Section : The Legitimacy of Zakah on Rikaz and Ma'din.
That zakah of rikaz and ma'din is obligatory is shown by a statement attributed to Abu Hurairah: "The Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: 'There is no compensation for one killed or wounded by an animal, falling in a well, or because of working in mines; but, one-fifth (khums) is compulsory on rikaz.'" Ibn al-Munzhir confesses that he does not know anyone who contradicted this hadith except al-Hasan, who differentiates between what exists in the land of war and the Islamic land. The latter holds that if rikaz is found in the land of war, one-fifth (khums) is due, but if it is found in the Islamic land, it will be subject to the regular zakah.
Explaining it, Ibn al-Qayyim says that there are two interpretations of this statement:
The first interpretation is that whenever someone hires someone else to dig a mine for him and then he falls into it and is killed, there is no compensation for him. This view is supported by the Prophet's saying: "There is no compensation for one who falls into a well or who is killed by an animal - (al-bi'r jubar, wa al-'ajma' jubar)."
The second interpretation is that there is no zakah on minerals. This view is supported by the Prophet's saying: "...but one-fifth is compuslory on treasure - (wa fi az-zakah al-khums)." Thus, he differentiated between mineral (ma'din) and treasure (rikaz). He made zakah on rikaz compulsory because it is a wealth obtained without any cost or effort. He exempted minerals (ma'din) from zakah because they require both cost and effort for their mining.
That zakah of rikaz and ma'din is obligatory is shown by a statement attributed to Abu Hurairah: "The Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: 'There is no compensation for one killed or wounded by an animal, falling in a well, or because of working in mines; but, one-fifth (khums) is compulsory on rikaz.'" Ibn al-Munzhir confesses that he does not know anyone who contradicted this hadith except al-Hasan, who differentiates between what exists in the land of war and the Islamic land. The latter holds that if rikaz is found in the land of war, one-fifth (khums) is due, but if it is found in the Islamic land, it will be subject to the regular zakah.
Explaining it, Ibn al-Qayyim says that there are two interpretations of this statement:
The first interpretation is that whenever someone hires someone else to dig a mine for him and then he falls into it and is killed, there is no compensation for him. This view is supported by the Prophet's saying: "There is no compensation for one who falls into a well or who is killed by an animal - (al-bi'r jubar, wa al-'ajma' jubar)."
The second interpretation is that there is no zakah on minerals. This view is supported by the Prophet's saying: "...but one-fifth is compuslory on treasure - (wa fi az-zakah al-khums)." Thus, he differentiated between mineral (ma'din) and treasure (rikaz). He made zakah on rikaz compulsory because it is a wealth obtained without any cost or effort. He exempted minerals (ma'din) from zakah because they require both cost and effort for their mining.