Ramadan Day 23
*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 ‘’ He forgot to pay zakaat al-fitr before the Eid prayer*
*1.0 Question: What is the ruling on one who forgets
to pay zakaat al-fitr and does not remember until after the Eid prayer?*
Answer
Praise be to Allaah.
There is no sin on him because
he is excused for his forgetfulness, but he has to pay it when he remembers it.
Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz
(may Allah have mercy on him) was asked about someone who forgot to pay zakaat
al-fitr on time, and he replied:
There is no doubt that the
Sunnah is to pay zakaat al-fitr before the Eid prayer, as enjoined by the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon), but there is nothing wrong with
what you did; paying it after the prayer is acceptable, praise be to Allah.
Even though it says in the hadeeth that it is ordinary charity, that does not
necessarily mean that it is not valid and was not done appropriately. So we
hope that it will be acceptable and be regarded as proper zakaah, because you
did not delay it deliberately; rather you delayed it because you forgot, and
Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, says in His Book (interpretation of the
meaning): “Our Lord! Punish us not if we forget or fall into error” [al-Baqarah
2:286]. And it is proven that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him) said: “Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, says: I will do that.” So
He has answered the prayer of His believing slave not to punish them if they
forget or fall into error. End quote from Majmoo‘ Fataawa
al-Shaykh Ibn Baaz, 14/217
Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah
have mercy on him) said: “Whoever pays it before the prayer, it is valid
zakaah, and whoever pays it after the prayer, it is ordinary charity”– unless
the individual is excused, such as if he forgot to pay it and did not remember
it until after the prayer, or he had intended to give it to the one who usually
gives it on his behalf, then after that he found out that his deputy had not
paid it, so he pays it himself, or if he found out that it was Eid too late,
then he pays it after the prayer. If there is an excuse, there is nothing wrong
with giving it after the prayer and in that case it is acceptable, because the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said concerning prayer:
“Whoever sleeps and misses a prayer or forgets it, let him pray it when he
remembers it.” If this is the case with regard to prayer, which is the greatest
of time-specific duties, then it is more appropriate in other cases.
End quote from Fataawa Noor ‘ala
al-Darb
And Allah knows best.
Source: Islam Q&A, 162095
*2.0 Paying zakaat al-fitr on behalf of the dead*
Question: My grandmother wanted
to know if fitra of Eid can be given in the name of a dead, for e.g. her
parents.
Answer
Praise be to Allaah.
Zakaat al-fitr is obligatory for
all Muslims, males and females, old and young, as stated by the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him).
It is only required from the
living who are present at the time when it becomes due.
The time when zakaat al-fitr
becomes due is when the sun sets on the last day of Ramadaan, because the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) called it sadaqat al-fitr,
and fitr or breaking the fast of Ramadaan comes when the sun sets on the night
of Eid (i.e., the night before Eid). It is a purification for the fasting
person from any idle or obscene speech, and the fast ends when the sun sets.
If a person dies before the time
it become obligatory, he does not have to pay this zakaah. If a person lives
until the time when it becomes obligatory, then dies before paying it, then it
should be paid on his behalf from his wealth because it is still a duty that he
owes and becomes a debt that must be paid on his behalf. See:
al-Majmoo’, 6/84; al-Mugni, 2/358; al-Mawsoo’ah al-Fiqhiyyah, 23/341
Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may
Allaah have mercy on him) said:
If a person dies before the sun
sets on the night before Eid, he does not have to pay zakaat al-fitr, because
he died before it became obligatory. End quote. Fiqh
al-‘Ibaadaat, p. 211
In conclusion: The deceased
person is responsible for this if he died after the time when it became
obligatory, which is sunset on the night before Eid. In that case it must be
paid on his behalf.
If he died before the time when
it became obligatory – which appears to be the case in the question asked here
– then this zakaah is not obligatory.
If your grandmother gave charity
such as food, money, etc on his behalf, then it is charity given on his behalf
and is not zakaat al-fitr.
It is proven in more than one
hadeeth from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) that
charity given on behalf of the dead benefits them and the reward reaches them.
And Allaah knows best.
