◈ Shar‘i Ruling on Constructing a Masjid Using Zakāh Funds and Qurbānī Skins ◈
Source: Fatāwā Muḥammadiyyah, Vol. 1, p. 313
❖ Question
A piece of land was purchased with the intention of building a madrasah, where children could study and, when needed, Eid prayers and religious gatherings could be held.
This land was purchased primarily using zakāh funds, and construction was also largely funded by zakāh. Additionally, money earned from selling qurbānī animals was also spent on this structure.
Now the question is:
❓ Can this building be demolished to construct a masjid on the same land?
❓ What is the ruling according to the Qur’ān and Sunnah?
❓ Does this ruling apply equally to Pakistan and other countries?
❖ Answer
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ʾAmma baʿd!
✿ Ruling on Using Qurbānī Skins for Masjid Construction
➊ Who Is Entitled to Qurbānī Skins?
The rightful beneficiaries of qurbānī skins and other parts are:
- The poor (fuqarā’)
- The needy (masākīn)
- Orphans (yatāmā)
- Other zakāh-eligible individuals
❖ Clear Hadith Evidence
The Prophet ﷺ instructed ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (رضي الله عنه):
«أَنْ يَقْسِمَ بُدْنَهُ كُلَّهَا، لُحُومَهَا وَجُلُودَهَا وَجِلَالَهَا، فِي الْمَسَاكِينِ، وَلَا يُعْطِيَ فِي جِزَارَتِهَا مِنْهَا شَيْئًا»
“Distribute all of the sacrificial animals — their meat, skins, and coverings — among the poor, and give the butcher nothing from it as payment.”
(Muttafaqun ʿalayh – Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Vol. 1, p. 232)
❖ Commentary by Scholars
✔ Imām al-Nawawī (رحمه الله) states:
“Giving any part of the sacrificial animal (like the skin) to the butcher as payment equates to selling a part of it, which is not allowed.”
(Sharḥ Muslim, p. 423)
✔ Subul al-Salām adds:
“This ḥadīth proves that the skins and coverings of qurbānī animals must be given in charity.”
(Vol. 3, p. 95)
✿ Prohibition of Selling Qurbānī Skins
✔ Musnad Aḥmad:
«وَاسْتَمْتِعُوا بِجُلُودِهَا وَلَا تَبِيعُوهَا»
“You may benefit from the skins, but do not sell them.”
(Fatāwā Naẓīriyyah, Vol. 3, p. 241)
✔ Al-Sunan al-Kubrā (al-Bayhaqī):
«مَنْ بَاعَ جِلْدَ أُضْحِيَتِهِ فَلَا أُضْحِيَةَ لَهُ»
“Whoever sells the skin of his qurbānī, his sacrifice is invalid.”
(Fatāwā Naẓīriyyah)
✔ Subul al-Salām:
“The ruling of uḍḥiyyah is like hady: its meat and skin cannot be sold, nor can the butcher be paid from it.”
(Vol. 3, p. 95)
❖ Summary of Rulings
✔ The price or skin of qurbānī animals is a right of the poor and needy.
✔ It cannot be used for:
- Building masājid
- Purchasing loudspeakers
- Any other masjid-related expenses
✔ It should be:
- Given directly to the poor
- Or sold and the money distributed among zakāh recipients
✿ Ruling on Zakāh Funds
As detailed in previous rulings:
- Zakāh must be spent directly on the poor and eligible categories.
- Constructing a masjid, from which rich and poor alike benefit, is not a valid use of zakāh.
- If such funds were used, the masjid cannot be established on that basis.
✿ View of Senior Scholars (Akābir ʿUlamā’)
✔ Muḥaddith Rūpūrī (رحمه الله)
→ Fatāwā Rūpūriyyah, Vol. 2, p. 435
✔ Shaykh al-Islām Thana’ullah Amritsarī (رحمه الله)
→ Fatāwā Thanā’iyyah, Vol. 1, pp. 722–726
✔ Shaykh al-Kull Mīyān Naẓīr Ḥusayn Dehlawī (رحمه الله)
→ Fatāwā Naẓīriyyah, Vol. 3, p. 241
All of them unanimously ruled that:
Qurbānī skins and their value must only be distributed among the poor and needy.
❖ Final Summary
✅ It is ḥarām to use zakāh funds or qurbānī skins or their proceeds for masjid construction or equipment.
✅ The only valid recipients are the poor, needy, or other specific sharʿī categories.
✅ Violation of these rules invalidates the qurbānī.
✅ The ruling is universal, applying to both Pakistan and foreign countries, as Islamic rulings do not change with time or place.
﴿ فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ ﴾
“So fear Allah as much as you are able.”
[Al-Taghābun 64:16]
ھٰذَا مَا عِنْدِي، وَاللّٰهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَابِ
