Jizya
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Peace
In my understanding from the Quran, jizya is a tax payment by non-muslims who chose to live in a muslim land, which allows you to benefit from all the facilities the muslim citizens do, but without being a muslim citizen...
It is run in parallel to the collection of normal taxes on muslims (which include zakat), but is of a much smaller value, prompting many non-muslims choosing to live in muslim lands to benefit from this advantage.
This was the best scenario, but there were cases were bad rulers will take advantage of non-muslims and overcharge them which is not what they are supposed to do.
Also from the Quran, it is not specified that the payment should be recurring, so it could have been acceptable to take just a one off payment as the jizya, but I am not aware that it happened this way in practice... -
Scratch that...My question is can muslims extract jizya unless they are attacked first?
Further, how do Muslims know if the people of the book disbelieve in Allah, prohibit what Allah has prohibited or acknowledge the religion of truth?
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http//www.yuksel.org/e/books/rtq.htm
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Now I believe the Quran only allows fighting in self defence. Yet in 929, the Quran says fight until they pay jizya. Then what is jizya? I read Yusuf Ali's footnotes and he said jizya's root meaning is compensAtion and tax is a derived meaning. Why is this the derived meaning? Are there other derived meanings or should we just go back to the root meaning when we read translations (interpretations) of the Quran? Also, does jizya only apply to people of the book? I think Yusuf Ali translates it as if they disbelieve and etc which includes polytheists. I really have no position on this translation because my knowledge of arabic is horrible.
PeaceJizya is not about non Muslims. Many verses of the Quran came down in Medina where many Jews were and there are many conversations in the Quran regarding that. Jizya however came down only regarding the entering of Mecca. I believe it is a compensation for loss of property and business suffered by some of Muhammad's followers when they were forced to exile from mecca thereby losing their home. Some Quranist have said it could mean ransom for prisoners held by Muhammad and his followers, also regarding Meccan pagan and Meccan Jews.
As for such who do not fight you on account of faith, or drive you forth from your homelands, God does not forbid you to show them kindness and to deal with them with equity, for God loves those who act equitably. God only forbids you to turn in friendship towards such as fight against you because of faith and drive you forth from your homelands or aid in driving you forth. As for those from among you who turn towards them for alliance, it is they who are wrongdoers. 608-9
It also says
Permission (to fight) is given to those against whom war is being wrongfully waged, and verily, God has indeed the power to aid them. Those who have been driven from their homelands in defiance of right for no other reason than their saying, ?Our Lord is God.? 2239-40
Some have said Jizya could mean some war reperation of some sort such as regarding this
33,26. And those of the People of the Book who aided them - Allah did take them down from their strongholds and cast terror into their hearts. (So that) some ye slew, and some ye made prisoners.
33.27. And He made you heirs of their lands, their houses, and their goods, and of a land which ye had not frequented (before). And Allah has power over all things
Its talking about those who aided the pagan Meccans. It has nothing to do with anybody else except the fighting parties.
9.13. Will ye not fight people who violated their oaths, plotted to expel the Messenger, and took the aggressive by being the first (to assault) you? Do ye fear them? Nay, it is Allah Whom ye should more justly fear, if ye believe!
It has nothing to do with Medina or anywhere else.
9.4. (But the treaties are) not dissolved with those Pagans with whom ye have entered into alliance and who have not subsequently failed you in aught, nor aided any one against you. So fulfil your engagements with them to the end of their term for Allah loveth the righteous.
So not all the pagans were involved in these battles and not all the Jews. It seems it was some Meccan Pagans and some Jews or whoever who aided them.
Thats my reading. It has nothing to do with Muslims or non Muslims. I see it as some form of war damages and war reperations between fighting parties.
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Zakat = Income Tax for citizen of a nation / country
Jizya = Income Tax for non citizen / permanent resident of a nation / countryIt is mandatory for citizen to serve in the military / military duty to the nation for certain years.
While non-citizen / permanent resident doesn't have such obligation.
Although both have the same obligation to pay tax, although the amount could be slightly different.Government Taxes a.k.a Zakat and Jizya is a widely applied concept.
And there are no specific instruction whether the rate of Jizya > Zakat or Zakat > Jizya or Zakat = Jizya.
As it is very dynamic dependent on time and context and only the government can apply Zakat or Jizya (not some thug or a group of people claimed to be Moslem).
