Series of Answers by the Eminent Scholar Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah, Ameer of Hizb ut-Tahrir
To the Questions of the Followers of his Facebook Page "Fiqhi"
To Abu Ahmad
Question:
All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master Ahmad. Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. I am from Palestine, and there are those who search in others' land for precious metals. If someone finds Ottoman grams [coins] hidden by the Ottoman State in 1916 and cannot return them to the Turks now, does the finder have a share, or is it only for the owner of the land—as a fee for keeping the treasure in his land? Furthermore, should the money, whose origin belongs to the State, be given entirely to the poor or only the one-fifth (Khums)? We thank you, and may Allah grant you victory and protect you and the sincere ones.
Answer:
Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
We have previously answered a similar question more than once, and I will quote some of it for you:
- From the answer to a question on 08/11/2013:
"(...As for the second part of the question regarding Rikaz, whoever finds Rikaz, one-fifth (Khums) is due from it, which is to be handed over to the Islamic State to be spent on the interests of the Muslims. The other four-fifths belong to the one who found the Rikaz, provided it was not found on someone else’s land.
If the Islamic State is not established, as is the case today, then the one who finds the Rikaz extracts the Khums himself for the poor, the needy, and the interests of the Muslims... he should investigate the truth in that, and the rest belongs to him.
As for the evidence for this:
a. Rikaz is property buried in the earth, whether it be silver, gold, jewels, pearls, or other items like jewelry and weapons. This applies whether they are treasures buried by previous peoples, such as the Egyptians, Babylonians, Assyrians, Sassanids, Romans, Greeks, and others—like the coins, jewelry, and gems found in the tombs of their kings and dignitaries or in the mounds of their ancient destroyed cities—or whether it is gold or silver coins placed in jars or otherwise, hidden in the ground from the days of Jahiliyyah (pre-Islamic era) or past Islamic days. All of that is considered Rikaz.
The word Rikaz is derived from ركز، يركز, similar to غرز يغرز when something is hidden. It is said: ركز الرمح when one sticks the spear into the ground. From it comes the word الرِّكز, which is a faint sound. Allah (swt) said:
أَوْ تَسْمَعُ لَهُمْ رِكْزاً
"or hear from them [so much as] a whisper?" (QS. Maryam [19]: 98)
As for the mineral (Ma’din), it is what Allah created in the earth on the day He created the heavens and the earth, such as gold, silver, copper, lead, and others. The word Ma’din is derived from عَدَنَ في المكان يعدن, meaning to stay in a place; hence, the Garden of Eden (Jannatu ‘Adn) was named so because it is an abode of residence and eternity. Thus, the mineral is from Allah's creation and not from human burial. In this, it differs from Rikaz, because Rikaz is from human burial.
b. The basis for Rikaz and minerals is what Abu Hurairah reported from the Messenger of Allah (saw) that he said:
العجماءُ جرحها جُبار، وفي الركاز الخمس
"The injury caused by an animal is a total loss (no compensation), and in Rikaz (buried treasure), there is the Khums (one-fifth)." (Narrated by Abu Ubaid).
And what was narrated from Abdullah bin Amr that the Prophet (saw) was asked about property found in ancient ruins (al-khirab al-adiyy), and he said:
فيه وفي الركاز الخمس
"In it and in Rikaz, there is the Khums (one-fifth)."
And what was narrated from Ali bin Abi Talib from the Prophet (saw) that he said:
وفي السيوب الخمس. قال: والسيوب عروق الذهب والفضة التي تحت الأرض
"And in the Suyoob there is the Khums. He said: The Suyoob are veins of gold and silver that are under the earth." (Mentioned by Ibn Qudamah in Al-Mughni).
c. Accordingly, every buried property of gold, silver, jewelry, gems, or otherwise, found in tombs, mounds, or cities of previous nations, or found in 'dead land' (Mawat), or in ancient ruins—meaning those dating back to ancient times like the people of 'Ad—whether from the burials of the Jahiliyyah or the burials of Muslims in past Islamic eras, belongs to the finder, who must pay the Khums from it to the Bayt al-Mal (State Treasury).
