Sayyiduna Bara’ (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: A man came to the service of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said,“Guide me to an action that will bring me near to Paradise and keep me away from Hell!”The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said,“If you speak little, refrain from asking (from others), free a slave, set a neck free (free a male or female slave).”He said,“O Messenger of Allah! Are these two not the same?”The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said,“No! To set a soul free means you free him, and to set a neck free means you help him by paying his price. Give a milch (she-camel or goat) without taking anything in return, and maintain ties with a relative who wrongs you. If you cannot do this, then speak only good words with your tongue.”

Abu Ahmad Zubayri says: Sufyan Thawri came, and he asked him about this hadith, and I was present there at that time. The narrator is in doubt; perhaps these are the words: Sufyan Thawri came to me and he asked me about this hadith.

The same narration is transmitted with another chain, however, it contains these additional words: "Feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, enjoin good, and forbid evil."

Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates: When the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) sent Mu’adh (may Allah be pleased with him) to Yemen, he said:“You are going to a people of the Book, so call them to testify that there is no deity except Allah and that I am the Messenger of Allah. If they obey you in this, then inform them that Allah has enjoined upon them five prayers every day and night. If they obey you in this, then inform them that Allah has made charity obligatory upon them, to be taken from their wealthy and given to their poor. If they accept this from you, then avoid taking the best of their wealth, and beware of the supplication of the oppressed, for there is no barrier between it and Allah.”

Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates: When the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) sent Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) to Yemen, he said to him: "You are going to a people of the Book, so the first thing you should invite them to is to affirm the Oneness of Allah. When they come to know this, then inform them that Allah has made five prayers obligatory upon them every day. And inform them that Allah has made zakat obligatory upon their wealth, to be taken from their wealthy and given to their poor. If they acknowledge this, then take it from them, but avoid taking the best of people's wealth."

Awn bin Abu Hujayfah narrates from his father: The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) sent a person to us to collect zakat. He collected zakat from our affluent people and then distributed it among our poor people. He instructed me to give a she-camel.

Awn bin Abu Hujayfah narrates from his father: The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) sent his official to us, and he collected zakat from our wealthy people and gave it to our poor people. At that time, I was an orphan (or a minor) boy and I had no wealth, so he gave me a young she-camel.

Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The amount of Zakat should not be transferred from one city to another, except if it is done to give a loan to relatives. This narration is Mawquf.

Sayyiduna Ziyad bin Harith Suda'i (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: I presented myself before the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) at a time when he was about to send an army towards my tribe. I said, "O Messenger of Allah! Please hold back your army, I guarantee you that these people will accept Islam and will also show obedience. I will write a letter to my tribe, and they will come accepting Islam and showing obedience." The Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "O man from the tribe of Suda', whose people obey him!" The narrator says: I said, "No! Rather, Allah Almighty has bestowed His favor upon these people and has granted them guidance." The narrator states: Then a man came to the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and asked him for zakat money. So the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him, "Allah Almighty is not pleased with the decision of any Prophet or any other person regarding zakat until that person distributes the zakat into eight categories. If you are eligible for any of these categories, I will give it to you."

Sayyiduna Haritha bin Mudarrib (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: Some people from Syria came to Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him). They said: We have acquired some wealth, horses, and slaves. We wish to give zakat from them so that they may be purified. So Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "I will do as my two masters have done." The narrator named Ishaq has reported these words: "I will do as those before me have done." Then Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) consulted the people about this matter, and among those he consulted was Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). He said: "This is correct, as long as it is not made into a jizya that will continue to be collected after you." The narrator named Ishaq has reported these words: "As long as it is not arranged in such a way that those after you will also collect it (then it is correct)." (The narrator says) So Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) made it obligatory to pay one dinar for each horse.