Zakat

zakat

Why is your zakat (religious tax) different from the shar-i zakat (religious tax according to shariat)? Why is it not distributed among the poor and needy directly?

  1. I have argued at the beginning in last post (Why do women sometimes lead the prayers in Jamat Khanah, while there is no such precedent in the Shariat (revealed law)? That there is a difference between shariat, tariqat, haqiqat and marifat, but that their supreme goal (maqsad-I ala) is the same. Thus if a sensible person will observe for a while he will come to know clearly that the spirit and the ultimate purpose of zakat which should be accomplished in Islam, has continued to exist perfectly in Ismailis.
  2. I have said that accordingly to our faith (i.e. Ismailism)  the way of zakat is exactly in accordance with the requisite of the Islamic spirit and its ultimate purpose, and none benefit elsewhere as much as the poor and needy and helpless benefit here.  The Imam from one aspect takes zakat and from another aspect he does not take zakat. Thus the greatest merit of the zakat system of the Ismailis is that it changes according to the changing circumstances of time; that is to say that the system adjusts itself according to the requirements of the time. The best way of providing for the needy the benefit of zakat is to make an attempt to eradicate the curse of ignorance and poverty entirely and enrich them with the wealth of knowledge and skill forever instead of giving them one meal or giving them a pair of clothes or distributing among them some cash or kind. To achieve this goal the establishment of various institutions of education, health, etc., is a must, and in order to actualize this goal zakat is collected under the supervision and guidance of the Imam of the age. In this sense I have said that on one aspect that Imam takes zakat while on the other he does not. That is to say that the Imam takes zakat from the jamaat only in the sense that he supervises the above-mentioned system, gives blessings, and approves and gives guidance regarding the expense in establishing and running the community institutions.
  3. The philosophy of unanimity, harmony and unity is such that the strength of zakat should be guarded from being scattered. It should be collected in one place and should be used according to the guidance of the true Guide.

In earlier times those virtuous deeds which were preferred were necessary according to that time; for instance, to purchase male and female slaves and set them free, to feed and clothe orphans, the poor, and the needy. Now the greatest reward lies in enrichening the needy with the eternal wealth of knowledge and skill and establishing institutions of religious and worldly prosperity and welfare so that it will increase the progress and prosperity of the country and the nation and strengthen and help the universal spirit of Islam. The Imam employs zakat according to this object of Islam.

Book Reference : Eight Question Answered Book

Author Allama Nasir Uddin Nasir Hunzai

Jamaatkhana and Non Ismailis

jamaat khana

When any other Muslim brother wants to come to Jamaatkhana, Why should he not be allowed to come?

  1. For a detailed answer to this question see also my article entitled “Islam ki Buyadi Haqiqatayn (The fundamental Realities of Islam)” Further, the question arises that will the person who wants to come to Jamaatkhana accepts all the conditions, manners and rites of the Jamaatkhana as an Ismaili does? If it is not possible for him to do so, then there is no benefit in his coming to the Jamaatkhana.
  2. In Islam there are certain holy building which are common among the Muslims, and there are some which are private. Among the holy places or buildings which are common, first comes the Kabah, and then comes the mosque, for these buildings belong to the period when all Muslims were one. However, in some places there are certain mosques, which owing to either different views or different sects are private. Similarly, in fact more stringently, Khanqah, imam barah, and Jamaatkhana are private places, for these places are respected only by those who are basically attached to them in faith and thus no other people may share in these holy places.
  3. ‘Mosque’, which in Arabic is called ‘masqid’ , means the place of prostration or place of worship. Therefore, this word invites all the Muslims to go there and bow before God and worship Him. But in the word Jamaatkhana, ibadat or worship, is not apparent, as Jamaatkhana, in Persian, means the house of a group, which belongs only to a particular group and not to all. Such is the philosophy intrinsic in the meaning of khanqah. Khanqah is the Arabicized form of khangah or Khanah gah, which means the place where Sufis and dervishes live. Here also the meaning ‘worship’ is kept in secret, for otherwise the sufis would have chosen a word which would have immediately and openly denoted worship (ie. Would have meant a place of worship). But this was done intentionally for there they had to instruct the teaching of Islam in a specific way. Also, each Kahnqah was confined to the disciples of a particular pir or shykh (Spiritual Guide). This same example may be applied to the Jamaatkhana for the Jamaatkhana in the beginning was the khanqah itself. We come across the jamaat khanah of Bakhtayar-I Kaki in the biographies of the Sufis, and this is later adopted in Ismailism. This historical event is a clear proof of the fact that Tariqat comes from the depth (batin) of Shariat and Haqiqat emerges from the depth of tariqat, This whole discussion leads to the conclusion that the Ismailis belong only to the followers of the Hazir (present) Imam.

