Charity is one of the Five Pillars of Islamic practice. Zakat is an obligation for those who have received their wealth from God to respond to those members of the community in need.
Islam encourages the sharing of wealth with others and helps people to stand on their own and become productive members of the society. In Arabic it is known as zakat which literally means “purification”, because zakat is considered to purify one’s heart of greed.
Zakat must be paid on different categories of property – gold, silver, money and business commodities – and is payable each year after one year’s possession.It requires an annual contribution of 2.5 percent of an individual’s wealth and assets.