The sections of this article are:
- What does the Noble Quran say about Jizyah?
- Why Jizyah? And how much are the taxes for both Muslims and non-Muslims?
What does the Noble Quran say about Jizyah?
Let us look at what Allah Almighty Said in the Noble Quran regarding Jizyah:
"O ye who believe! Truly the Pagans are unclean; So let them not, After this year of theirs, Approach the Sacred Mosque. And if ye fear poverty, Soon will Allah enrich you, If He wills, out of His bounty, For Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.
Fight those who believe not in God nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by God and His Apostle, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book (i.e., Jews and Christians), until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued. (The Noble Quran, 9:28-29)"
Before I explain why Allah Almighty ordered the Muslims to fight the Pagans and the People of the Book until they all either submit to Islam or pay the "Jizyah", I'd like to point out that many people were exempt from the "Jizyah" or "taxes":
"Jizyah: the root meaning is compensation.......there were exemptions for the poor, for females and children (according to Abu Hanifah), for slaves, and for monks and hermits. Being a tax on able-bodied males of military age, it was in a sense a commutation for military service." [2]
As to the fighting, when Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him started spreading the Message of Islam to the Arabs, he had to eventually deal with 365 Pagan Arab tribes, 3 Jewish tribes (Bani Qaynuqaa, Bani Al-Natheer, and Bani Quraytha) and some Christian tribes as well.
The Muslims did not live Islam easily 1400 years ago. They had to deal with many battles that were imposed upon them. They also had to deal with many betrayals done by other tribes who broke their peace treaties with the Muslims and joined as alliance with other enemy tribes and fought the Muslims.
Please visit The betrayal of Bani Uraina to the Muslims.
Can Muslims torture prisoners of war?
Prophet Muhammad taking revenges for himself and committing murders is a lie! Does Islam really encourage Muslims to take revenge? Absolutely Not!
Why did Muhammad take up arms and Christ didn't? Why did Islam spread by the sword if it were indeed a Religion of Truth, and Christianity didn't? See my response to this misunderstanding. Did you know that even Jesus killed his enemies in the Bible?
Does Islam really encourage Muslims to take revenge?
Forgiveness and revenge in Islam. There is a difference between being a peaceful person, and a coward hypocrite in Islam.
Notice that in Noble Verse 9:28 above, Allah Almighty was referring to a certain situation that the Muslims had to face. "After this year..." clearly and unquestionably suggests that Noble Verses 9:28-29 are for a situation that existed 1400 years ago. They don't necessarily have to apply today.
Why Jizyah? And how much are the taxes for both Muslims and non-Muslims?
The Muslims have to pay taxes (which is 2.5 percent of their annual income) under the name of "Zakah" to the "Muslim Financial Institute" or the "House of the Muslim Money" which all goes to provide welfare to the poor and the needy citizens; from both Muslims and non-Muslims. The poor and the needy (such as the Orphans, Widows and the disabled) from the Muslims are exempt from paying taxes.
The non-Muslims have to pay a varrying amount under the name of "Jizyah", depending on their situation, which is taxes that don't go to help poor and needy Muslims, but instead, it goes to the government to (1) Provide protection for them since they are a minority; (2) Provide means for them to practice their religions freely by building Temples or Churches for them.
As I mentioned above for the non-Muslims, there are exemptions for the poor, for females and children (according to Abu Hanifah), for slaves, and for monks and hermits.
It is important to know that the law in the Islamic State applies to everyone; both Muslims and non-Muslims equally. This means that murderers and rapists get executed, adulterers and adulteresses get flogged 100 stripes, etc...
If Muslims conquered a State by war then the non-Muslims are to be taken as slaves, and later on, they must be given their freedom if they request it and be paid some money too. Please visit: Can a slave request his freedom from his Muslim Master and be granted his freedom in Islam? The Muslim Master must pay him/her money too to get a nice jump start in life too according to the Noble Quran.
Please also visit Human equality, liberty and freedom in Islam V.S. Christianity.
Jizyah in the Bible.
Tributary Taxes (Jizyah) in the Bible's Old Testament:
The following is an email that I received from Mr. Ronald Jefferson; may Allah Almighty continue to bless him through leading him to Islam. Ameen.
Date: Mon, 14 May 2007 19:43:42 -0700 (PDT)
From: "Ronald Jefferson" <nicianhijacker@yahoo.com>
Subject: Here is an example of Jihad in the Bible
To: QuranSearchCom@yahoo.com
Is there any Old Testament Equivalent to the Islamic Tributary Tax (Jizya) of conquered lands?
When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it.
And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace, and open unto thee, then it shall be, [that] all the people [that is] found therein shall be tributaries unto thee, and they shall serve thee.
And if it will make no peace with thee, but will make war against thee, then thou shalt besiege it:
And when the LORD thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword: But the women, and the little ones, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, [even] all the spoil thereof, shalt thou take unto thyself; and thou shalt eat the spoil of thine enemies, which the LORD thy God hath given thee. Thus shalt thou do unto all the cities [which are] very far off from thee, which [are] not of the cities of these nations. -- Deu 20:10-15
[64] Chavel 1967, v.I, 200f. The Bible references are Deuteronomy 20.
This obligation is commented by Rabbi Chavel:
"This Commandment ... will be better understood in the light of the following passage from the 'Mishneh Torah': '
We are not to engage in war with anyone whatever unless we [first] proclaim peace to him; [this is applicable to both] an optional and an obligatory war; for it is said, When thou drawest nigh a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it (Deut XX, 10).
If [the inhabitants] accept the offer of peace... we are not to slay a soul among them, and they merely become tributary, for it is said, [All the people ... therein] shall become tributary unto thee, and shall serve thee'." (Ibid.)
Step 1 --- Give them the option of peace
Step 2 ---- If they want to keep their religion, they must pay the Tribute (Head Tax)
Step 3 ---- If they deny the above two options then kill them all or enslave them.
In other words, if the city's inhabitants object to being subdued/enslaved, they have to be slain nevertheless. Also sparing their life directly contradicts Negative Commandment 49 (see note [65]).
"We must not make a covenant with idolaters, to agree on keeping peace with them or accept them practising idolatry, because it says (Deut 7:2) Thou shalt not make a covenant with them. Either they give up idolatry or they are killed. And it is forbidden to pity them, since it says (ibid.): Nor shalt thou shew mercy unto them.
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