How Sadaqat al-Fitr Is Paid with Rice and the Like

Question

Can sadaqat al-fitr be paid with rice or not? In the second case, the question is this: in our country wheat, barley and the like do not grow, and their price is not known to us. It is true that their price can be found out by sending someone to the big cities and to wheat-growing countries, or by letter, — but how much trouble this involves is no secret. Moreover, rice too is food (ta‘am) just like wheat and barley; why then can sadaqat al-fitr not be paid with rice?

Answer

There is no text (nass) concerning paying sadaqat al-fitr with rice; therefore the value is taken into account in it. Thus, having ascertained the price of wheat or barley in the nearest places, rice should be given in accordance with that price: [ar]وما لم ينص عليه كذرة وخبز يعتبر فيه القيمة[/ar] “And in what is not specified in the texts, such as durra (sorghum)

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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