Explanation of the author's statement: "Chapter on the zakah of grains and fruits: It is obligatory in all grains, even if they are not staple food, and in every fruit that is measured and stored, such as dates and raisins."
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The Shaykh : The author (may Allah have mercy on him) said "Chapter on the zakah of grains and fruits". The author said "It is obligatory in all grains, even if they are not staple food". The basis for its obligation is the statement of Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He: [Al-Baqarah 2:267]. Here, the partiality is with regard to the type and with regard to the individual, meaning not every producer or every produce. And His saying, the Exalted: [Al-An'am 6:141]. And the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): Jami` at-Tirmidhi 639Hasan (Darussalam). And his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): Sahih Muslim 979a. All these texts indicate the obligation of zakah in what comes out of the earth, but not in everything and not in every type; rather, it is specific in type and determined in quantity, meaning it has a specific quantity and a specific type of what comes out of the earth. So what is the criterion for this?
The scholars differed on this with no small difference. The well-known position in the madhhab of Imam Ahmad is what the author mentioned in his statement: "It is obligatory in all grains, even if they are not staple food, and in every fruit that is measured and stored". Grains are what comes out of crops and legumes and the like, such as wheat, barley, rice, corn, sorghum, and others. His statement: "even if they are not staple food" is a reference to a point of disagreement, such as fenugreek, coriander seeds, and black cumin and the like. These are not staple food, but they are seeds that come out of crops.
"And in every fruit that is measured and stored". Fruits are what comes out of trees, so zakah is obligatory in every fruit that is measured and stored, and zakah is not obligatory in fruit that is not measured and not stored, even if it is eaten, if it is not stored, such as fruits and vegetables of all kinds; there is no zakah in them because they are not measured and not stored. An example of what is measured and stored, he said: "such as dates and raisins". Dates are measured, and raisins are measured and stored. There is no consideration for the difference in measuring and weighing, for dates in our custom are weighed, and so are raisins, but there is no consideration for that. The consideration is for what was the case in the time of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him and his family). This dates and raisins are what is measured and stored. In my explanation, I added almonds, pistachios, hazelnuts, and the like.
The important point is that the author mentioned a criterion: for grains, all grains, even if they are not staple food; for fruits, every fruit that is measured and stored. So what is not measured and what is not stored is excluded. Good.
And if it is stored but not measured, there is no zakah in it. And if it is measured but not stored, there is no zakah in it, because the author stipulated two conditions: that it be measured and that it be stored. The meaning of storage is that most people store it, because some people do not store dates; they may eat them fresh, and likewise grapes may be eaten fresh, but the consideration is for what most people do with this type.
And there is a narration from Ahmad that it is not obligatory except in four things: wheat, barley, dates, and raisins only, due to a hadith that came regarding this. But if this hadith were authentic, it would have settled the dispute, except that it is weak. And some scholars said it is obligatory in olives because Allah said:[Al-An'am 6:141]. But this opinion necessitates that zakah be obligatory in pomegranates, which is not obligatory in them according to their view, because they conceded that it is obligatory in olives but did not concede that it is obligatory in pomegranates. And some scholars said it is obligatory in everything that comes out of the earth except what Allah grows; so everything that comes out of what a human plants, whether fruits or not, is obligatory. But the closest of the opinions is what the author adopted, and the evidence for this is the saying of the Messenger (peace be upon him): Sahih Muslim 979a. This indicates the consideration of the wasq, and the wasq means the load, meaning the wasq is the load, and it is known to them that the wasq is sixty sa' by the sa' of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family). So the five wasq are three hundred sa' by the sa' of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and by our sa' according to what our shaykhs mentioned to us, it is two hundred and thirty sa' and a bit more of a Prophetic sa'. And according to what we considered in weight, if we make the sa' two kilograms and forty grams, three hundred sa'?
The questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : Yes, six hundred and twelve, it becomes six hundred and twelve kilograms of good, dense wheat. Then a container is taken that holds this weight, and it is measured by it.
In summary, grains and fruits have zakah obligatory in them on the condition that they are measured and stored. If they are not so, there is no zakah in them. This is the closest of the opinions, and it is the relied-upon one, if Allah wills.
He said: "such as dates and raisins". Dates are the fruit of the palm tree, and raisins are the fruit of the grapevine. The scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) differed regarding grapes that are not made into raisins, because some grapes do not become raisins no matter how much you dry them. So some of them said there is no zakah in them because they are classified with fruits that are eaten as fruit and not stored. And some of them said, rather, zakah is obligatory in them even if they are not made into raisins, just as some dates are not eaten except fresh. And this is what the people's practice is today; they take zakah from grapes even if they are not made into raisins.
The author (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "And reaching the nisab is considered". "Considered" means it is a condition for the obligation of zakah that the nisab is reached, the amount of which is one thousand and six hundred Iraqi ritals. But by what is this weight considered? There is something light and there is something heavy. The scholars considered it by good, dense wheat. So a container is taken that holds this weight of wheat.
