Zakat Ul-Mal

Zakat is the Third Pillar of Islam, it is mentioned 30 times in the Qur’an and 27 of those occasions it was combined with the obligation of Salaat. Therefore Zakat is an obligation for Muslims. Zakat purifies one’s wealth and prevents stinginess and greed when given by a happy heart.

Along with the obligation to pay Zakat, there is a stern warning in the Qur’an related in Surah At-Tawbah verses 34-35 "... and those who hoard gold and silver and spend them not in the way of Allah announce unto them a most grievous penalty. On the Day, when they (gold and silver) will be heated in the fire of Hell and used to brand their foreheads, their flanks, and their backs. This is what you have hoarded for yourselves, taste you then what you have hoarded."

Additionally, the beloved Prophet Muhammad (SAWS) has said in clarification: "For every owner of a hoarded wealth on which he does not pay Zakat, this wealth will be heated in the fire of Hell and made into sheets with which his flanks and forehead will be branded until Allah passes judgment among His servants on a day that measures fifty thousand years (of our reckoning), then his path will be shown, either to Heaven or to Hell.” [Reported by Imams Bukhari, Muslim and Ahmad]

The Zakat Foundation of America recognizes the very serious responsibility of the payment of one’s Zakat and we are equally serious in the implementation of projects and programs which specifically address one or more of the eight categories of Zakat. When one donates his or her Zakat ul-Mal through The Zakat Foundation, he or she can be assured that it will be distributed with the greatest of care and concern, that it will be dispersed only to persons who are identified in the eight categories and that it will be cared for and administered by Muslims who understand the seriousness of all these things. Please visit our Zakat Center for more detailed information regarding the fiqh of Zakat, its calculation and categories of distribution. Please visit our Zakat Calculator to determine your Zakat at least once per year.