Women Leading the Prayers

Why do women sometimes lead the prayers in Jamat Khanah, while there is no such precedent in the sharicat(revealed law)?

Women Leading the Prayers

(a) Islam is the right path. It has been ordained to lead towards God. When, as according to this example, true religion is likened to a path, then it also has stations which are called sharicat, Tariqat (Sufic paht), Haqiqat (truth) and Marifat (gnosis or the recognition of God). Just as Sufism is a clear proof of development within Islam from on station to the next, so are the manners and rites of the Jamaat khanah a living example of following and spiritually advancing along the same straight path of Islam, and progressing to a higher station. And it is quite clear that in Sufism there are thousands of things which do not exist in sharicat, for how can it be possible for such things to be in sharicat while they pertain to tariqat? Likewise, the things pertaining to jamat khanah, i.e. the manners and rites therein belong to haqiqat and to judge them on a criterion other than of haqiqat is nothing but a proof of oversight and ignorance.

(b) Furthermore, if on the level or stage of sharicat a woman cannot lean men in shar’i Namaz (ritual prayer according to sharicat), then there is no other apparent reason for this except that this prohibition has a ta’wil (esoteric interpretation or deallegorization). Contrary to this, whatever ibadat-u bandagi (devotional prayers) is performed in the jamaat khanah has no ta’wil in fact, it is itself a ta’wil. Therefore, in jamaat khanah a woman may lead the prayers.

If the question is then asked what the ta’wil is of not allowing women to lead shar’i namaz, then the answer is that in religion the Prophet is in the position of a man and all the individuals within the entire community are in the position of a woman. likewise, the Imam (may peace of God be up him) is in the position of a man and all his followers are in the position of a woman, and similarly, the teacher is like a man and the student is like a woman. Thus according to sharicat if a woman leads mean in shar’i namaz then according to ta’wil it implies that (God forbidding) the Prophet should leave his position and become a follower and the community should take the position of the Prophet and lead him; or, that the Imam should become a follower and the followers should become the Imam, and that the teacher should become that student and vice versa. So, this ta’wil shows how the fact of a woman leading the men in shar’i namaz indicates an impossible matter, i.e. that the Prophet, playing the role of a man, should assume that role of a woman, which is the community; and for this reason, women are not allowed to lead men in shar’i namaz only on the level of sharicat

(c) Islam, in fact, comprises of the teachings and instructions of both the Quran and the teacher of the Quran, and to travel along the differnet stages of these teachings and instruction means to walk on the straight path (sirat-I mustaqim), and to advance from one station to the next station. In the same context, we can also say that Islam, with respect to its stages of knowledge and practice, is like a university which has various progressive degrees of learning. Now it is clear from this example that just as each of the various university degrees has its own criteria, similarly for these different degrees of knowledge and practice in islam there are ordained different criteria. Thus, we say that to judge Ismaili rites on a criterion other than the Ismaili criterion is not logical

(d) It Islam is the straight path, then one has to accept that Muslim sect or groups are like the travelers who are following the others. Further, if the true religion, as the Quran says, is the rope of God, the Most High, and this rope is between God and His servants, then it also implies that the servants are each holding the rope in various ascending degrees, one behind the other. Further still, where ascension towards the heights of gnosis of God(according to (52:2,4) is compared with a staircase, there it can be inferred likewise that the people of different religions are each on different stairs. Just as the manifest religion (din-I mubin), ie Islam, can be likened to a university, where the students of the university are in different grades similarly the believers in Islam with respect to knowledge and practice (Ilm u amal) can be seen to be in different stages. The religion of nature (i.e. Islam) has been compared with human creation and the different stages of life, such as the child in mother’s womb, the new-born, the sucking-babe, the tyro, youth, the middle-aged, and the old, and similarly there are different stages in religion. This example shows that Islam is the religion of Nature and it has to reach to its perfection just as a human-being gradually reaches to perfection. In short, the teachings of Islam are in degrees and as such its instructions are also in gradual form. Thus the objection of one against the other is nothing but ignorance of the stages of the Islamic teachings.

Source : Eight Questions Answered Book

Learn about Author : Allama Nasir Uddin Nasir Hunzai