Likewise, every small mineral deposit, not being an idd—meaning a limited amount and not a vast, continuous source—of gold or silver, whether it be veins or ore, found in dead land not owned by anyone, belongs to its finder, who must pay the Khums from it to the Bayt al-Mal. However, if it is an idd, meaning a mine and not a limited buried quantity, then this takes the ruling of Public Ownership (al-Milkiyyah al-Ammah), which has another detailed explanation.
The Khums taken from the finder of Rikaz and the finder of minerals is in the status of Fay’ (state property), taking its ruling. It is placed in the Bayt al-Mal, in the Department of Fay’ and Kharaj, and is spent as Fay’ and Kharaj are spent. Its disposal is entrusted to the Khalifah, who spends it on managing the affairs of the Ummah and fulfilling its interests according to his opinion and Ijtihad, in a manner that brings goodness and welfare.
d. Whoever finds Rikaz or a mineral in his own property, whether land or a building, then he owns it, whether he inherited the land/building or bought it from someone else. But whoever finds Rikaz or a mineral in someone else's land or building, then the Rikaz or mineral found belongs to the owner of the land or the owner of the building, and not to the one who found the Rikaz or mineral." (05 Muharram 1435 AH / 08/11/2013 CE) - End of the answer.
- From the answer to a question on 18/09/2014:
"(...Al-Bukhari and Muslim narrated from Ibn Shihab, from Sa’id bin al-Musayyib and Abu Salamah bin Abdurrahman, from Abu Hurairah (ra): that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said:
وَفِي الرِّكَازِ الخُمُسُ
"And in Rikaz, there is the Khums (one-fifth)."
Rikaz is property buried long ago or limited veins of minerals... So whoever finds it in his property, whether land or building, then he owns it. And whoever finds Rikaz or a mineral in someone else's land or building, the Rikaz or mineral found belongs to the owner of the land or the owner of the building, and not to the finder... The Khums becomes obligatory as soon as the Rikaz is found, and it is not permissible to delay its payment to the Bayt al-Mal.
As for whether the Khums is Zakat or Fay’ (state property), the answer is that it is not Zakat; rather, it is Fay’. Among the evidences for this is what Abu Ubaid narrated from Mujalid from ash-Sha’bi: (That a man found a thousand dinars buried outside of Madinah. He brought them to Umar bin al-Khattab, who took the Khums—two hundred dinars—and gave the rest to the man. Umar then began to distribute the two hundred among the Muslims present until a small portion remained. Umar said: "Where is the owner of the dinars?" The man stood up, and Umar said to him: "Take these dinars, for they are yours.")
From the Hadith of ash-Sha’bi, it is clear that the amount Umar took from the finder of the Rikaz was only the Khums, and the remaining four-fifths were returned to the finder. This Khums taken was not Zakat; rather, it was in the status of Fay’. This is because if it were Zakat, it would have been spent on the categories of Zakat, and Umar would not have given any of it back to the finder of the Rikaz, because the man was wealthy (possessing 800 dinars), and Zakat is not permissible for a wealthy person.
Therefore, regardless of the value of the Rikaz, four-fifths belong to its finder and one-fifth to the Bayt al-Mal. This does not depend on reaching the Nisab (minimum threshold) because it is not Zakat. Whether the value of the Rikaz is a Nisab or less, the Khums must be paid from it to the Bayt al-Mal of the Muslims. In our current time, where there is no Bayt al-Mal for the Muslims, the finder of the Rikaz spends the Khums on the interests of the Muslims or those in need among them... he does what he deems to be good." (23 Dhu al-Qi'dah 1435 AH / 18/09/2014 CE) - End of the answer.
This should be sufficient, and Allah is All-Knowing and Most Wise.
Your Brother, Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah
19 Safar al-Khayr 1444 AH 15/09/2022 CE
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