Dream - Zakat fitrah is an obligation that must be fulfilled by every Muslim towards the end of the month of Ramadan. This commandment has been explained, both in the Al-Quran and the hadith of the Prophet, complete with the types of zakat and their measurements. In a hadith, it is explained: "The Prophet saw mandated that zakat fitrah be one sha' of dates or one sha' of wheat for every Muslim, whether they are slaves or free, male or female, young or old. He saw ordered it to be carried out before people go out to pray." (HR. Bukhari and Muslim)

However, the fact is that currently the price of rice is experiencing a significant increase. So, is it permissible to pay zakat fitrah using money? Here is the explanation as summarized by Dream through various sources.

For example, if in Indonesia the majority of the population consumes rice as their daily staple food, then the zakat fitrah that is given is in the form of rice. As for the provisions or the amount of zakat fitrah itself, it has been explained in the hadith. It is equivalent to 1 sha' of dates or wheat. If converted into kilograms, it becomes 2.5 kg, and if converted into liters, it becomes 3.5 liters. This measurement should not be less, but it is allowed to be more. So, if rice is the staple food in Indonesia, then the zakat fitrah that is given is 2.5 kg of rice.

Quoted from kompas.com, the occurrence of significant rice inflation is triggered by the phenomenon of prolonged drought or El Nino. This phenomenon has an impact on higher rice inflation in the past few months. According to data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), the price of rice at the farmer and milling levels has started to decrease on a monthly basis. However, for wholesale and retail levels, prices are still increasing. The wholesale price of rice has increased by 0.90 percent on a monthly basis to Rp 14,528 per kg.

The increase was followed by an average increase in retail rice prices of 2.06 percent to Rp 15,517 per kg. The price is an average that includes various types of rice quality and covers all regions in Indonesia.

So, this also creates its own dilemma. So, what is the ruling if paying zakat fitrah using money? Quoted from nu.or.id, Imam as-Syafi'i and most scholars do not allow paying zakat in the form of money. Meanwhile, in the Hanafiyah school of thought, it is allowed. According to Buya Yahya, paying zakat fitrah using money following the Abu Hanifah school of thought is permissible. The Abu Hanifah school of thought itself basically uses staple food. Nevertheless, in that school of thought, it can be converted into money.

If you want to pay zakat fitrah using money, then the money must be according to the current price of rice. "The measure is the rice, not the money. If the price of rice goes up, you will pay fitrah with money equivalent to the value of the rice earlier. Not following the money." explained Buya Yahya. So, it is necessary to know the price of rice for 2.5 kg, then give out money equivalent to that rice. Not rice equivalent to money. But money equivalent to the zakat fitrah rice.

Buya Yahya said that in the Shafi'i school of thought and the majority of scholars in the Maliki and Hanbali schools of thought, the preferred method of paying zakat fitrah is by using staple food items. In fact, some opinions strongly state that it is not valid to pay zakat fitrah using money.