Zakat – Purification of Worldly Wealth

Allah’s command to give zakat* is equal to His command to establish the daily practice of salat, so much so that they are frequently mentioned together – in fact, 25 times (matching the number of prophets named in the Quran). Our worldly income, if not shared with others (if we can), turns into a burden on our souls, weighing them down and even can nullify our salat prayers. Everything, and I mean everything, interrelates. Money and other forms of wealth form a most powerful “heavy” relationship to people, for whom it is felt as a primary essential benefit. It’s quite easy for money to dominate our direction in life, making us forget Allah the Exalted, the Source of all resources and all wealth, and Who alone controls all these complex interrelated “worlds.” His name Lord of all worlds (Rabb Al-‘Alameen) expresses this comprehensive authority, and Allah’s all-encompassing generosity. When we don’t spend in His Way, we violate this generosity and our gains can become worthless. When we do give, Allah increases His giving to us as a reward.

*(Alternate spelling zakah, but I prefer zakat as it’s closer to the original Arabic.)

How to Distinguish Good from Evil

The Number One Question should be “Is this (action or belief) Just or Unjust? “Indeed God commands justice, virtue, and giving to kinsfolk, and He forbids immorality, bad conduct, and oppression. And He admonishes you, that perhaps you will be reminded.” (16:90) Obviously, this is no small matter and reams could be written about it, not a mere blog post. But the Quran is also called Al-Furqan, which means “the Criterion,” which refers essentially to the Quran being a guide for the human soul, and as such gives us the criterion and criteria (plural) by which to distinguish good from evil.

Who are the Ma Malikat Ayman in the Quran? What about Slaves, Captives, and Polygamy?

There are many misconceptions regarding these ideas and terms that very much need clarification. Those misconceptions in fact resulted in later generations of Muslims forming harems, a practice that varied from place to place (or palace to palace), but mostly was not in conformance with what the Quran stipulated at all. Some of this derives from interpretations of the words ma malikat ayman. Many interpreters and translators say ma malikat ayman refers to slaves or captives. It’s often translated “those your right hand possesses” which itself needs further explanation, as this in itself means nothing particular in English. So we start with the word used in the verses requiring freeing slaves in compensation for crimes and infractions, raqaba, which is not really in dispute, but its literal and understood meaning gives us insights into what ma malikat ayman does and does not refer to.

Why Does the Quran Focus on Al-Akhira?

This is one of the most important questions one can ask. Faith in Allah is indelibly entwined with faith in Al-Akhira, the Hereafter. The life of this world is temporary and is, according to the Quran, only a test, but the Hereafter is everlasting. This understanding is in some ways – at the least, as an emphasis on higher “eternal” values – the basis for all major religions. There are however differences in Islam, which gives a clear and balanced approach to the subject.