Knowledge & Devotion · Virtues of Good Deeds

Islamic Charity and Deeds Ethics

Explore obligations and merits of charitable acts in Islam.

7 questions · Hard · about 4 minutes

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1. What is the most complete form of sponsoring an orphan?

  • Taking care of the orphan’s religious and worldly affairs, raising and guiding him like one’s own children. (correct answer)
  • Only sending money while ignoring the orphan’s upbringing.
  • Changing the orphan’s lineage and family name.
  • Sponsoring an orphan only until the next charity payment is made.

Why

Spending on an orphan is a good deed and one part of sponsorship, but sponsorship in the fullest sense is broader than financial support. It includes looking after the orphan’s religious and worldly interests, teaching, guiding, educating, treating him kindly, and spending on his food, clothing, shelter, and other needs until he is no longer an orphan. The best form is to bring him close, raise him with one’s own children, and care for him as one cares for them.

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2. What is the main difference between sponsoring an orphan and forbidden adoption?

  • Sponsorship cares for the orphan without changing his lineage or making forbidden family rulings lawful. (correct answer)
  • Sponsorship requires changing the orphan’s father’s name.
  • Adoption is encouraged because it preserves lineage.
  • Sponsorship means treating the orphan harshly and keeping him distant.

Why

Forbidden adoption means making the orphan like one’s own child in lineage and legal family rulings: calling him after the adoptive father, treating non-mahrams as mahrams, and changing inheritance and marriage rulings. Sponsoring an orphan is different. A person may bring the orphan into his home or support him elsewhere, care for him, feed him, and show kindness, without changing his lineage or making forbidden matters permissible.

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3. When may general charitable donations be used for a charitable institution’s needs?

  • When the donations were general and the spending serves a charitable cause. (correct answer)
  • When the money was zakah, regardless of the eight zakah categories.
  • When the donor specified a different purpose.
  • Whenever the charity staff prefer a different project.

Why

Donated money must be handled according to its type and the donor’s condition. Zakah may only be spent on the eight categories defined in the Qur’an. General sadaqah may be spent on any charitable cause, including building or preparing an institution that serves orphans. But if donors specified a particular use, such as sponsoring orphans or buying winter blankets, then the money must be used for that specified purpose unless it becomes redundant or the wording clearly covers the broader need.

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4. Which example best fits sadaqah jaariyah?

  • Building a mosque or digging a well whose benefit continues. (correct answer)
  • Giving a one-time meal to a poor person.
  • Paying zakah on behalf of someone else.
  • Giving cash that is immediately consumed.

Why

Sadaqah jaariyah is ongoing charity, meaning a waqf-like charity in which the original asset or benefit continues and people keep benefiting from it. Examples include building a mosque, digging a well, donating Mushafs or books of knowledge, or giving a house as a waqf for the poor to live in or benefit from its rent. Giving food or cash is good charity, but it is usually a one-time charity, not sadaqah jaariyah.

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5. What is the defining feature of sadaqah jaariyah?

  • Its reward continues after death because its benefit continues. (correct answer)
  • It is any one-time gift of food.
  • It must be given only in Ramadan.
  • It is valid only if the donation is very large.

Why

Sadaqah jaariyah is ongoing charity whose reward continues after a person dies. Scholars explain it as a kind of waqf or endowment. A one-time act of charity, such as feeding a poor person or giving cash that is consumed, is still good, but it is not ongoing charity. Ongoing examples include mosques, wells, useful books, Mus-hafs, trees, canals, and institutions that continue to benefit people.

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6. How does zakah differ from sadaqah regarding the types of wealth involved?

  • Zakah is obligatory on specific types of wealth, while sadaqah is not limited in that way. (correct answer)
  • Sadaqah is obligatory on gold, silver, crops, and livestock.
  • Zakah may be given at any time in any amount with no guidelines.
  • Sadaqah is more restricted than zakah in every way.

Why

Zakah is an obligatory act of worship connected to specific kinds of wealth, such as gold, silver, crops, fruits, trade goods, and an‘am livestock like camels, cattle, and sheep. It also has conditions such as the nisab, the passing of one full Hijri year for many types of wealth, and a fixed portion. Sadaqah is voluntary and broader: it may be given at any time, in any amount, and is not restricted to those same wealth types.

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7. If no zakah is due on a person’s monthly salary because a full Hijri year has not passed since he owned the nisab, what should he do?

  • There is no set amount required, but he should give whatever charity he can. (correct answer)
  • He must pay 2.5% of each salary payment immediately.
  • He must borrow money to give zakah.
  • He is forbidden to give voluntary charity.

Why

Zakah becomes obligatory when a person owns the nisab and one full Hijri year has passed over it. If a monthly salary does not meet those conditions, then no specific amount of that salary is obligatory as zakah. Still, a Muslim should not deprive himself of the reward of charity, so he should give whatever he can. The best charity is given when one can afford it, while still giving priority to oneself and dependents.

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A note on these answers

These questions are for learning and self-testing. Explanations are drawn from the sources linked on each question and are not a fatwa. For a ruling on your own circumstances, please consult a qualified scholar.

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