Can I pay my zakat for a masjid building?

Can i give zakat for mashjid building development?

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullah wa barakatuh,

Dear Taleya,

With regard to the interpretation of the 267th verse of surah al Baqara, you can give your zakat for a masjid building as explained below:

Zakat can be paid to organizations working to spread Islam

“O ye who believe! Spend (in the path of Allah) of the good things which ye have earned, and of that which We bring forth from the earth for you.”  (Surah al Baqara , 267)

The 267th verse of surah al Baqara tells us to spend of what we have “in the path of Allah swt”. In some fiqh books, this expression “in the path of Allah swt” refers to spending for the veterans participated in a war in the path of Allah swt and the stranded hajjis (pilgrims). However, it is interpreted in a wider aspect in tafseers and in reliable fiqh books.

For instance Imam Qasani, one of the eminent scholars of Hanafi sect says the following in his well- known book “Badayius sanai fi tartibi sharaih”:

“What is meant by “those who are on the path of Allah swt” is anything by which you get closer to Allah swt. If needed, anyone working for the path of obedience to Allah swt and paths of goodness are in the meaning of this expression.”

Fakhr al-Din al-Razi states in his well- known tafseer that:

“The expression “in the path of Allah swt” has a general meaning. It is not peculiar to veterans. Zakat can be paid to all paths of goodness. Tacheez and takfeen of mayyit (burial costs of the deceased), construction of a mosque or a fortress are also included in the meaning of the expression.” (Tafsir al Kabir)

As a conclusion, zakat can be paid to Islamic organizations that are working in the path of Allah swt to spread Islam and to prevent the destructions of anti-Islamic activities.

Dear Taleya,

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Best regards!..

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