Zakat upon jewellery which is kept in use and not stored

Bismillahi Ta’ala

Walaikum Assalam Warahmatullah,

The questions seems to be unclear. It does not indicate what has been purchased for the intent of using. From academic discourses, I deduce it must be about Zakat upon jewellery which is kept in use and not stored.

According to the Hanafiya, there is zakat in all gold and silver jewellery regardless of intent of purchase. This is the fatwa on the matter and should be followed.

I am attaching a little detail from explanations of Mufti Saeed Ahmed Palanpuri Saheb rahimahullah in his Sharh on Tirmidhi Shareef.

According to the three Imams (A’immah Thalāthah), zakāh is not obligatory on jewelry that belongs to a woman and that she wears. They consider such jewelry as non-growing wealth (māl ghayr nāmī), and zakāh is only obligatory on growing wealth (māl nāmī). However, if the gold and silver jewelry belong to a man, or if a woman owns jewelry but does not wear it, then zakāh is obligatory on it.

According to the Ḥanafī school, zakāh is obligatory on all gold and silver jewelry, whether it is purely gold, predominantly gold and silver, owned by a man or a woman, and whether the woman wears it or not. In every case, zakāh is obligatory.

The A’immah Thalāthah base their opinion on the absence of clear evidence. They argue that no authentic and explicit ḥadīth establishes the obligation of zakāh on jewelry, whereas a ṣaḥīḥ (authentic) ḥadīth is necessary to establish obligation.

It is important to note that there are two hadiths on this matter:

The first hadith is authentic (sahih) but not explicit (sarih).
The second hadith is explicit (ṣarīḥ), but both of its chains are weak. One chain contains Ibn Lahī‘ah, and the other contains Muthannā ibn aṣ-Ṣabāḥ, both of whom are weak narrators. However, there is a third chain that is authentic, though it was not considered by Imām at-Tirmidhī.

Hadith 1: The Speech of the Prophet ﷺ to Women
It is narrated from Sayyidatuna Zainab rḍ that:
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ addressed the women and said:
“O women! Give charity, even from your jewelry, for indeed, on the Day of Judgment, the majority of the inhabitants of Hell will be women.”

Explanation
This hadith is authentic but does not explicitly prove the obligation of zakah on jewelry, as it can also be understood as encouragement for voluntary charity (nafl sadaqah).

This hadith is narrated by Al-A‘mash rḥ from both Shu‘bah and Abū Mu‘āwiyah. However, Abū Mu‘āwiyah adds “from” (‘an) after ‘Amr ibn al-Ḥārith ibn al-Muṣṭaliq, but this addition is incorrect, as ‘Amr ibn al-Ḥārith was actually the nephew of Sayyidatuna Zainab rḍ. The correct chain is that of Shu‘bah rḥ.

Hadith 2: The Story of Two Women Wearing Gold Bangles
It is narrated that:
Two women came to the Prophet ﷺ (this occurred before the revelation of ḥijāb). Both of them were wearing gold bangles. The Prophet ﷺ asked them, “Do you pay zakah on these?”
They replied, “No.”
The Prophet ﷺ then said:
“Do you like that Allah will replace these with bangles of fire in Hell?”
They replied, “No.”
So the Prophet ﷺ said:
“Then pay zakah on them.”

Explanation
This hadith explicitly proves the obligation of zakah on jewelry. However, Imām at-Tirmidhī rḥ recorded two chains for it, both of which are weak:

The first chain is weak due to Ibn Lahī‘ah.
The second chain is weak due to Shamnī ibn aṣ-Ṣabāḥ.
However, there is a third chain in Abū Dāwūd (2:218) through Khālid ibn al-Ḥārith—who is trustworthy and reliable—narrating from Ḥusayn al-Mu‘allim, who narrates from ‘Amr ibn Shu‘ayb. This chain is authentic. (Even) Sh. Al-Albānī has graded this third chain as ḥasan (acceptable) in his commentary on Mishkāt al-Maṣābīḥ (Hadith 1809).

At the end of this narration in Abū Dāwūd, it is also mentioned that upon hearing this warning, both women gave their bangles in charity. From this, we derive the ruling that if a person donates all their wealth that is subject to zakah after zakah becomes obligatory, their obligation is fulfilled.

Another Proof from Ḥanafī Madhhab
Another proof of the Ḥanafī stance is the narration of Sayyidatuna ‘Ā’ishah rḍ: She said:
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ saw some fataḥat (a type of jewelry) on my hand and asked, ‘What is this?’ I replied, ‘O Messenger of Allah, I had these made so I could adorn myself for you.’ He then asked, ‘Do you pay zakah on them?’ I said, ‘No.’ He replied, ‘Huwa ḥasbuki min an-nār! (This is enough to send you to the Fire!)’”

This hadith is recorded in Abū Dāwūd (Hadith 1565) and other hadith compilations. Imām al-Hakim rḥ graded it according to the criteria of al-Bukhārī and Muslim, while Ibn Daqīq al-‘Īd rḥ stated that it meets the criteria of Muslim (Ma‘ārif as-Sunan 5:230).

This hadith, along with the narration of ‘Amr ibn Shu‘ayb, serves as evidence for the Hanafi stance.

Wallahu A’lam

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best
Mufti Faisal al-Mahmudi