The Administration of the Sultanate of Dehli c11.4

c11.4

According to the jurists a Muslim state has two sources of revenue: religious and secular. The former can be demanded only from Muslims, for non-Muslims have no obligation to observe the tenets of Islam. The religious taxes are grouped under the name of *zakāt*, so called because a Muslim purifies himself of greed and avarice by sharing his property with the poor and needy.³ It is an act of piety to pay *zakāt*; this religious obligation must be enforced by the *imām*, for it is based on a clear injunction of the Qur'ān.⁴ The *zakāt* is payable on gold or silver, herds and merchandise, provided such belongings reach or exceed a certain limit called a *Zakāt*.