1136 – Abū Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Whichever village you come upon and settle in, your share is taken from it; and whichever village defies Allah and His Messenger, one-fifth of it belongs to Allah and His Messenger, then the rest is yours.” Narrated by Muslim (1).

Glossary of ḥadīth words
– ayyumā: the relative pronoun ay. It has one form for masculine and feminine, singular, dual, and plural, and is used for rational and non-rational entities alike. It is fully declinable, while the particle mā is merely augmentative.
– fa-aqamtum (“you settled/encamped”): i.e., you laid siege to the town and its inhabitants fled without fighting. Such a town is treated as fayʾ (property taken without combat). A village that resisted, fought, and was captured is treated as ghanīmah (spoils taken by force of arms).

Points derived from the ḥadīth

1. The ḥadīth differentiates between two kinds of wealth lawfully taken from the unbelievers: what is seized without battle is fayʾ, and what is obtained through fighting is ghanīmah. Each has its distinct ruling.
2. Accordingly, anything the Muslims acquire from the unbelievers’ property without combat—because the enemy abandoned it in fear—as well as jizyah, kharāj, and the property of an apostate who dies upon his apostasy, whether executed or otherwise, is fayʾ. Such funds are to be spent on the Muslims’ public interests and beneficial projects, foremost among them striving in Allah’s cause, whether with arms or through inviting others to Him.