The assets/money gathered through taxes a.k.a zakat or jizya should be used for the beneficiary of all people, regardless of their races, social status, religion, ethnics etc.., such as but not limited to- Country's defense
- Road and transportation
- Utility
- Education
- Social security program..
- Etc..
Salam / Peace
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Zakat = Income Tax for citizen of a nation / country
Jizya = Income Tax for non citizen / permanent resident of a nation / countryIt is mandatory for citizen to serve in the military / military duty to the nation for certain years.
While non-citizen / permanent resident doesn't have such obligation.
Although both have the same obligation to pay tax, although the amount could be slightly different.Government Taxes a.k.a Zakat and Jizya is a widely applied concept.
And there are no specific instruction whether the rate of Jizya > Zakat or Zakat > Jizya or Zakat = Jizya.
As it is very dynamic dependent on time and context and only the government can apply Zakat or Jizya (not some thug or a group of people claimed to be Moslem).
The assets/money gathered through taxes a.k.a zakat or jizya should be used for the beneficiary of all people, regardless of their races, social status, religion, ethnics etc.., such as but not limited to- Country's defense
- Road and transportation
- Utility
- Education
- Social security program..
- Etc..
Salam / Peace
Commentators disagree on the definition and derivation of the word jizya
Yusuf Ali states "The derived meaning, which became the technical meaning, was a poll-tax levied from those who did not accept Islam, but were willing to live under the protection of Islam, and were thus tacitly willing to submit to the laws enforced by the Muslim State."
Monqiz As-Saqqar attributes the word jizya to the root word jaza meaning "compensate" and defines it as "a sum of money given in return for protection".
Ibn Al-Mutaraz derives the word from 'idjz?, meaning "substitute" or "sufficiency" because "it suffices as a substitute for the dhimmi's embracement of Islam."
Yusuf al-Qaradawi says the word jizya is derived from the jazaa', meaning "reward", "return", or "compensation", and defines it as "a payment by the non-Muslim according to an agreement signed with the Muslim state".
Edward William Lane, in An Arabic-English Lexicon defines jizya as a "tax that is taken from the free non-Muslim subjects of a Muslim government whereby they ratify the compact that assures them protection.
Ibn Rushd explains that jizya is in fact a broader concept than just a head-tax. It also includes monies exacted in times of war ? what is normally understood in English by the word ?tribute? ? as well as levies (?ushr) on non-mulsim merchants who are trading in the Dar al-Harb.
So here we see Jizya means compensation or reward. Its hard to see how tax fit into this. Plus there is no evidnece from the Quran that Jizya is monetary. It simply means a compensation or a reward for something.
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So here we see Jizya means compensation or reward. Its hard to see how tax fit into this. Plus there is no evidnece from the Quran that Jizya is monetary. It simply means a compensation or a reward for something.
Tax is a 'compensation'...
And Tax technically speaking doesn't have to be in 'monetary' units.. it could be a portion of your grain harvest, sheep, cows whatever..
I've been to New Guinea, where the 'local tribal government' only accepts Pigs for Tax / Compensation / Ticket of me (a tourist / non citizen / non member of their tribe of course) to pass through their territorial river.. In this case I paid Jizya to the local authorative government using Pigs!Although for simplification matter; it's much better to pay the tax in money isn't it?
Salam / Peace
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The verse in which "jizya" is mentioned (929) is war/fighting.
929 Fight those who do not acknowledge God nor the Last day among the people who received the book; they do not forbid what God and His messenger have forbidden, and they do not uphold the obligation of truth; until they pay the reparation (JZY), in humility.
Jiim-Zay-Ya = Pay/give/render a satisfaction, make sufficient, pay a debt, to contend, repay/requit/compensate, to recompense.
Cross-reference of other verses in which the root JZY is used
23111 I have rewarded (JZY) them today for their patience, they are indeed the winners.
1451 Thus God will recompense (JZY) every person what it earned. God is quick to reckoning.
So JZY is about making up for something/recompensing/rewarding/compensationg/etc.
I think the most appropriate word for "jizya" (since it is used in the context of war) is "reperation". It has nothing to do with a tax on "non-Muslims".I recommend reading the part about "jizya" on http//www.yuksel.org/e/books/rtq.htm
Zakat = Income Tax for citizen of a nation / country
Zakat = betterment/development/growth/purification
"Zakat" has nothing to do with a tax or charity, etc.
See http//www.free-minds.org/zakat, for example. -
Nice work guys. I am more inclined to agree with bigmo. Just out of curiousity, where did you find the ibn Rushd commentary?
Peace