Sawm and Zakah: Fasting and Almsgiving
Sawm is the obligation to fast during daylight hours throughout the month of Ramadan, abstaining from food, drink and other restricted behaviour. Zakah is the obligation to give a fixed proportion of a Muslim's surplus savings each year to those in need. Both are among the Five Pillars of Islam, combining self-discipline with concern for the wider community.
Before you start
Make sure you're comfortable with these topics first:
Method
- Learn the definition of sawm and which month it applies to: Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar.
- Learn what must be avoided during fasting hours, and which groups are excused.
- Learn the definition of zakah, the nisab threshold, and the standard 2.5 per cent Sunni convention.
- Learn at least one Qur'anic reference for each duty, such as 2:183 for fasting and 9:60 for zakah's recipients.
- Learn the genuine Sunni and Shi'a difference (khums, paid in addition to zakah by many Shi'a Muslims) so you can answer a contrasting-practices question accurately.
- Practise linking each duty to a purpose beyond the individual, such as empathy with the poor or social justice.
- Practise a simple zakah calculation using the 2.5 per cent rate, since numeric application questions can appear alongside explain questions.
Worked example
A Muslim's savings held for a full lunar year come to 2,400 pounds above the nisab threshold. Using the standard Sunni convention that zakah is 2.5 per cent of such savings, calculate how much zakah is owed.
- Identify the rate to apply: 2.5 per cent of the qualifying savings.
- Write down the qualifying amount: 2,400 pounds.
- Convert 2.5 per cent to a decimal: 2.5 divided by 100 equals 0.025.
- Multiply: 2,400 multiplied by 0.025 equals 60.
- State the final answer: 60 pounds of zakah is owed.
Practice questions
Try each question, then tap to reveal the answer.
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE Religious Studies exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
A tutor tells a student that zakah is 'simply 2.5 per cent of everything a Muslim owns'. Explain two ways this description is inaccurate.
Compare sawm and zakah as expressions of self-discipline. Explain one way each pillar requires a Muslim to give something up.
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