Chapter: Zakat on the Two Precious Metals

Know—may Allah grant us and you success—that what is meant by the zakat of the two precious metals is the obligatory alms on gold and silver and on everything derived from them, such as coins, jewelry, bullion, and the like.

The obligation of zakat on gold and silver is established by the Qur’an, the Sunnah, and the unanimous agreement of the scholars.

Allah the Exalted says: “Those who hoard gold and silver and do not spend it in the way of Allah—give them tidings of a painful punishment” (Qur’an 9:34). In this noble verse a stern warning of painful torment is directed at anyone who withholds the zakat of gold and silver.

In the two Ṣaḥīḥ collections it is related: “No owner of gold or silver who fails to pay its due will escape; on the Day of Resurrection plates of fire will be heated for him …” the ḥadīth continues.

The leading jurists are unanimously agreed that the hoard (kanz) mentioned in the Qur’an and the ḥadīth refers to every sum on which zakat is obligatory but whose zakat has not been paid, and that any wealth from which its zakat has been discharged is not