How Does Zakat Grow You Financially/Spiritually? 

On Saturday we hosted an Instagram live with Sheikh Yaser Birjas to discuss Zakat in Islam. We have summarized a few points from the segment to help you understand what zakat is and how to pay it. So what is zakat? Zakat is one of the five pillars of Islam and is obligatory. Zakat is an obligatory donation to the needy done by Musllims who are above the threshold. Sheikh Yaser says “Working hard for a year and having to give some money away is hard for a lot of people”. Performing zakat shows your faith in Allah (swt). “Giving zakat is proof of faith because no one can do it easily unless they have that spiritual motive for the sake of Allah (swt)” said Sheikh Yaser. Zakat is a way of purifying one’s soul as it removes traits of greed and selfishness. Giving zakat is a way of purifying one’s wealth. 

So how can zakat grow you financially? How does giving away money make you wealthier? Sheikh Yaser says “Allah (swt) promised you barakah. He promised you that whatever you give you’ll receive more. It may not necessarily mean the figure of the dollars or amount of money you have but it may be barakah in the purchase power”. Barakah is basically a blessing that can be found within objects, places and people. Giving zakat doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll have more money than before but it means that your money will be blessed by Allah (swt). 

Paying Zakat As Described by Sheikh Yaser Birjas:

• Zakat is mandatory for adults who are above the threshold. It comes second after salat in terms of importance.
• $5000 is the minimum threshold one must have in order to pay zakat. As soon as your account hits 5k, this will be considered your “zakat day” for the following year. So before next year’s “zakat day” you should have paid your zakat. If during this year your account goes below the minimum threshold, the one year cycle is broken and you need to start again. If you don’t know the exact “zakat day”  then you need to estimate. For example, if you think you hit the threshold in either March or April, go ahead and stick with the earlier date which would be March).
• Once the year has passed and it’s time to pay zakat you need to first deduct all liabilities for the current month. So for example, if you have $10,000 at the end of the year then you first need to deduct any liabilities you may have for the month which may include car payments, mortgage payments, student loans and so forth before calculating the amount of zakat you need to pay. This is only payments/liabilities for the MONTH of your zakat due date.
• Zakat is made up of 2.5% of your assets. This can include cash, land, livestock, stocks, and gold.

Written By Anan Helwih

Watch the segment here:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CN2s6Bojggc/