THE JIZYAH

The jizyah is specific money taken from non-Muslims from the people of the dhimmah who are the People of the Book generally and non-Arab polytheists and the rest of the disbelievers. Allah ta’ala said: “Fight those who do not believe in Allah and the Last Day nor forbid what Allah and His Messenger forbid nor follow the deen of truth from those given the Book until they pay the jizyah by hand and they are humiliated” [TMQ 9:29]. Qays bin Muslim narrated from Al-Hasn bin Muhammad who said: “The Messenger of Allah (SAW) wrote to the Zoroastrians of Hijr calling them to Islam. Whoever embraced Islam, it would be accepted from him and whoever did not jizyah would be imposed upon him in that no slaughtered meat would be eaten from them nor their women married” (narrated by Abu Ubayd). From Ja’far bin Muhammad from his father who said: Umar said: I do not know what to do with the Zoroastrians who are not People of the Book. So Abdurrahman bin Awf said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (SAW) saying: “Prescribe for them the way (sunnah) of the People of the Book” (narrated by Abu Ubayd). He narrated via the way of ibn Shihab “that the Messenger of Allah (SAW) took the jizyah from t he Zoroastrians of Hijr, And Umar took the jizyah from the Zoroastrians of Persia without any of the Sahabah rejecting from him. Uthman took jizyah from the Berbers and none of the Sahabah rejected from him. As for the Arab polytheists, truce and dhimmah is not accepted from them but they are called to Islam. If they embrace Islam, they are left; if not, they are fought.” The Supreme said: “You will be called to a people of great strength. You will fight them or they will become Muslims” [TMQ 48:] and its meaning is until they embrace Islam. The ayah is about those whom the Messenger of Allah (SAW) was fighting and they were the idol-worshippers among the Arabs which indicated that they would be fought. He also narrated via the way of Al-Hasan who said: “The Messenger of Allah (SAW) commanded that the Arabs be fought upon Islam with nothing else accepted from them. And he commanded to fight the People of the Book until they pay the jizyah by hand while they are humbled.” Abu Ubaydah said: ‘We view that Al-Hasan meant by the Arabs here the people of idols among them who were not of the People of the Book. As for those of the People of the Book, the Messenger of Allah (SAW) did accept it (jizyah) from them and this is clear in the ahadith.’ It is not established that the Prophet (SAW) took the jizyah from any idol-worshipper of the Arabs, and he did not accept after the revelation of the ayah of (Surah) Al-Fath and Surah At-Tawbah other than Islam or war. As for what is narrated of his taking jizyah from the Arabs like the people of Yemen and the people of Najran, verily he only took it from the People of the Book, the Christians and Jews. He did not take it from the idol-worshippers among the Arabs. It is necessary to clarify to those from whom the jizyah accepted the amount of jizyah, the time of its obligation and to inform them that he will on ly take it from them once every year. And that what is taken from the rich is so much, and from the less than rich so much. It is not taken from the poor due to the Supreme’s statement: “by hand” i.e. from ability, and it is not taken from women and children. Jizyah is not taken from them except from the mature man capable of paying it. From Nafi from Aslam the slave of Umar “that Umar wrote to the army leaders that they fight in the way of Allah and not to fight except those who fight them; not to fight women and children, and not to fight except those whom the razor has taken effect. And he wrote to the army leaders to impose the jizyah and not to impose it upon the women and children, and not to implement it except upon those whom the razor has taken effect.” Abu Ubayd said: ‘Meaning the one who produces (hair).’ And he said: ‘This hadith is the basis (asl) upon the one upon whom jizyah is obliged and the one upon whom it is not obliged. Do you not see that he only ordained it upon the male intelligent ones (mudrikeen) not the female or children.’ No one rejected (this from) Umar so it was a consensus (ijma). This is strengthened by what came in the book of the Prophet (AS) to Muadh in Yemen “that upon every male who has attained puberty (halim) is a dinar” so he specified the male who has attained puberty (halim) not the woman or child. As for the narration “the male (halim) and female (halima) who has attained puberty” it is not preserved (mahfudh) among the muhadditheen. The preserved, established of that is the hadith which does not mention the female who has attained puberty (halima). Even upon the obligation (‘ala fard) of the authenticity of its coming (in this way), then this was at the beginning of Islam when the women of the polytheists and their children fought with their men so this was the case. Then it was abrogated by the Messenger not taking from women and children, and Umar executed this after him. The jizyah which is taken is obliged together with their submission to Islam. The humiliation (sighar) mentioned in the ayah: “until they pay the jizyah by hand and they are humbled” [TMQ 9:29] is that the rule of Islam is executed upon them and that they do not display anything of their disbelief nor anything which is forbidden in the deen of Islam. Also that Islam remains that which is exalted/highest (ya’lu) in the land due to his (AS) statement: “Islam is exalted and there is nothing exalted above it.”

All Muslims accept Jizya because to deny it would meant to deny the Quran which instructs its imposition on conquered peoples who disbelieve.