O you who have believed, spend from the good things which you have earned and from that which We have produced for you from the earth
يا أيها الذين ءامنوا أنفقوا من طيبات ما كسبتم ومما أخرجنا لكم من الأرضAnd He it is who causes gardens to grow, [both] trellised and untrellised, and palm trees and crops of different [kinds of] food and olives and pomegranates, similar and dissimilar. Eat of [each of] its fruit when it yields and give its due [zakah] on the day of its harvest
وهو الذي أنشأ جنّات معروشات وغير معروشات والنخل والزّرع مختلفا أكله والزّيتون والرّمان متشابها وغير متشابه كلوا من ثمره إذا أثمر وءاتوا حقّه يوم حصادهFor what is watered by the heavens and steams, the Ushr is due, and for what is watered by irrigation, half of the Ushr.
فيما سقت السّماء العُشْر وفيما سقي بالنّضح نصف العشرNo sadaqa (zakat) is payable on less than five wasqs of (dates or grains)
ليس فيما دون خمسة أوسق صدقةThe scholars differed on this with no small difference. The well-known position in the madhhab of Imam Ahmad is what the author mentioned in his statement: "It is obligatory in all grains, even if they are not staple food, and in every fruit that is measured and stored". Grains are what comes out of crops and legumes and the like, such as wheat, barley, rice, corn, sorghum, and others. His statement: "even if they are not staple food" is a reference to a point of disagreement, such as fenugreek, coriander seeds, and black cumin and the like. These are not staple food, but they are seeds that come out of crops.
"And in every fruit that is measured and stored". Fruits are what comes out of trees, so zakah is obligatory in every fruit that is measured and stored, and zakah is not obligatory in fruit that is not measured and not stored, even if it is eaten, if it is not stored, such as fruits and vegetables of all kinds; there is no zakah in them because they are not measured and not stored. An example of what is measured and stored, he said: "such as dates and raisins". Dates are measured, and raisins are measured and stored. There is no consideration for the difference in measuring and weighing, for dates in our custom are weighed, and so are raisins, but there is no consideration for that. The consideration is for what was the case in the time of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him and his family). This dates and raisins are what is measured and stored. In my explanation, I added almonds, pistachios, hazelnuts, and the like.
The important point is that the author mentioned a criterion: for grains, all grains, even if they are not staple food; for fruits, every fruit that is measured and stored. So what is not measured and what is not stored is excluded. Good.
And if it is stored but not measured, there is no zakah in it. And if it is measured but not stored, there is no zakah in it, because the author stipulated two conditions: that it be measured and that it be stored. The meaning of storage is that most people store it, because some people do not store dates; they may eat them fresh, and likewise grapes may be eaten fresh, but the consideration is for what most people do with this type.
And there is a narration from Ahmad that it is not obligatory except in four things: wheat, barley, dates, and raisins only, due to a hadith that came regarding this. But if this hadith were authentic, it would have settled the dispute, except that it is weak. And some scholars said it is obligatory in olives because Allah said:
And He it is who causes gardens to grow, [both] trellised and untrellised, and palm trees and crops of different [kinds of] food and olives and pomegranates, similar and dissimilar. Eat of [each of] its fruit when it yields and give its due [zakah] on the day of its harvest
وهو الذي أنشأ جنّات معروشات وغير معروشات والنّخل والزّرع مختلفا أكله والزّيتون والرّمان متشابها وغير متشابه كلوا من ثمره إذا أثمر وءاتوا حقّه يوم حصادهNo sadaqa (zakat) is payable on less than five wasqs of (dates or grains)
ليس فيما دون خمسة أوسق صدقةThe questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : Yes, six hundred and twelve, it becomes six hundred and twelve kilograms of good, dense wheat. Then a container is taken that holds this weight, and it is measured by it.
In summary, grains and fruits have zakah obligatory in them on the condition that they are measured and stored. If they are not so, there is no zakah in them. This is the closest of the opinions, and it is the relied-upon one, if Allah wills.
He said: "such as dates and raisins". Dates are the fruit of the palm tree, and raisins are the fruit of the grapevine. The scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) differed regarding grapes that are not made into raisins, because some grapes do not become raisins no matter how much you dry them. So some of them said there is no zakah in them because they are classified with fruits that are eaten as fruit and not stored. And some of them said, rather, zakah is obligatory in them even if they are not made into raisins, just as some dates are not eaten except fresh. And this is what the people's practice is today; they take zakah from grapes even if they are not made into raisins.
The author (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "And reaching the nisab is considered". "Considered" means it is a condition for the obligation of zakah that the nisab is reached, the amount of which is one thousand and six hundred Iraqi ritals. But by what is this weight considered? There is something light and there is something heavy. The scholars considered it by good, dense wheat. So a container is taken that holds this weight of wheat.