THE CHAPTER ON ZAKAT · 16 – FRUITS THAT ARE NOT PERMISSIBLE TO BE GIVEN AS ZAKAT
From Abu Umama bin Sahl, from his father, who related:
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, forbade collecting *‘adjin* dates and dusty, mixed-color, small dates for *zakat*.
Zuhri said: These terms are the names of two varieties of Medinan dates. [460]
EXPLANATION
*‘Adjin*: The most unrefined date.
*Hubayk*: A Medinan date that is dusty, small, and of mixed color.
It does not befit one to give the unrefined portion of his wealth in place of *zakat*, expecting reward for it in the eternal afterlife. How can a person fulfill an act of worship with something he dislikes?
Avf ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated:
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings upon him) entered the mosque to us, holding a staff. A man had hung some dry and fresh dates. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings upon him) poked his staff into the cluster of dates and said, “If the owner of this charity had wanted something better, he would have given it; its owner will eat the debris of the dates on the Day of Resurrection.” [461]
Note: *Kinv* means a date palm branch, and *Hasaf* means dried dates. Wealthy believers would pluck clusters of dates as an alternative to Zakat and hang them at the mosque’s door for the poor to eat.