Crops, livestock and other assets (overview)

Why only an overview Most members of the centre own neither fields nor herds. But these rules take up a large place in the books of law, they show the wisdom of zakaat, and they concern the country's Muslim farmers and livestock owners. For a real case, the imam will do the detailed calculation.

Crops and fruit • The rate: "On what is watered by the sky or springs, or drinks through its roots, a tenth; on what is watered by irrigation, half of a tenth" (Bukhari 1483). So 10% for a crop watered by rain, 5% for a crop irrigated at a cost (pumps, tanks), and, for a mixture, in proportion [À VÉRIFIER : règle du mélange]. • The time: on the day of harvest (6:141), without waiting a year. • The nisab: five awsuq (Bukhari 1405, Muslim 979) [À VÉRIFIER : numéro], about 600 to 650 kg of grain according to modern calculations [À VÉRIFIER : équivalent]. • Which crops? For the Hanafi school, everything the earth produces that is cultivated; for the other schools, mainly staple foods that can be stored (wheat, barley, dates, raisins, and for some rice and maize) [À VÉRIFIER : liste selon les écoles]. • Farming costs: some contemporaries allow costs to be deducted before calculating; others do not [À VÉRIFIER]. • The family vegetable garden: it almost never reaches the nisab.

Herds (al-an'aam) Abu Bakr's letter on zakaat, reported by Al-Bukhaari, details the quantities (Bukhari 1454) [À VÉRIFIER : numéro]. The broad lines: • Sheep and goats: from 40 to 120 head, one animal; from 121 to 200, two; then one per hundred. • Cattle: from 30, a one-year-old calf; from 40, a two-year-old heifer; then by the same rule (hadith of Mu'aadh) [À VÉRIFIER : référence]. • Camels: from 5, one sheep; the quantities then increase in steps. • Conditions: a year of ownership, and, for the majority, that the animals graze freely for most of the year (saa'ima), and are not fed by the owner nor used for work; the Maliki school does not set the grazing condition [À VÉRIFIER]. • "A Muslim owes no charity on his slave or his horse" (Bukhari 1463, Muslim 982): mounts and working animals are not subject. • A Canadian livestock owner who buys and feeds his animals to sell them often treats them as merchandise (2.5% of their value) [À VÉRIFIER : avis contemporain].

Honey, minerals and treasure • Honey: zakaat of a tenth according to the Hanafi school and the known position of Imam Aḥmad, discussed by the others [À VÉRIFIER]. • Ancient treasure found (ar-rikaaz): one fifth (20%), immediately: "on rikaaz, one fifth" (Bukhari 1499, Muslim 1710). • Extracted minerals (al-ma'din): 2.5% according to several schools, one fifth according to the Hanafi school [À VÉRIFIER].

What to retain for today These different rates are not arbitrary: the lower the effort and cost, the greater the share (20% for a found treasure, 10% for a rain-fed harvest, 5% for an irrigated harvest, 2.5% for money, which requires work to grow).

The text: Surah Al-An'aam (6), verse 141 ۞ وَهُوَ الَّذِي أَنْشَأَ جَنَّاتٍ مَعْرُوشَاتٍ وَغَيْرَ مَعْرُوشَاتٍ وَالنَّخْلَ وَالزَّرْعَ مُخْتَلِفًا أُكُلُهُ وَالزَّيْتُونَ وَالرُّمَّانَ مُتَشَابِهًا وَغَيْرَ مُتَشَابِهٍ ۚ كُلُوا مِنْ ثَمَرِهِ إِذَا أَثْمَرَ وَآتُوا حَقَّهُ يَوْمَ حَصَادِهِ ۖ وَلَا تُسْرِفُوا ۚ إِنَّهُ لَا يُحِبُّ الْمُسْرِفِينَ ﴿١٤١﴾

Meaning: "It is He who produced gardens, trellised and untrellised, date palms and crops of different kinds, olives and pomegranates, similar and dissimilar. Eat of their fruit when they bear fruit, and give its due on the day of harvest, and do not be wasteful: He does not love the wasteful." "Give its due on the day of harvest" (wa aatuu ḥaqqahu yawma ḥaṣaadih) is the basis of the rule: the zakaat of crops is due at harvest, without waiting a year.

Arabic text: Tanzil Quran Text (Simple, version 1.0.2), © 2008-2010 Tanzil.net, Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 licence, reproduced without any change (http://tanzil.net). Each verse is on its own line, followed by its number; the basmala, which the Tanzil file places at the start of the first verse, is written on its own line.

Understanding the lesson

Explanation The zakaat of crops and herds shows an overall logic: the rate follows the effort. What the rain waters requires less work than what is irrigated; what is found under the ground requires even less. Islamic law therefore asks more of the one who has received more easily. It also shows that zakaat is not only a matter of money: it concerns real production, grain, animals. Verse 6:141 links the harvest to gratitude: one eats, gives the due, and does not waste. For a farmer or livestock owner today, the old rules combine with the rules of merchandise and with questions of costs. This is an area where the imam's opinion is indispensable.

Lessons to draw from it • Remember the logic of the rates: the more easily the asset is received, the greater the share due. • For a farmer: note the type of irrigation and the quantity harvested. • For a livestock owner: distinguish freely grazing animals from those bought for sale. • Do not waste food: the verse of the harvest ends with this warning. • If you find a valuable ancient object, ask the imam (and respect the country's law on found objects and heritage).

Key points to remember • Crops: 10% (rain), 5% (irrigation), on the day of harvest (Bukhari 1483; 6:141). • Nisab of crops: five awsuq, about 600 to 650 kg [À VÉRIFIER]. • Sheep: 1 animal from 40 to 120; cattle: from 30; camels: from 5. • No zakaat on the mount and the working animal (Bukhari 1463, Muslim 982). • Found treasure (rikaaz): one fifth (Bukhari 1499, Muslim 1710).

The main message What the earth and the herds give you carries a right, all the greater as you received it easily: give it on the day of harvest and do not waste.