Under Which Circumstances Is Khums Exempted?

We have Hadiths from the Imams of Ahl ul-Bayt about Tahlil al-Khums. There are Sahih Hadiths from Imam Ali Ibni Abi Talib, alayhi as-salam, from other Imams that say, "amma al-Khums faqad ubiha li-Shi'atina". Or from our Shi'as "ahlalnaum min al-Khums", We have relieved them from the Khums. They don't have to pay the Khums.

We do have these traditions. Yes. So many people ask, okay, what's going on there? If the Imams of Ahl ul-Bayt themselves, they relieved the Shi'a from paying the Khums, then why is it throughout history the scholars are saying it's still Wajib, it's still mandatory?

In order to shed some light on these Hadiths, my dear brothers and sisters, very quickly, I'll give you an example then will give you the application here.

Imagine if the province of Canada or here in Nova Scotia, one law says you have to pay tax on your house, property tax. How much is property tax here? 10%, 13%? 1%? 1% of the value of the property? Okay, let's say it's 1%. Let's say if you have a house that's worth $500,000, you have to pay $5,000. Let's see.

So one law says: homeowners have to pay property tax. Then you get a second law that says: homeowners don't have to pay tax. Now, there seems to be a contradiction. Then you have a third law that says: if you are married, you don't pay tax. After looking at these three laws together, and you're trying to reconcile them, what is the conclusion that you draw from these three laws? What is the conclusion?

One law says: homeowners pay taxes. One law contradicts it says: no, they don't have to pay tax. The third law says: if you're married, you pay tax. How do you reconcile between these three? If you don't get married, then you're doomed. You have to pay the tax.

The conclusion from a legal perspective, if you're reconciling these laws, is that you say, okay, those who are married, they're exempt from this type of tax. And if you're not married, you're not exempt. So the law that says you have to pay, who is it really aimed at? Those who are not married. And the law that says you don't have to pay, it's aimed at the married ones. You see how technically you resolve this?

This is the same exact situation we have with the Khums. We have Hadiths that say you have to pay Khums, it's Wajib. We have Hadith that say the Shi'a have been relieved from paying the Khums, meaning it's not Wajib. So now there might be a contradiction.

Well, we have a third category of Hadith that say the following. If you receive something from someone as a gift, or you buy something from someone knowing that that person doesn't pay Khumus. So the gift that you have in your hand is Khums applicable. One fifth of it does not belong to you. It belongs to its rightful owners.

You buy a house from someone. Let's say you buy a house from someone, that person is not a Shi'a, is not a muslim. They don't pay their Khums, or they don't even believe in Khums. Now, if you take that house from them, technically one fifth of it doesn't belong to them or no, if they never paid their homes? It doesn't belong to them.

One fifth of it doesn't belong to them. Because one fifth of everything that people make is to the Khums category. The Hadith from the Imam alayhi as-salam, says the following: if you buy that house, yes, one fifth of it goes to the share of the Imam, to the share of the poor family members of the Prophet. But we have relieved our Shi'a from that, because life would be so difficult if they have to observe that.

Anybody who gives you a gift pay the Khums of it. Somebody invites you for a meal and they don't pay their Khums. Well, can you eat that meal or no? If 20% of it is not your lawful share? That would make life miserable for us. So the hadith came to do what? Came to say, if you receive inheritance, if you receive a gift, if you receive anything from someone, they did not pay the Khums, it's on them, not on you, take it for you, it's Halal.

So all those narrations that talk about Tahlil al-Khums, making the Khums not applicable to the Shi'a, which type of category are they talking about? This type of category that you get from someone and they did not pay it.

I know some people ask the following question, Sayyid, my father never paid Khums in his life and he died, and now I have inheritance. He never even believed in Khums , let's say, or he knew it was Wajib, he didn't care.

Now that I get this inheritance, do I have to pay the Khums on it? No, you don't have to pay Khums on it. The Imams have made it lawful. Why? To make it easier for you. The sin is on your father, not you.

So those Hadiths that talk about Tahlil al-Khums are looking at this particular category. So for some people to take these Hadiths out of context, that is something that should be avoided from doing my dear brothers and sisters. All of our Hadiths have a system. There's a legal system. Through these legal channels, we must examine them. I can't take something out of context and come and issue my own Fatwas on it.

So, my dear brothers and sisters, we now have examined this very important subject in the school of Ahl ul-Bayt, peace be upon them. And I remind you that the verse of Suratul Anfal is the verse that all the Imams of Ahl ul-Bayt have cited. It's well found in the Holy Qur'an and in our Hadith.

And my final point, just to remind you, is that, yes, there are concerns. No one denies that there is some misuse here and there, but that doesn't mean if there is some misuse that you denounce the whole idea, you denounce the whole concept. You have to look at the history of it. You have to look at the best and benefits of it. One has a problem with one area. There are many many other alternatives that you can see.