Q.1. It is agreed that reading the Qur’an when one is in the state of ceremonial impurity is permissible but not touching or holding the Qur’an itself. Which is more sacred — the paper and ink which are man-made, or the words that God revealed?
Q.2. You often mentioned that women’s jewelry is exempt from zakah under certain conditions. Who determines these and their appropriate level? Is it not a case of owning the threshold of zakah? What happens when the jewelry is over this threshold?
S.H. Imran
A.1. In all these questions the problem arises from different views and rulings by different schools of thought or different scholars. We try to establish what is better supported by evidence and what is more convenient for people, provided that we do not contravene any clear statement in the Qur’an or the Sunnah.
The majority of scholars agree that neither reading nor holding the Qur’an is permissible when one is in a state of ceremonial impurity. Some scholars have a different view, but this is the majority opinion. Of course the sanctity of the words is greater than the paper, but the words by themselves are not sacred. It is when they are set in the particular form of the Qur’an that they become so. The Prophet (peace be upon him) is quoted as saying: “I do not permit the Qur’an to any woman in her menstruation or to any man in the state of ceremonial impurity, i.e. janabah.” This applies to both holding or reading it.
A.2. The conditions for exempting jewelry from zakah are that the woman has it for her personal use and that its amount is reasonable for women in her social status. There is no rigid rule to determine this. Some women may have more than others in their own social status, but as long as people generally consider it reasonable, then the rule applies. We do not relate this to the threshold of zakah, because that threshold speaks of what one has over and above what one needs for one’s living. The threshold is the equivalent of 85 grams of gold, but it need not be in gold. It can be in any type of money or property. A woman may have 500 grams or more in jewelry and this is not zakatable because it is reasonable for her to have this amount for her personal use.
