And they are obligatory upon one person but not another, in one circumstance but not another; they have not been prescribed as acts of pure worship owed to Allah by every servant capable of performing them. Hence Muslims, Jews and Christians share these obligations, unlike the five, which are distinctive to Muslims.

The same applies to maintaining ties of kinship and fulfilling the rights of one’s wife, children, neighbours, partners and the poor, as well as the duties of giving testimony, issuing legal opinions, adjudicating, exercising authority, enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong and undertaking jihad. All these become obligatory upon some people rather than others because particular circumstances arise, in order to secure benefits and avert harms. If those ends were achieved without a person’s action, these duties would not be obligatory. Duties shared by the community are collective obligations, whereas those specific to an individual bind Zayd rather than ʿAmr. Apart from the five, there is no particular act that everyone capable of performing it is individually obliged to undertake. Zayd’s wife and relatives are not ʿAmr’s wife and relatives, so what one owes is not the same as what the other owes. This differs from fasting Ramadan, performing the pilgrimage to the House, observing the five daily prayers and paying zakat.

Although zakat is a financial obligation, it is owed to Allah; the eight categories are its designated recipients. This is why intention is required for it, why another person may not discharge it on someone’s behalf without his permission, and why it is not demanded of disbelievers. By contrast, fulfilling people’s rights does not require intention. If someone else fulfils them on a person’s behalf without his permission, his liability is discharged, and disbelievers are required to fulfil them as well.

As for duties owed to Allah Most High, such as expiations, they arise from something the servant has done and contain an element of punishment. Obligations owed to Allah are of “three kinds”: pure acts of worship, such as the prayers; pure punishments, such as the prescribed legal penalties; and duties resembling punishments, such as expiations. The same applies to expiations connected with the pilgrimage and obligations incurred through vows: these become obligatory because of an act performed by the servant and are binding liabilities upon him.