Abu Dawud

1573. Commentary:
➊ The weight of a dirham according to current calculations is 2.975 grams, and the weight of a dinar (gold) is 4.25 grams. Thus, the nisab (minimum threshold) for zakat on silver is 595 grams and on gold is 85 grams. From the very beginning of the Book of Zakat, Imam Abu Dawud has mentioned hadiths regarding the nisab, from which it is established that in Islam, gold, silver (whether in the form of dirhams and dinars as currency, as jewelry, or in any other form), staple food grains, and grazing livestock each have a separate zakat obligation. Each has its own distinct nisab. For every independent category, when its nisab is fulfilled and a year passes over it, payment of zakat at the prescribed rate becomes obligatory. If the nisab of any item is not fulfilled, or a year has not passed over it, then zakat is not due on it. Some people think that zakatable items, especially gold and silver, should be combined to determine the nisab collectively. That is, if a person has half the nisab of gold and half the nisab of silver throughout the year, zakat would be obligatory on him, but he would pay 2.5% zakat separately on each. However, the words of the blessed hadiths do not support this. The hadith which Imam Bukhari declared authentic in response to Imam Tirmidhi’s inquiry [جامع الترمذي، الزکوة ‘باب ما جاء في زکوة الذھب والورق‘حدیث:620) اس سلسلے میں واضح ہے کہ اگر کسی کے پاس 190 درہم چاندی ہو تو زکوۃ وصول نہیں کی جائے گی۔ اگر سونے کے نصاب میں آدھا دینار بھی کم ہو گا تو زکوۃ واجب نہ ہوگی۔ اسی طرح حضرت ابوسعید خدری سے مروی ہے کہ اگر چاندس پانچ اوقیہ (یا دو سو درہم) سے کم ہو تو اس میں زکوۃ نہیں ہو گی۔ دیکھیے:- صحیح البخاري، الزکوة، باب زکوة الورق، حدیث:1447‘ و صحیح مسلم، الزکوة ، باب لیس فیما دون خمسة أوسق صدقة، حدیث:979]
The noble Companions, Aisha radi Allahu anha and Ibn Umar radi Allahu anhu, also narrated the same from the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. See [سنن ابن ماجة‘ الزکوة‘باب زکوة الورق و الذھب‘ حدیث:1790‘1791]
In Islam, where the system of zakat has been established as an act of compassion and mercy for the poor and needy, an easy path has also been chosen for the payers, and a separate nisab has been set for each item. This is why, even in times of decline when a proper system for collecting zakat did not exist, a large number of wealthy individuals continued to pay it voluntarily, and still do so today. Another question that arises is that the value of the silver nisab is much less compared to the gold nisab. This is correct. In this regard, the point is that when the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam set the nisab for zakat, he did not stipulate that the nisab for all items should be of equal value. The nisab for different items—for example, five camels, thirty cows, forty goats, and five wasq (750 kilograms) of grain or dates—were not of equal value, as will be made clear from the price charts given below. We have compiled these charts from the following authentic or hasan grade narrations:

1) Aisha radi Allahu anha states: At the time of the Messenger of Allah’s sallallahu alayhi wa sallam death, his coat of mail was held in pledge with a Jew in exchange for thirty sa’ of barley. [صحیح البخاري‘ الجهاد والسیر‘ باب ماقیل فیئ درع النبي ﷺ والقمیص في الحرب‘حدیث:2916]
2) Anas radi Allahu anhu, regarding cash, states that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam had his coat of mail mortgaged with a Jew for one dinar, and until his death, that dinar was not available to redeem it. [صحیح ابن حبان‘ الرھن‘باب ثمن الشعیر الذي کان للیھودي علی المصطفیٰ ﷺ عند رھنه إياه درعه‘ حدیث:5907 ]
3) The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam set the blood money (diyah) at one hundred camels, but for city dwellers, he set its value at four hundred dinars or their equivalent in silver/dirhams. This value fluctuated according to the price of camels, so even during his sallallahu alayhi wa sallam lifetime, this value reached from four hundred to eight hundred dinars. [سنن النسائي‘ القسامة‘باب ذکر اختلاف علی خالد الحذاء‘حدیث:4805‘ إرواء الغلیل‘ حدیث:2199]
4) Jabir radi Allahu anhu says that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam bought his tired camel from him for one uqiyyah of silver. [سنن النسائي‘ البیوع‘باب البیع یکون فیه الشرط فيصح البيع والشرط‘ حدیث:4641]
And one uqiyyah of silver was equal to forty dirhams. 5) Anas radi Allahu anhu says that Abu Bakr radi Allahu anhu, in accordance with the command of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, wrote for them regarding the obligation of zakat... If a person owes a jaz’ah (four-year-old she-camel) in zakat but only has a hiqqah (three-year-old she-camel), accept the hiqqah and, if two goats are not available, take twenty dirhams... [صحیح البخاي‘ الزکوة‘باب من بلغت عندہ صدقه بنت مخاض ولیست عندہ‘حدیث:1453]