Source: Islam Q&A, 65780
*3.0 Paying zakaah al-fitr one week before Eid*
Question: I paid zakaah al-fitr
more than a week before Eid. Is that valid? If it is not valid, then what
should I do?
Answer
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
The scholars differed concerning
the earliest time when zakaah al-fitr may be paid, and there are several views.
1 – That it should be paid two
days before Eid. This is the view of the Maalikis and Hanbalis. They quoted as
evidence the hadeeth of Ibn ‘Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) who said:
They used to give (zakaat) al-fitr one or two days before (Eid). Narrated by
al-Bukhaari (1511).
Some of them said it may be
given three days before Eid, because of the report in al-Mudawwanah (1/385)
according to which Maalik said: Naafi’ told me that Ibn ‘Umar used to send
zakaat al-fitr to the one who was collecting it two or three days before (Eid)
al-Fitr.
This view was favoured by Shaykh
Ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him) as it says in Majmoo’ al-Fataawa
(14/216).
2 –That it is permissible to
give it from the beginning of Ramadaan. This is the view of the Hanafis and is
the correct view according to the Shaafa’is. See: al-Umm (2/75), al-Majmoo’
(6/87) and Badaa’i’ al_Sanaa’i’ (2/74).
They said: because the reason
for giving charity is fasting and then breaking the fast, so if one of these
two reasons is present it is permissible to hasten it, just as it is
permissible to hasten giving the zakaah of one's wealth after taking possession
of the nisaab and before one full year has passed.
3 – That it is permissible to
give it from the beginning of the year. This is the view of some of the Hanafis
and some of the Shaafa’is. They said: because it is zakaah and they likened it
to the zakaah of one’s wealth with regard to paying it in advance in all cases.
The most correct view is the
first one.
Ibn Qudaamah said in al-Mughni
(2/676):
The reason why it is obligatory
is the breaking of the fast, which is indicated by the fact that it is mentioned
in conjunction with it. The purpose behind it is to make the poor independent
of means at a specific time, and it is not permissible to pay it in advance of
that time. End quote.
Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih
al-‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked, as it says in Majmoo’
al-Fataawa (18/zakaat al-fitr/question no. 180):
I paid zakaat al-fitr at the
beginning of Ramadaan in Egypt before I came to Makkah, and now I am staying in
Makkah al-Mukarramah. Do I have to pay zakaat al-fitr?
He replied:
Yes, you have to pay zakaat
al-fitr, because you paid it before its time came. The phrase “zakaat al-fitr”
is composed of two words, which explains the reason for the zakaah, which is
breaking the fast (fitr).
So zakaat al-fitr is mentioned
in conjunction with the fitr (breaking of the fast) because that is the reason
for it, and it is known that breaking the fast of Ramadaan occurs only on the
last day of Ramadaan, so it is not permissible to pay zakaat al-fitr except
when the sun has set on the last day of Ramadaan, except that there is a
concession allowing it to be paid one or two days before. Otherwise the proper
time for it is after sunset on the last day of Ramadaan, because that is the
time when the Ramadaan fast is to be broken. Hence we say that it is better to
pay it on the morning of Eid if possible. End quote.
Secondly:
It is permissible to give zakaat
al-fitr to a deputy to pay it on your behalf through a charity or trustworthy
people etc at the beginning of the month, so long as you stipulate to the
deputy that it is to be paid one or two days before Eid, because the proper way
of paying it is to give it to poor and needy people who are entitled to it;
this is what is mentioned in sharee’ah, that it is limited to one or two days
before Eid. Acting as someone’s deputy in paying it comes under the heading of
cooperating in righteousness and piety, and there is no time limit for that.
To conclude: Paying zakaat
al-fitr one week before Eid is not valid, and you have to pay it again, unless you
gave it to someone whom you delegated to pay it such as a charitable
organization that will pay it at the proper time, one or two days before Eid.
In that case you have done what is required of you and it is regarded as zakaah
that is valid and acceptable in sha Allaah.
And Allaah knows best.
Source: Islam Q&A, 81164
SOURCES: Islam Q&A, 42384.
Islam Q&A, 10526.
And Allaah knows best.
May Allah Almighty accept our
fast and blessed us
May Almighty Allah reward us
abundantly and accept our Ibadaah. Ameen
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