Zakat

Zakât is an ordinance of God, incumbent upon every perſon vvho is free, ſane, adult, and a Muſſulman, provided he be poſſeſſed, in full propriety, of ſuch eſtate or effects as are termed in the language of the lavv a Niſâb, and that he has been in poſſeſſion of the ſame for the ſpace of one complete year, vvhich is denominated Havvlân-Hâvvl. The reaſon of this obligation is found in the vvord of God, vvho has ordained it in the Koran, ſaying, "Bestovv Zakât."

The Mahometan law insists on the legal obligation of society to support their indigent fellow-citizens, the Hedaya or Mahometan Guide begins, "take zakat," said Mahomet, "from the rich Mussulmans, and bestow it upon the poor Mussulmans: zakat or charity," says the code, "signifies alms imposed by law, in opposition to [sadka], voluntary charity." […] The zakat was a property-tax paid on all productions and profits, on merchandise, mines, &c.

The Alcoran and all the subsequent teachings of the faithful enjoined a constant and liberal charity. […] The theory of the zakat, or tax, is that it is a voluntary gift. Contributing for the needs of the state followed in due course of time, and became obligatory. These taxes, or zakat, amounted by law to two and a half per cent. of the principal of certain assessed property.

Amongst these stations is the well-known place called Qaṭyā, which the people pronounce Qaṭya, where zakāt is collected from the merchants, their goods are examined, and their baggage most rigorously searched.

Services given by the Sayyids are supposed to be free, but they should receive the Zikat, or one tenth of the fruits of the earth.

[…] Russian goods were subject to numerous zakats as well as to taxes on buying and selling in the bazaars, on maintaining shops and stalls in the bazaars, and on the compulsory use of the official bazaar weights.

By tradition, zakat proceeds serve partly to deliver poor relief and partly to finance "praiseworthy activities," defined to include religious education and pilgrimage. In several countries, including Pakistan, zakat has become a legal obligation, and the government now organizes both its collection and its disbursement. In most parts of the Islamic world, however, zakat is collected and disbursed in a decentralized manner by local religious organizations[…].

Zakat is a system of alms giving which constitutes one of the five pillars of Islam, and zakat committees operate as social welfare agencies by collecting zakats from able Muslims and distributing them to the less fortunate.