1441 year Ramadan Day 21 What have you learnt?

*Ramadan Day 21*

*What have you learnt?*

Alhamdulilah! Alhamdulilah!! Alhamdulilah!!!

We thank Almighty Allah to spare our lives to witness this miraculous month (Ramadan). Brothers and sisters in Islam.

*I just want to remind myself and yours about ‘’Zakaat al-Fitr is food, not money, and it is to be given to needy Muslims only

1.0 Question: What do you give for zakatul fitr? Is it money or grain? and what about if you don`t know anybody to be given? Is it permissible to give it to the masjid or a kaafir homeless, or kaair in general?

Answer

Praise be to Allaah.

Ibn ‘Umar (may Allaah be pleased with them both) said: “The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) made giving a saa’ of dates or a saa’ of barley as Zakaat al-Fitr an obligation for all Muslims, slave and free, male and female, young and old, and ordered that it should be given before the people went out to pray (Salaat al-Eid).” (Al-Bukhaari, 1503).

Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “We used to pay as Zakaat al-Fitr a saa’ of food or a saa’ of barley (which was their food at that time) or a saa’ or dates or a saa’ of aqit (dried yoghurt) or a saa’ of raisins.” (1506)

From this it is clear that Zakaat al-Fitr must be food, not money, so we must adhere to what has been recorded in the Sunnah. So give one saa’ of whatever is the staple food in your country, such as rice or wheat, for example, on behalf of yourself and each member of your household. (A saa’ is equivalent to approximately 3 kilograms). It is not permissible to give it to anyone except a needy Muslim. If you cannot find anyone in your own country, you can delegate someone else to give it on your behalf in another country. May Allaah help us and you to do the duties that He loves. And Allaah knows best.

Source: Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid [Islam Q&A, 1396]

2.0 Zakaat al-Fitr on behalf of a foetus

Question: Should zakaat al-fitr be paid on behalf of a child who is still in his mother’s womb or not?.

Answer

Praise be to Allaah.

It is mustahabb to pay it because of what ‘Uthmaan (may Allaah be pleased with him) did, but it is not obligatory because there is no evidence to that effect.

And Allaah is the Source of strength.

Source: Standing Committee for Academic Research and Issuing Fatwas, 9/366

Islam Q&A, 27005

3.0 Does the father have to pay zakaat al-fitr on behalf of his children if they live with their mother?

Question: Does the father have to pay zakaat al-fitr on behalf of his children if they live with their mother?.

Answer

Praise be to Allaah.

Firstly:

Zakaat al-Fitr is an act of worship that the Muslim is obliged to perform by himself or through his deputy or proxy.

Based on that, the husband is not obliged to pay zakaat al-fitr on behalf of his wife or his parents. But in the case of his children, if they are adults of sound mind, he does not have to pay zakaat al-fitr on their behalf either, whether they are rich or poor. But if they are still minors, if they have their own wealth then they should pay zakaat al-fitr from their wealth; if they do not have any wealth then zakaat al-fitr should be paid on their behalf by their father, even if they are in the mother’s custody.

Al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

If a child does not have any wealth, his zakaat al-fitr must be paid by his father, according to scholarly consensus, as was reported by Ibn al-Mundhir and others. If the child has wealth, then he must pay his own zakaat al-fitr. This was the view of Abu Haneefah, Ahmad, Ishaaq and Abu Thawr. End quote from al-Majmoo‘, 6/108

He also said (6/77):

If the child is well off, then his maintenance and his zakaat al-fitr should come from his wealth and not from his father or grandfather. This was the view of Abu Haneefah, Muhammad, Ahmad, and Ishaaq. Ibn al-Mundhir narrated from some of the scholars that it should be paid by the father and if he pays it from the child’s wealth, then he has sinned and is liable (i.e., he has to pay it back). End quote.

Once this is established, with regard to the ruling that zakaat al-fitr must be paid by the father for small children, it makes no difference whether they are in the custody of their mother or under the care of someone else, because he is obliged to spend on maintenance, if they have no wealth, according to scholarly consensus, and the same applies to zakaat al-fitr.

Ibn al-Mundhir (may Allah have mercy on him) said: All the scholars from whom we learned knowledge are agreed that a man is obliged to spend on his children’s maintenance if the children have no wealth. End quote from al-Mughni, 8/169.

And Allah knows best.

Source: Islam Q&A, 146240, Islam Q&A, 111811, Islam Q&A, 99353

5.0 When to discharge the Sadaqatul Fitr

There are several Hadiths that encourage discharging the sadaqatul fitr before the Eid salah. Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) has included the following chapter in his famous book; Sahih Bukhari:

‘The chapter of [discharging] the sadaqah before Eid.’

Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) quoted the following Hadith under this chapter:

Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (radiyallahu ‘anhuma) reports that Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam) instructed that the sadaqatul fitr (fitrah) be given [to the poor] before the people go out to the Eid salah.’ (Sahih Bukhari, Hadith: 1509)

Based on the above, the ‘Ulama have ruled that it is better (mustahab) to pass the fitrah to the poor and needy before the Eid salah.

A Misconception

However, there is a misconception among the people that by them putting their Fitrah into the collection boxes which are in the Masajid etc before Eid, they have discharged their Fitrah on time!

This is an incorrect notion.

Practice of the Sahabah (radiyallahu ‘anhum)

In the time of the Sahabah (radiyallahu ‘anhum) the collection of the Fitrah would take place a few days before Eid.

Imam Malik (rahimahullah) has recorded in Muwatta, that Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Umar (radiyallahu ‘anhuma) would send his fitrah to the one who was in charge of collection two or three days before Eid. [(Fathul Bari, Hadith: 1511)]

Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) has recorded that these Fitrah collectors would be given the fitrah a day or two before Eid. [(Sahih Bukhari, Hadith: 1511)]

This was obviously done so that the collectors had time to pass on the fitrah to the needy in time, before the Eid salah.

We too can implement this system insha Allah by ensuring that we either give our fitrah directly to the poor before Eid salah, or by placing it into the tins/boxes a few days early.

The collecting organisations can then arrange for these tins to be collected on 28 Ramadan for example.

The imams of the Masajid can also educate their congregations in this regard.

Then the different organisations will have ample time to distribute the fitrah in time insha Allah.

That is the ideal we should be striving for.

Insha Allah with a little bit of attention, this can easily be achieved.

Note 1: The above will apply if the collecting organisations are considered the wakils (deputies/representatives) of those discharging their fitrah. If the organisation is the wakil of the recipients, then obviously my concerns above become irrelevant.

Note 2: If one fails to discharge the sadaqatul fitr before the Eid salah, it should still be discharged thereafter. To discharge it before the Eid salah is meritorious, as stated above and not binding (wajib).