Zakat on Cotton and Raw Cotton: Explanation in Light of Hadith
Source: Fatāwā Rāshidiyyah, Page 402
❖ Question
The Ahadith of the Prophet ﷺ mention all those items upon which Zakat is obligatory. However, I have not come across any narration regarding cotton (whether raw or processed). Does this mean that Zakat is not obligatory on it?
❖ Answer
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, Ammā Baʿd!
Zakat is not obligatory on cotton (raw or otherwise). This is my researched opinion, and I am supported in this by several eminent Muhaddithin, such as:
❀ Imām Sufyān al-Thawrī رحمه الله
❀ Shaʿbī رحمه الله
❀ Ḥasan al-Baṣrī رحمه الله
❀ Ḥasan ibn Ṣāliḥ رحمه الله
❀ and other respected scholars رحمهم الله
❖ Evidences
① Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim narration
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
((ليس فى مادون خمسة اوسق من تمر أوجب صدقة.))
Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: Kitāb al-Zakāh, Bāb Laysa fī mā dūna khamsati awsuq ṣadaqah, Ḥadīth 2263
“Zakat is not obligatory on less than five awsuq of dates or grain.”
② Another narration in Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim
((ليس فى حب ولا تمر صدقة حتى يبلغ خمسة أوسق.))
Fatḥ al-Bārī, vol. 3, p. 42, Ḥadīth 2268
“There is no Zakat on grain or dates unless they reach five awsuq.”
③ Hadith of Abū Mūsā al-Ashʿarī رضي الله عنه and Muʿādh ibn Jabal رضي الله عنه
Narrated by al-Ḥākim, al-Dāraqutnī, and al-Bayhaqī. According to al-Bayhaqī, all its narrators are reliable, its chain is connected, and it contains no disconnection. This Hadith was conveyed by the Prophet ﷺ to these two Companions when he sent them to teach the people of Yemen.
(Reference: ʿAwn al-Maʿbūd, commentary on Sunan Abī Dāwūd)
The Prophet ﷺ said:
((فقال لا تأخذ الصدقة إلا من هذه الأربعة.))
“Do not take Zakat except from these four: (1) barley, (2) dates, (3) raisins, (4) wheat.”
❖ Summary and Clarification
The Prophet ﷺ clearly specified that Zakat is not obligatory except on these four items.
- By analogy, based on the narration in Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, other grains such as millet, sorghum, and maize may be included.
- However, cotton or raw cotton does not fall under this category.
Exception:
If cotton is sold and converted into money, and that amount completes a year in possession, then Zakat will be due on it according to the rules of cash.
Hādhā mā ʿindī, wallāhu aʿlam bi-ṣ-ṣawāb.
