Review of the Book “Zakāt” by Musa Bigiev (Moscow: Medina Publishing House, 2025)

   The review analyzes the work of an outstanding representative of Islamic modernism, the Tatar theologian Musa Jarullah Bigiev, “Zakat” (written in 1916; published in Moscow by Medina Publishing House in 2025, 160 p.), which consistently examines the relationship between zakāt and taxes, issues of usury (ribā), and a potential model of an Islamic bank. This edition is supplemented with valuable comments by the translator and editors, which facilitate a faster immersion into the historical context. The book remains relevant for its maqāṣid al-sharī‘a approach and ij tihād, which anticipated the development of modern Islamic banking, emphasizing the need for a continuous search for solutions in a changing financial environment. The first part of M. Bigiev’s work is devoted to the debate on the relationship between zakāt and taxes, presenting a detailed analysis of an article by his contemporary, Zakir Ayukhanov, in which the author identifies both textual and methodological errors. Through analysis of inaccuracies in the rendition of ḥadīth and linguistic remarks, M. Bigiev emerges as an attentive researcher and expert in the Arabic language, Qur’ānic texts, and Sunnah. In conclusion, he consistently proves the fundamental diff erence between zakāt and tax. In the second part, relying on Qur’ānic verses, M. Bigiev analyzes ribā from various aspects, citing the arguments of supporters of diff erent economic schools and responding to them.

   The greatest value of the work lies in the author’s approach, which distinguishes consumer loans (interest-free, qarḍ al-ḥasan) and productive loans (based on profit-sharing).

   M. Bigiev clearly differentiates interest-free loans given out of necessity (iḥtiyāj) versus loans for profi t (kasb), where profi t-sharing (ishtirāk) is permissible. This distinction remains relevant today, highlighting the ethics of author’s approach compared to the unifi ed commercial practices of modern Islamic banks. M. Bigiev anticipates the Islamic banks of the 1970^s, but in his model, such institutions have wider functionality, including a social function. This review provides an analysis of M. Bigiev’s ideas from the perspective of the modern financial and economic system and contemporary issues of Islamic banking. It outlines internal inconsistencies in the text of the book and highlights questions that remain open to further debate. The book is valuable for researchers of Islamic law and finance, Sharī‘a experts, economists, and all who are interested in the theory and practice of Islamic banking.