WAR BOOTY

Within a very short period, zakAt became secondary, and war spoils became the primary source of revenue of the Muslim treasury.  In fact, the distinction between the two was soon lost, and thus the �Book of ZakAt� imperceptibly becomes a book on war spoils.

Khums, the one-fifth portion of the spoils of war which goes to the treasury, has two aspects.  On the one hand, it is still war booty; but on the other, it is zakAt.  When it is acquired, it is war booty; when it is distributed among the ummah, it is zakAt.

Muhammad regards war booty as something especially his own.  �The spoils of war are for Allah and His Messenger�(QurAn 8:1).  They are put in his hands by Allah to be spent as he thinks best, whether as zakAt for the poor, or as gifts for his Companions, or as bribes to incline the polytheists to Islam, or on the �Path of Allah,� i.e., on preparations for armed raids and battles against the polytheists.

�Abd al-Muttalib and Fazl b. �AbbAs, two young men belonging to Muhammad�s family, wanted to become collectors of zakAt in order to secure means of marrying.  They went to Muhammad with their request, but he replied: �It does not become the family of Muhammad to accept Sadaqa for they are the impurities of the people.� But he arranged marriages for the two men and told his treasurer: �Pay so much Mahr [dowry] on behalf of both of them from the khums� (2347).

author : ram swarup