Tahdhīb al-Aḥkām

قال الشيخ رحمه الله:) وأفضل ما جرت به السنة في الفطرة التمر(

The Shaykh (Al-Mufid), may Allah (swt) have mercy on him, said: “And the best of what the Sunnah has proceeded upon regarding al-fitrah is dates.”

سَعْدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اَللَّهِ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ اَلْحَسَنِ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ اَلنُّعْمَانِ عَنْ مَنْصُورِ بْنِ خَارِجَةَ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اَللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ اَلسَّلاَمُ قَالَ: سَأَلْتُهُ عَنْ صَدَقَةِ اَلْفِطْرَةِ قَالَ» صَاعٌ مِنْ تَمْرٍ أَوْ نِصْفُ صَاعٍ مِنْ حِنْطَةٍ أَوْ صَاعٌ مِنْ شَعِيرٍ وَاَلتَّمْرُ أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ«.

Sa’ad ibn Abdullah, from Muhammad ibn al-Hasan, from Ali ibn al-Numan, from Mansur ibn Kharijah, from Abu Abdillah (a.s), peace be upon him, who said: I (narrator) asked Imam (a.s) about ‘the charity of al-Fitrah.’ Imam (a.s) said: “One sa’ of dates, or half a sa’ of wheat, or one sa’ of barley, and dates are more beloved to me.”

وَ عَنْهُ عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ اَلْحَكَمِ عَنْ سَيْفِ بْنِ عَمِيرَةَ عَنْ إِسْحَاقَ بْنِ عَمَّارٍ قَالَ: سَأَلْتُ أَبَا اَلْحَسَنِ عَلَيْهِ اَلسَّلاَمُ عَنْ صَدَقَةِ اَلْفِطْرَةِ قَالَ» اَلتَّمْرُ أَفْضَلُ«.

And from him, from Ahmad ibn Muhammad, from Ali ibn al-Hakam, from Sayf ibn Amirah, from Ishaq ibn Ammar, who said: I (narrator) asked Abu al-Hasan (a.s), peace be upon him, about ‘the charity of al-Fitrah.’ Imam (a.s) said: “Dates are better.”

مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ يَعْقُوبَ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنْ أَبِيهِ وَ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ إِسْمَاعِيلَ عَنِ اَلْفَضْلِ بْنِ شَاذَانَ جَمِيعاً عَنِ اِبْنِ أَبِي عُمَيْرٍ عَنْ هِشَامِ بْنِ اَلْحَكَمِ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اَللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ اَلسَّلاَمُ قَالَ:» اَلتَّمْرُ فِي اَلْفِطْرَةِ أَفْضَلُ مِنْ غَيْرِهِ لِأَنَّهُ أَسْرَعُ مَنْفَعَةً وَذَلِكَ أَنَّهُ إِذَا وَقَعَ فِي يَدِ صَاحِبِهِ أَكَلَ مِنْهُ« وَقَالَ» نَزَلَتِ اَلزَّكَاةُ وَلَيْسَ لِلنَّاسِ أَمْوَالٌ وَإِنَّمَا كَانَتِ اَلْفِطْرَةُ«.

Muhammad ibn Yaqub, from Ali ibn Ibrahim, from his father, and Muhammad ibn Ismail, from al-Fadl ibn Shadhan, all of them from Ibn Abi Umayr, from Hisham ibn al-Hakam, from Abu Abdillah (a.s), peace be upon him, who said: Imam (a.s) said: “Dates in the Fitrah are better than other than them, because they are quicker in benefit, and that is because when they fall into the hand of their owner, he eats from them.” And Imam (a.s) said: “Zakat was revealed while the people did not have wealth, and it was only the Fitrah.”

أَبُو اَلْقَاسِمِ بْنُ قُولَوَيْهِ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ إِدْرِيسَ قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ حَمْدَانَ اَلْكُوفِيُّ قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي اَلْحَسَنُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ سَمَاعَةَ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ زِيَادٍ عَنْ عُمَارَةَ بْنِ مَرْوَانَ عَنْ زَيْدٍ اَلشَّحَّامِ قَالَ قَالَ أَبُو عَبْدِ اَللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ اَلسَّلاَمُ :»لَأَنْ أُعْطِيَ صَاعاً مِنْ تَمْرٍ أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ مِنْ أَنْ أُعْطِيَ صَاعاً مِنْ ذَهَبٍ فِي اَلْفِطْرَةِ«.

