Question:

I have been paying zakat on my wife’s jewellery over the last 20 plus years. She comes from a well to do family, whereas I have needy relatives. Although I pay zakat on my wealth and her jewellery as per nisab rules, I distribute zakat among my needy relatives. We have also helped her distant relatives or house help of her parents from time to time.

The dispute is related to my policy of strict secrecy over zakat or sadaqah recipients among my relatives. I send funds without telling her since I want to protect the dignity of my relatives who receive financial help, zakat, sadaqah, etc. Sometimes I have used zakat to help close relatives and I don’t want her to know their identity. She feels insulted that I don’t trust her or ignore her while dealing with money involving my relatives.

Am I making a mistakes I tried to educate her but she feels I am being dishonest with her by not sharing this information despite being married for long. She likes to help poor and the needy and she says she doesn’t mind me helping my relatives.

Answer:

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.


As-salāmu ʿalaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

Your question is in regard to hiding the identity of zakat recipients from one’s wife. First, zakat is among the fard `ayn every individual must learn. When zakat becomes obligatory, a Muslim should learn how to calculate and dispense it. In the eyes of the Shari`ah, each individual is responsible for calculating and paying their own zakat. In other words, they are separate entities despite relationships like parent-adult child or husband-wife. We may not always have our parents or spouses around to do this for us, and so, we should all learn how to do it. After that, if out of love and with consent another person fulfills a person’s zakat, then it is acceptable.

The bond between husband and wife forms the backbone of the Muslim community, and its importance cannot be understated. It thrives when there exists an air of openness and sharing. A beautiful aspect of zakat is that it is also among the `ibādāt that can be shared by spouses. The two can help one another in the action and in gaining the reward. One spouse may give money in ṣadaqah or zakat on behalf of the other and in doing so, share its reward. When a husband gives the zakat due on his wife’s jewelry, he relieves her of that responsibility and the two are rewarded without the reward of either decreasing. A wife, with her husband’s explicit or implicit permission, may also give charity from her husband’s wealth. She will get rewarded for it and he will get half the reward. 

عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏ “‏ إِذَا أَنْفَقَتِ الْمَرْأَةُ مِنْ كَسْبِ زَوْجِهَا عَنْ غَيْرِ أَمْرِهِ فَلَهُ نِصْفُ أَجْرِهِ ‏”

The Prophet ﷺ said, “If the wife gives of her husband’s property (something in charity) without his permission, he will get half the reward.” (1)

Pertaining to your situation, you and your wife will both be rewarded, in shā Allāh. As the actual zakat-giver (you are merely acting as an agent on her behalf), she has the ultimate responsibility of making sure the zakat ends up in the right hands. (2) So, she has a right to know the identity of the recipient for the sake of verification. However, when she entrusts you to take care of this responsibility, she has also entrusted you with choosing recipients appropriately. Additionally, there may be a benefit in her not knowing the recipient’s identity. In fact, she may have an increase in reward and sincerity over you by remaining anonymous and unaware of the recipient. As for anonymity:

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ: ‏سَبْعَةٌ يُظِلُّهُمُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى فِي ظِلِّهِ يَوْمَ لاَ ظِلَّ إِلاَّ ظِلُّهُ… وَرَجُلٌ تَصَدَّقَ بِصَدَقَةٍ فَأَخْفَاهَا حَتَّى لاَ تَعْلَمَ شِمَالُهُ مَا تُنْفِقُ يَمِينُهُ

The Prophet ﷺ said, “Seven people will be shaded by Allah under His shade on the day when there will be no shade except His… (The sixth of which is) a person who practices charity so secretly that his left hand does not know what his right hand has given.” (3)

In remaining unaware, there is protection of one’s sincerity. If the thought that we are favoring a person by giving them charity creeps into our minds, it may lead to actions that destroy our reward entirely. It is best to take whatever steps we can to protect ourselves. Allah warns us in Surah al-Baqarah:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تُبْطِلُوا صَدَقَاتِكُم بِالْمَنِّ وَالْأَذَىٰ

“O you who believe, do not nullify your acts of charity by boasting about (doing people a) favor and by causing (them) hurt.” (Al-Baqarah 264)

In summary, she has a right to know the recipient for the sake of verifying the correct distribution of her zakat. However, assuming she trusts you to undertake this responsibility, it is in her greater interest to remain anonymous and unaware of the recipients.

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

Mufti Faisal bin Abdul Hameed al-Mahmudi (S1)

1.

 صحيح البخاري، كتاب النفقات، باب نَفَقَةِ الْمَرْأَةِ إِذَا غَابَ عَنْهَا زَوْجُهَا وَنَفَقَةِ الْوَلَدِ، #5360

2.

 إِنَّمَا الصَّدَقَاتُ لِلْفُقَرَاءِ وَالْمَسَاكِينِ وَالْعَامِلِينَ عَلَيْهَا وَالْمُؤَلَّفَةِ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَفِي الرِّقَابِ وَالْغَارِمِينَ وَفِي سَبِيلِ اللَّـهِ وَابْنِ السَّبِيلِ ۖ فَرِيضَةً مِّنَ اللَّـهِ ۗ وَاللَّـهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ (التوبة 60)

فتاوی محمودیہ، دار الافتاء جامعہ فاروقیہ کراچی، ج ۹ ص ۴۹۴

3.

 صحيح البخاري، كتاب الزكاة، باب الصَّدَقَةِ بِالْيَمِينِ، #1423