) liberated many slaves by paying ransom
money. Similarly, he was so caring for the orphans that he promised, “The one
who cares for an orphan and me will be together in paradise like this”, and
held his two fingers together to illustrate”. Also, one of the legitimate
recipients of Zakaat is “Fi Sabeel-Allah” (in the Cause of
Allah).
What does “Fi
Sabeel-Allah” mean? It refers to those who are on the path of Allah. This
is the seventh category of those eligible to receive Zakaat. There is a
difference of opinion among the jurists on the implication of the term “Fi
Sabeel-Allah”. Imam al-Kasani al-Hanafi states: Fi Sabeel-Allah refers to
all virtuous acts that achieve divine proximity. This includes everyone who
struggles for virtuous acts and the obedience to Allah while they are eligible
to receive Zakaat.
Thus,
Zakaat can be paid for the purpose of educating Muslim children from poor
families, which is permissible on the ground that most Muslim families in our
country are either poor or middle class, and they cannot afford to pay for
private education of their children and facilities for their essential Islamic
teaching. Therefore, Zakaat can be paid for the education of underprivileged
and needy Muslim children in the category of “Fi Sabilil-Allah” (in the
Cause of Allah) on the basis of preserving the future of these poor Muslim
children.
With a view
to upbringing children in a proper Islamic way, payments for tuition of poor
Muslim children as well as for supporting such educational institutions fall
within the category of “Fi Sabilil-Allah”. Viewed from this perspective,
Zakaat is also a source of welfare for the Muslim community.
-----
Regular Columnist with Newageislam.com, Ghulam Rasool Dehlvi is an
Indo-Islamic scholar and English-Arabic-Urdu writer. He graduated from a
leading Islamic seminary in India, and acquired a Diploma in Qur'anic sciences
and a Certificate in Uloom ul Hadith from the Al-Azhar Institute of Islamic
Studies. He has also participated in the 3-year “Madrasa Discourses” program
initiated by the University of Notre Dame, USA. Presently, he is pursuing his
Ph.D. in Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi.
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-ideology/zakaat-righteousness-islamic-charity-purification/d/129619
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