The Legislation of Khums

The Holy Qur’an

In general, the topic of zakat is mentioned more than thirty times in the Qur’an, and specifically, the topic of ‘khums’ is mentioned once. Both are also mentioned in Islamic hadith sources in many of the authentic narrations that are considered mutawatir or having a chain of transmission that is sufficiently numerous to create certainty of truth.

Among what is mentioned in the noble hadiths and narrations is that the obligation of khums actually preceded Islam. It is narrated from Imam Jafar al-Sadiq (p) that he said: “The first to pay khums was Ibrahim (p).”¹⁶ It has also been narrated that Imam al-Rida (p) said: “… Abdul Muttalib found a treasure and paid khums on it.”¹⁷ Then, when the religion of Islam came, it established and legislated payment of khums in verse 41 of Surah Al-Anfal where Allah states: “Know that whatever you may gain – then, indeed, a fifth of it is for Allah, for His Messenger, and for the Prophet’s relatives; orphans, the needy, and the [stranded] traveler, if you have faith in Allah and what We sent down to Our servant on the Day of Separation, the day when the two armies met; and Allah, over all things, is competent.”¹⁸

The Prophetic Tradition

The sacred religious texts have repeatedly affirmed the obligation of khums among all Islamic sects, including:

• From the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hp) in his letter to the Bani Juhaynah: “… that you pay the khums and perform the khams (five prayers)…”¹⁹
• When receiving the delegations that declared their Islam and belief in Allah Almighty and the prophethood of Muhammad (pbuh&hp), the Prophet used to say to them: “… and I command you to have faith… and to establish the prayer and give the zakat, and to give one-fifth of the spoils.”²⁰
• It is reported that the Prophet said to the delegation of Abdul Qais: “… that you pay to me one-fifth of what you have gained…”²¹
• It is reported that a man from Muzaynah asked the Messenger of Allah about treasure, and he said: “And in the buried treasure, paying khums applies.”²²
• When the Messenger of Allah would send envoys or messengers to the tribes, he would also mention khums.”²³
• It is mentioned in a official proclamations (tawq’ee) issued by Imam Mahdi (p) through his deputy, Sheikh Muhammad bin Uthman al-Amri: “… Whoever consumes unlawfully from our wealth, even a dirham, upon them is the curse of Allah, the angels, and all people…”²⁴
• Imam Jafar al-Sadiq (p) was asked about the easiest thing because of which a servant could enter the Fire. He (p) said: “Whoever consumes even a dirham of the wealth of an orphan, and we are the orphan.”²⁵
• Imran ibn Musa reported: I recited the verse of khums in the presence of Musa son of Jafar (p) to which he said: “Whatever belongs to Allah is for the Messenger of Allah, and whatever belongs to the Messenger is for us.” Then he said: “By Allah, Allah has made it easy for the believers to earn their sustenance through five dirhams. They give one to their Lord and consume four lawfully.“²⁶
• “The most burdensome condition for people on the Day of Resurrection will be when the person to whom khums was due stands up and asks, ‘O Lord, my khums?'”²⁷
• A man from the people of Persia, who was one of the supporters of Imam al-Rida (p), wrote to him asking about permission regarding khums. He wrote back to him: “Indeed, khums is a support for us in our religion, so do not deprive us of it, and do not deprive yourselves of our supplication.”²⁸
• Reported from Imam al-Baqir (p), “It is not permissible for anyone to buy anything from [wealth on which there is] khums until our right reaches us.”²⁹
• Imam al-Sadiq (p) said, “A servant who buys something from [wealth on which there is] khums cannot be excused if he says, ‘O Lord, I bought it with my own money,’ until the owners of the khums permit him.”³⁰

The Intellect

There is no doubt that every person with sound reasoning who believes in the Book and the Sunnah will accept their directives by virtue of their intellect – including what has been mentioned above – without the slightest doubt. However, for those who are inclined towards purely rational and logical inference regarding certain aspects of Islamic shari’a that can be interpreted according to human understanding and comprehension, it is possible to indicate the importance of this Islamic obligation by merely considering the general financial systems present among all humans, starting from tribes and clans, to institutions and organizations, and ending with countries and governments, both in ancient and modern times. All of this is observable, and alongside the existence and function of these entities, there is a constant effort to establish or improve economic systems for known objectives and goals, the least of which are to ensure decent living standards, alleviate poverty, promote development projects, ensure security, and guarantee the future.

Therefore, if we believe that Islam is the religion that brings success and happiness and embodies the best system in its simplicity, then naturally one will find in it a comprehensive code aimed at preserving the dignity of humankind. This will keep them away from the humiliation of poverty and need, and elevate them to the true purpose of creation so that they truly become the vicegerent of God on Earth, utilizing all the strength, talents, and abilities that God has endowed them with, and hinging only on their efforts, knowledge, and innovation.

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16. al-Majlisi, “Bihar al-Anwar”: v. 12, p. 57. ↩
17. al-Majlisi, “Bihar al-Anwar”: v. 15, p. 127. ↩
18. The Holy Qur’an, 8:41 ↩
19. al-Bukhari, “Sahih al-Bukhari”: v. 3, p. 32, 33, and 131. ↩
20. al-Bukhari, “Sahih al-Bukhari “: v. 3, p. 32, 23, and 131. ↩
21. al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, “Kanz al-Ummal”: v. 3, p. 501. ↩
22. Abu Dawood, “Sunan Abi Dawood”, Chapter of Lost Property, p. 1710. Ibn Saad also mentions in his book “al-Tabaqat al-Kubra”: v. 1, p. 374, that the Prophet used to mention khums whenever he sent messages to the tribes. ↩
23. Ibn Saad, “al-Tabaqat al-Kubra”: v. 1, p. 374. ↩
24. al-Tabrasi, “al-Ihtijaj”, p. 301. ↩
25. al-Hurr al-Amili, “Wasail al-Shi’a”: v. 9, p. 536. ↩
26. al-Hurr al-Amili, “Wasail al-Shi’a”: v. 6, p. 338. ↩
27. al-Hurr al-Amili, “Wasail al-Shi’a”: v. 9, p. 554. ↩
28. ​​al-Bahrani, “Al-Hada’iq al-Nadhira”: v. 12, p. 426. ↩
29. al-Yazdi, “al-Urwah al-Wuthqa”: v. 4, p. 230. ↩
30. al-Hurr al-Amili, “Wasail al-Shi’a”: v. 9, p. 542. ↩