Life and Teachings of the Prophet Muhammad
10. The Concept of Social Welfare in Islam
~ 127 ~
give it permanence and regularity. The law of
zakah,
i.e.
to take
from the wealthy and give to the poor, rotates wealth in such a way
as to balance social inequality. The required annual contribution to
public welfare amounts to two and a half percent of one’s income.
The rate of zakah on other types of wealth, such as agricultural
produce and jewellery is higher. Islamic law empowers the Islamic
State or Community to collect the zakah, and to keep a separate
account of it. Zakah funds must be spent on the eight categories
specified in the Qur’an (2:177) namely, the poor and the destitute,
the bankrupt, captives, collectors of zakah and in the cause of
God. The last category allows these funds to be used for the social
welfare of the community—for the education of the people, for
public works, and for any other need of the Muslim community.
There are two forms of charity in Islam— obligatory and
voluntary, which are respectively called
zakah
and
sadaqah
. Zakah,
from the verb
zakah
, which signifies “to thrive,” “to be
wholesome,” “to be pure,” means purification. Giving up a portion
of one’s wealth, which is in excess of what one needs for one’s own
sustenance, is a purifying process, which legitimises the use of the
remainder by the donor.
Deducting
zakah
from one’s earning is a material
acknowledgement of the fact that the actual giver is God. And
since the giver is God, the recipient is duty-bound to spend it in
His cause. In spirit,
zakah
is an act of worship, while in its external
form, it is the carrying out of a social service.
Zakah
is thus not just
the payment of a tax, but is of great religious significance. Its
