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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books To Be With the Truthful Al-Khums (One-fifth) It is also one of controversial topics between the Shi’ah and Sunnah.

Before giving judgement to their benefit or against them, we have to give a brief exposition about the issue of khums, and we start it with the Holy Qur’ān; Allah, the Exalted said: “And know ye (O’ believers) that whatever of a thing ye acquire a fifth of it is for God, and for the Apostle and for the (Apostle’s) near relatives and the orphans and the needy and the wayfarer ...” (8:41) The Messenger of Allah (S) said: “I order you to do four things: To have faith in Allah, to establish prayers, to pay zakāt, and to fast the month of Ramadān, and to pay for Allah the fifth of whatever you acquire.”[^1] The Shi’ah — complying to the command of the Messenger of Allah (S) — usually take out fifth of whatever they earn of money throughout the whole year, explaining the word “spoil” (ghanimah) to mean whatever man earns of profits in general.

Whereas Ahl al-Sunnah concur on specifying khums on the spoils of war solely, explaining God’s saying: (And know ye that whatever of a thing ye acquire) to mean whatever you acquire during war. This being the abstract of what the two sects hold regarding khums, and their ‘ulamā’ have written many articles about this issue.

I know not how can I convince myself or others to accept the opinions of Ahl al-Sunnah, that were based — as I think — on the sayings of the Umayyad rulers, headed by Mu‘āwiyah ibn Abi Sufyān who seized the whole estates of Muslims, looting with his retinue all the gold and silver there. So, no wonder seeing them interpreting the khums verse to be specifically related to the spoils of war, since the course of the verse happened to be within the verses of war and fighting.

Not only this verse, but they have interpreted many verses in accordance to the course of the preceding verse or the one coming after. For instance, they interpret the verse of removing the uncleanness and purification (tathir), to be specifically referring to the Prophet’s wives, as whatever preceding and succeeding it being about the wives of the Prophet (S).

They also interpret the Almighty’s saying: “...They who hoard up gold and silver and spend it not in the way of Allah, unto them give tidings (O Muhammad) of a painful doom,” to be specifically related to the People of Scripture (Ahl al-Kitāb).