In light of these hadiths, the chart of various items during the time of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam is as follows. The determination of the amount of diyah at different times has been taken into account in this:

Camels | Dinars | Dirhams | Barley
100 | 400–800 | 8000 | 1 | 30 sa’

Camels | Dinars | Dirhams | Cows | Goats
100 | 1000 | 12000 | 200 | 2000

*During the time of Umar radi Allahu anhu, camels became expensive, so he revised the prices of diyah, and the new prices were as follows. See: [ابوداود‘ الدیات‘ باب الدیه کم هى‘ حدیث:4542]

In that era, the prices of grain can be determined with the help of these hadiths:
*Amir Mu’awiyah radi Allahu anhu, addressing the people during his time, said: “I think that two mudd (half a sa’) of wheat (samra) of Syria are equal to one sa’ of dates.” The people accepted this, but the eminent Companion Abu Sa’id al-Khudri radi Allahu anhu, who narrated this hadith, himself did not accept this. [ابوداود‘ الزکوة‘باب کم یؤدی في صدقة الفطر‘ حدیث:1616]
*It is established from Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz that he set half a sa’ of wheat as sadaqat al-fitr, and for those who received (cash) grants from the public treasury, he set half a dirham. [المحلی، الزکوة‘ مسئلة مقدار ما يخرج زكاة الفطر:6/130]

During the time of Amir Mu’awiyah radi Allahu anhu and Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, the price chart for grain would be as follows:

Wheat | Barley | Dirhams
½ sa’ | 1 sa’ | ½

*During the time of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, the price of a camel became 100 dirhams, so the diyah for 100 camels was set at 10,000 dirhams. [المحلی‘ الدیة، أحکام شبه العمد:10/300]

*If all these hadiths are considered together, it becomes clear that camels, for which the Arabs used the word “wealth,” were the most stable in price and were made the basis for diyah. After them, gold was stable and suitable for use as currency, so it was made the basis for determining prices. Through the aforementioned hadiths and charts, if we take the nisab of zakat, i.e., 5 camels, as the basis, the price chart is as follows:

Camels | Dinars | Dirhams | Cows | Goats | Grain | Barley | Dates
Era of Prophethood 1
➍ 8 | 40–80 | .
➍ 8 | . | 120 sa’ | 2 wasq

Era of Umar radi Allahu anhu 1
10 | 120 | 2 | 20 | 300 sa’ | 5 wasq

If we take 5 camels as the basis in terms of prices, which is the nisab for zakat, the price ratio will be:

Camels | Dinars | Dirhams | Cows | Goats | Grain | Barley | Dates
Era of Prophethood 5 | 20–40 | 200–400 | . | 20–40 | . | 600 sa’ | 10 wasq
Era of Umar 5 | 50 | 600 | 10 | 100 | . | 1500 sa’ | 15 wasq

The nisab for zakat set by the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was:

Zakat Nisab | Camels | Dinars | Dirhams | Cows | Goats | Grain | Barley | Dates
5 | 20 | 200 | 30 | 40 | 300 sa’ | 5 wasq

If we compare the price charts and zakat nisab during the era of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, the following points emerge:

1) The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam did not necessarily keep the nisab of all items of equal value. This is more evident from the difference in the value of cows and grain.
2) Even during the time of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, prices changed. He increased the cash diyah according to the prices, but did not change the nisab for zakat.
3) During the era of Umar radi Allahu anhu, the price difference increased even more. Umar radi Allahu anhu also increased the dinars and dirhams in diyah, but kept the zakat nisab unchanged.
4) Mu’awiyah radi Allahu anhu and Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, in the matter of sadaqat al-fitr, exercised ijtihad in view of prices (Abu Sa’id al-Khudri radi Allahu anhu, a Companion, did not accept Mu’awiyah’s ijtihad), but no one even thought of changing the original zakat nisab.

From these facts, it is established that:
(a) The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, in determining the nisab, took into account the needs of society, giving value a secondary status. That is why he set the nisab for grain, which is the most essential need, the lowest, so that this basic necessity would be distributed as much as possible among people and no one would be deprived. After that, the nisab for goats is relatively low, because in terms of the basic needs of a household, the need for goats was greater than for camels or cows.
(b) The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam set the nisab for dinars and dirhams according to the value of camels, but when this cash became cheaper compared to camels, he changed the prices for diyah, yet kept the zakat nisab fixed. The Rightly Guided Caliphs radi Allahu anhum also kept the zakat nisab unchanged despite changes in prices, and it remains so to this day. Since zakat is an act of worship, its method cannot be changed. In contrast, diyah is the price of life or limb, and camels are its basis, so its value has been changed according to price fluctuations.

