What exactly is this?
It is the Islamic equivalent of Christian tithing but is also more than that.
ADVERTISEMENT
In Arabic, the word ‘Zakat’ translates as ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’. Basically, it t means purifying your wealth by acknowledging that everything comes and belongs to Allah.
Muslims see it as a religious obligation, ranked after prayer in importance.
Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) has said: “Whoever pays the zakat on his wealth will have its evil removed from him” (Ibn Khuzaimah and at-Tabaraani).
Zakat has rules
While Christians are expected to pay 10% of their monthly income, Zakat is 2.5% of your total cumulative wealth in one year.
ADVERTISEMENT
However, not everyone is expected to pay this. This is for Muslims who meet the necessary criteria of having an annual financial surplus that is above a minimum amount known as nisab. This amount differs among Islamic scholars.
While tithing is open to any Christian with an income, Zakat is about giving 2.5% of one’s financial surplus in a year.
Unlike Christians who pay to churches, Zakat goes directly to the poor or to zakat collectors, who then distribute to poor Muslims.
Zakat vs Sadaqah
ADVERTISEMENT
Muslims have two forms of charity. The first is the previously discussed Zakat, while the second is called Sadaqa.
The major difference between the two is that Zakat is obligatory charity, while the second one is simply an additional charity that is entirely voluntary.
This just goes to show how much religions have in common.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7scHLrJxnppdksLC5zK6loqyZmsBwvsSloKChn6N8tbXToaCnn12staLAjLKmrmWemrKledOoZKSmn6x6oq7OrqtmspGgrrV5yKyjmqWjYsOmvtKipqdnaJq6dsCXaw%3D%3D