عن ابن عمر رضي الله عنه قال: سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقول:
"بني الإسلام على خمس شهادة أن لا إله إلا الله وأن محمدا رسول الله وإقام الصلاة وإيتاء الزكاة وحج البيت وصوم رمضان".
(متفق عليه )
” Islam is based upon five things declaring that there is no god except Allah and that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah, the establishment of salah, the payment of zakah, the hajj and sawm in the month ramadan.”
(Mutafaqun A'laih)
From the above Hadith, we know that Zakah is one of the main pillars of Islam. It is an act of alms giving and is ruled obligatory for all Muslims who have fulfilled these conditions:
Muslim
Free
Full ownership of wealth
Nisab
Haul
Zakah is defined as "Giving out a specific amount of health to specific individuals". The 8 group of individuals who are eligible to receive Zakah are known as Asnaf. They are: Fakir, Miskin, Amil, Muallaf, Al-Riqab (Slaves), Al-Gharimin (Debtors), Fisabilillah and Ibnu Sabil.
It falls into the category of 'Ibadah Maliyyah. It's a good knowlegde to know that there are 3 types of 'Ibadah. Namely:
Qalbiyyah: Ibadah from the Heart - Sabar, Ikhlas
Maliyyah: Ibadah of Wealth - Zakat
Badaniyyah - Ibadah through Action - Solah
(Note:Hajj fulfils all 3 types)
Virtues and Benefits of Zakah:
As the cliche yet true phrase goes, "When you give, you get". Zakah is an opportunity to contribute your part to the society and give alms to the poor and needy in the cause of Allah. I had once heard a beautiful analogy of the virtue Zakah from one of Mufti Menk's lectures. Zakah has been likened to seeds or "kamathalin habbah''. Why is this so? Imagine an apple. How much of it is eaten and how much of it is the seed? 98% of the apple is the juicy flesh while the other 2% is the seed. If one is sharp enough, they would plant the seeds again and look after it. By Allah's will, it will grow and bear many apples in return. All these blessings starts only with an apple not more.
Hence, similarly to Zakah, the plentiful amount of Rizq and wealth Allah has blessed someone with should be taken out a portion of it to be spent in the cause of Allah for the wealth to be blessed. It does not only benefit others, but the givers themselves.
Other than that, Zakah instills empathy and care among different members of the society. This reduces the feeling of hasad and creates a stronger sense of unity and togetherness.
Mentioned 30 times in the Quran, usually paired with Solah, Zakah is a significant act of Ibadah concerning wealth. Solah and Zakah are both very important deeds in our religion.
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