Zakat is one of the five pillars of Islam. The others are belief in the oneness of Allah, offering obligatory prayers five times a day, fasting the whole month of Ramadan, and pilgrimage to the holy city of Makkah (Mecca). It simply means almsgiving and is an obligation upon Muslims to pay at the end of a year of possession. Zakat is calculated at the rate of 2.5% on the total wealth present at year-end, which includes money, silver, gold, investments, livestock, trading stock, and agricultural produce. It is worth mentioning that Poor people do not pay Zakat. Rather, it is an obligation on the wealthy people and delivered to the poor, needy, and destitute people. Suppose a sane, adult person (male or female) owns wealth equal to the current market value of roughly 600 grams of silver. In that case, they are commanded to donate Zakat.
How to donate Zakat
If any Muslim is eligible to donate Zakat, they must find qualified people. Zakat is not given just to anyone; it is paid to the poor, the indigent, the debt-ridden, the wanderer, the enslaved person seeking freedom from bondage. Some people are aware that they can give Zakat to their local mosque. They must know that one cannot donate Zakat money to any mosque, per se, whether for construction or refurbishment purposes. Any individual does not own mosques, but they are rather dedicated to the worship of Allah. So, it is the unanimous decision of the scholars of Islam that mosques are not entitled to receive any Zakat amounts as such. However, if a mosque collects Zakat money to distribute it, it is permitted. The mosque committee generally manages the payments of Zakat. Here, when you donate Zakat money, it will not be used for the mosque in any manner but will rather be given out to the ones eligible to receive Zakat.
Why Donate to Muslim Charity
The question arises, “Why should a Muslim donate Zakat?” First of all, we must understand that Zakat is a commandment of Allah that must be followed by every Muslim if they are eligible. Secondly, according to the Holy Scriptures, Zakat is a means of purification of the total wealth, i.e. if a person donates his Zakat amount, then the wealth left behind becomes pure wealth, or else impure. Thirdly, donating Zakat money creates an equilibrium in society as the rich give off a small amount of their total wealth to the poor and needy. Thus, donating Zakat helps ease the difficulties of the lives of the financially weak and needy people.
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