Abu al-Qasim ibn Qulawayh, from his father, from Ahmad ibn Idris, who said: Muhammad ibn Hamdan al-Kufi narrated to me, who said: al-Hasan ibn Muhammad ibn Samaah narrated to me, from Muhammad ibn Ziyad, from Umarah ibn Marwan, from Zayd al-Shahham, who said: Abu Abdillah (a.s), peace be upon him, said: “For me to give one sa’ of dates is more beloved to me than to give one sa’ of gold in the Fitrah.”

سَعْدٌ عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ عَمَّنْ حَدَّثَهُ عَنْ عَبْدِ اَللَّهِ بْنِ سِنَانٍ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اَللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ اَلسَّلاَمُ قَالَ: سَأَلْتُهُ عَنْ صَدَقَةِ اَلْفِطْرَةِ قَالَ» عَنْ كُلِّ رَأْسٍ مِنْ أَهْلِكَ اَلصَّغِيرِ مِنْهُمْ وَ اَلْكَبِيرِ وَ اَلْحُرِّ وَ اَلْمَمْلُوكِ وَاَلْغَنِيِّ وَ اَلْفَقِيرِ كُلِّ مَنْ ضَمَمْتَ إِلَيْكَ عَنْ كُلِّ إِنْسَانٍ صَاعٌ مِنْ حِنْطَةٍ أَوْ صَاعٌ مِنْ شَعِيرٍ أَوْ تَمْرٍ أَوْ زَبِيبٍ« وَ قَالَ» اَلتَّمْرُ أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ فَإِنَّ لَكَ بِكُلِّ تَمْرَةٍ نَخْلَةً فِي اَلْجَنَّةِ«.

Sa’ad, from Ahmad ibn Muhammad, from the one who narrated to him, from Abdullah ibn Sinan, from Abu Abdillah (a.s), peace be upon him, who said: I (narrator) asked Imam (a.s) about ‘the charity of al-Fitrah.’ Imam (a.s) said: “On behalf of every head from your family, the young among them and the old, the free and the owned slave, the rich and the poor, everyone whom you have joined to yourself; on behalf of every person is one sa’ of wheat, or one sa’ of barley, or dates, or raisins.” And Imam (a.s) said: “Dates are more beloved to me, for indeed, for every date, you will have a palm tree in Paradise.”

فأما إخراج القيمة فقد بينا فيما تقدم جوازه ويزيد ذلك بيانا ما رواه:

As for paying the value, we have already explained previously that it is permissible, and what further clarifies that is what was narrated (in the following hadith):

اِبْنُ قُولَوَيْهِ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ سَعْدِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اَللَّهِ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عِيسَى عَنْ يُونُسَ عَنْ إِسْحَاقَ بْنِ عَمَّارٍ اَلصَّيْرَفِيِّ قَالَ: قُلْتُ لِأَبِي عَبْدِ اَللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ اَلسَّلاَمُ جُعِلْتُ فِدَاكَ مَا تَقُولُ فِي اَلْفِطْرَةِ يَجُوزُ أَنْ أُؤَدِّيَهَا فِضَّةً بِقِيمَةِ هَذِهِ اَلْأَشْيَاءِ اَلَّتِي سَمَّيْتَهَا قَالَ» نَعَمْ إِنَّ ذَلِكَ أَنْفَعُ لَهُ يَشْتَرِي بِهَا مَا يُرِيدُ«.

Ibn Qulawayh, from his father, from Sa’ad ibn Abdullah, from Muhammad ibn Isa, from Yunus, from Ishaq ibn Ammar al-Sayrafi, who said: I (narrator) said to Abu Abdillah (a.s), peace be upon him: “May I be made your ransom, what do you say regarding the Fitrah? Is it permissible for me to pay it in silver, according to the value of these things which you have named?” Imam (a.s) said: “Yes, indeed that is more beneficial for him; he buys with it whatever he wants.”

احمد بن محمد عن الحسن بن علي بن فضال عن ثعلبة بن ميمون عن إسحاق بن عمار عن ابي عبد الله عليه السلام قال: لا بأس بالقيمة في الفطرة

Ahmad ibn Muhammad, from al-Hasan ibn Ali ibn Faddal, from Thalabah ibn Maymun, from Ishaq ibn Ammar, from Abu Abdillah (a.s), peace be upon him, who said: Imam (a.s) said: “There is no harm in paying the value for al-fitrah.”