As for one whose debt was incurred through sin, nothing is to be given to him.

His saying, exalted is He: “And in the cause of Allah.” By this He means those who fight in Allah’s cause. They have a share of the alms funds and are given when they intend to set out for battle, receiving whatever will assist them in that undertaking: provisions, clothing, weapons, and mounts—even if they are wealthy. According to most scholars, however, none of this share is to be spent on the pilgrimage.

Some scholars said that the share designated for the cause of Allah may be spent on the pilgrimage. This is narrated from Ibn ‘Abbas, and it was the view of al-Hasan, Ahmad, and Ishaq.

His saying, exalted is He: “And for the stranded traveler.” The eighth category consists of stranded travelers. Everyone intending a lawful journey who does not possess what will enable him to complete the distance is to be given from the alms funds enough to complete that journey, whether or not he has wealth in the town to which he is traveling.

Qatadah said: “The stranded traveler is the guest.”

The jurists of Iraq said: “The stranded traveler is the pilgrim who has been cut off from his resources.”

His saying, exalted is He: “An obligation from Allah”—that is, an obligatory duty from Allah. The word is in the accusative as an independent qualification; it is also said that it is an accusative verbal noun, meaning: Allah has prescribed these matters as an obligation. “And Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.”

The jurists differed concerning how alms are to be distributed and whether they may be allocated to only some of the categories.

A group held that it is not permissible to distribute all of it to only some of them while the remaining categories are present. This was the view of ‘Ikrimah, and al-Shafi‘i also held it. He said: The zakat due on each type of wealth must be divided equally among the six categories that are present and whose shares remain established, since the share of those whose hearts are to be reconciled has lapsed, as has the share of the collector when the owner distributes it himself. Furthermore, the share of each category may not be given to fewer than three persons from that category if three or more are found. However, it is permissible to give those three differing amounts. If only one person is found in one of the categories, that category’s share is given to him, so long as it does not exceed the limit of his entitlement. If his need is met and something remains, he returns it to the others.

Another group held that if one distributes all of it to a single category among these categories, or even to a single individual from among them, that is permissible. Allah, exalted is He, mentioned these eight categories only to make known that alms are not to be disbursed beyond these