a strong person able to earn a living (1).
He would collect zakat from those liable to pay it and distribute it to its rightful recipients.
His practice was to distribute zakat among eligible recipients in the locality where the wealth was held. Whatever remained after their needs had been met was brought to him, and he himself—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—would distribute it. For this reason (2), he would send his collectors to the desert regions, but not to the villages. Rather, he instructed Muʿādh (3) to collect zakat from the people (4) of Yemen and give it to their poor; he did not instruct him (5) to bring it to him.
His practice was to send his collectors only to those possessing outwardly apparent wealth: livestock, crops, and fruit. He would send an assessor to estimate the yield of the owners’ date palms (6), determining how many wasqs (a measure of volume) it would yield, and assessing the zakat due from them accordingly (7).
(1) Reported by Ahmad (17972, 23063), Abū Dāwūd (1633), al-Nasā’ī in al-Mujtabā (2598) and al-Kubrā (2390), and al-Dāraqutnī (1994), from ‘Abd Allāh ibn ‘Adī ibn Khiyār, who narrated it from two men—or several men—among the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. Its chain of transmission is sound. Al-Albānī authenticated the hadith in Sahīh Abī Dāwūd—al-Umm (5/335) and Irwā’ al-Ghalīl (876). Muslim (1044) also reported a hadith from Qabīsa ibn Mukhāriq al-Hilālī in which the Prophet instructed him that begging is lawful only for three types of people: someone who has undertaken a hamāla (financial liability on behalf of others), someone afflicted by a calamity, or someone afflicted by poverty.
(2) ج, ص read: wa-kadhālika (“and likewise”).
(3) The printed edition reads: “Mu‘ādh ibn Jabal.” The adopted reading follows the manuscripts.
(4) The printed edition reads: min aghniyā’ ahl (“from the wealthy among the people of”), contrary to the manuscripts.
(5) ك, ج read: wa-lam ya’murhum (“and he did not instruct them”).
(6) مب reads: tamr nakhīlihim (“the dates of their date palms”). The adopted reading follows the other manuscripts. ج, ع then add: “and for vineyard owners, their vineyards.” This addition is marked for deletion in ص and is absent from the other manuscripts.
(7) Reported by Abū Dāwūd (1603), al-Tirmidhī (644), al-Nasā’ī (2618), Ibn Mājah (1819), Ibn Khuzayma (2317), and al-Bayhaqī (4/122), from ‘Attāb ibn Asīd. After hadith (1604), Abū Dāwūd states: “Sa‘īd did not hear from ‘Attāb.” See also al-‘Ilal by Ibn Abī Hātim (617). The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, also estimated the fruit yield of a woman’s orchard on his way to Tabūk; this is reported by al-Bukhārī (1481).