Nowadays, by analogy with the tax system, it is said that more zakat should be collected from the wealthy, because as a person’s wealth increases, its value relative to his real needs decreases, since he does not need as much as the needy person does. This analogy is incorrect. In zakat, the nisab and rate are determined not by the decreasing value for the rich, but by the intense need of the poor. Five wasq of grain in that era was half or even less than the value of five camels. Yet, the zakat on it was set at ten percent, or if it was rain-fed, twenty percent, instead of forty percent. The purpose is that the poor have the greatest need for grain, so as much as possible should reach them, even if relatively less wealthy people have to make this sacrifice. This sacrifice brings them great reward and merit. The beauty of Islamic society is that the circle of those who show selflessness is the widest. Zakat is an act of worship, not like a tax. Yes, there are other ways to encourage spending surplus wealth in the way of Allah, and Muslims adopt these ways even without government collection; the government can also take steps in this regard.

Another great wisdom in the Islamic method of determining nisab is that for each item, a separate nisab has been set that suffices for the needs of a family. Shah Waliullah rahimahullah says: “Two hundred dirhams suffice for a family’s needs for a whole year.” [حجۃ اللہ، باب: زکوۃ کی مقدر کا بیان]
If the means of support are camels, then at least five animals are needed for a family; if goats, then about forty are needed, even if their value is less than camels; and for farmers, about 19 maunds (approximately 760 kg) of grain is necessary for a year. It should also be noted that in agriculture, zakat is not on the land itself, but only on the produce, whereas for livestock owners, zakat is on the principal capital. To understand the wisdom of zakat nisab, another point to consider is that in farming, there is produce once or twice a year, and the increase compared to the seed is very large, whereas for camels and cows, one must wait three or four years for an increase. In sheep and goats, the new generation matures relatively quickly, in about one and a half to two years. It should also be kept in mind that camels or sheep and goats, for which zakat is prescribed, obtain their sustenance from forests and pastures. For cows, some additional arrangements must be made. Their rearing also presents more difficulties, which is why their nisab is set higher than that of camels. The jurists are also agreed that buffaloes, if they are primarily grazing animals as is still the case in some countries of South Asia and Africa, should be analogized to cows. [الفقه الإسلامي و أدلته‘ حدیث :2‘ ص:842]
Because they are of the same species as cows, just as sheep and goats are of the same species, and the nisab will be counted by combining cows and buffaloes. See: [موطأ‘ الصدقة‘ باب ما جاء في صدقة البقر]

Pay the Zakat of Your Wealth

The statement of Allah, the Exalted, is:

﴿وَالَّذِيْنَ هُمْ للِزَّكٰوةِ فٰعِلُوْنَ﴾

And (the believers) are those who pay the zakat. [المومنون: 4]

In this noble verse, the third sign of believing Muslims has been mentioned: that they pay zakat.

By zakat is meant that every year, one-fortieth portion is taken out from wealth that has reached the nisab (minimum threshold), and it is spent on any of the eight categories mentioned in Surah At-Tawbah (verse 60).

Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Umar radi Allahu anhu said:

And there is no zakat on any wealth before a full year passes over it.

[السنن الكبريٰ للبيهقي 104/4، وسنده صحيح]

The marfu‘ (attributed to the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) narrations on this subject are weak, for example, see: [انوار الصحيفه: 1573]
But this authentic athar (statement of a Companion) is marfu‘ in ruling, and consensus (ijma‘) also supports this.

The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said:

«وَأَدُّوْا زَكٰوةَ أَمْوَالِكُمْ»

And pay the zakat of your wealth.

[سنن ترمذي: 616وقال: ’’حسن صحيح‘‘ وسنده حسن وصححه ابن حبان: 795]

Hafiz Ibn al-Jawzi rahimahullah has written the meaning of ﴿فاعلون﴾ in the aforementioned verse as: ﴿مؤدون﴾ (those who fulfill/pay). See: [زاد المسير460/5]

Shaykh Abdussalam al-Rustami hafizahullah said:

And by zakat is meant the acts that purify the soul (i.e., tazkiyat an-nafs), and the acts of charity and zakat that purify wealth are also included in this.

Ibn Kathir rahimahullah said:

Zakat on wealth was made obligatory in Makkah, and its nisab (minimum threshold) and amounts (detailed rulings) were specified in Madinah.

[ترجمه از پشتو تفسير: احسن الكلام ج6ص175]

For the original article, see:
Monthly Al-Hadith, Issue 92, page 49