Two pillars of Islam, thirty-two pages, and no padding. Shaykh Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah bin Baz (رحمه الله), the late Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, wrote these two treatises to answer the questions Muslims actually ask about Zakat and the fasting of Ramadan — and he answers them from the Qur'an and the authentic Sunnah, briefly, without detours.
On Zakat
The treatise sets out who is obliged to pay, which categories of wealth are liable, the conditions that trigger the obligation, and who may receive it. Shaykh Ibn Baz treats Zakat as the Qur'an does — not as a tax on the rich but as a purification of wealth, a right the poor hold over what Allah has given you, and a debt that must be calculated honestly rather than estimated generously and forgotten.
On Fasting Ramadan
The second treatise covers the virtues and objectives of the fast, who is required to observe it, what counts as a valid excuse for not fasting and what must be made up afterwards, the etiquettes of the fasting person, and the errors that recur every Ramadan. The Shaykh returns repeatedly to a point easily lost: fasting is not the mere avoidance of food and drink, but the restraint of the tongue, the eyes and the limbs. Without that, the aim of the fast — Taqwa — is missed.
Why the Length Is Right
Thirty-two pages can be read in one sitting in the week before Ramadan, or handed to someone calculating Zakat for the first time. Larger fiqh volumes go deeper, but few people read them at the moment the ruling is actually needed. This one gets read. It suits new Muslims, families, Ramadan study circles, masjid libraries and Islamic schools, and is cheap enough to buy in quantity for distribution before Ramadan.
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