The measure of a sa‘

Question

How much sadaqat al-fitr is wajib on each person? The books write “half a sa‘” — what is its correct weight by the reckoning of the seer of eighty tolas (seer: a unit of weight, ≈ 0.93 kg; tola: a unit of weight, ≈ 11.66 g)? In Karim al-Lughat, p. 139, it is recorded that the sa‘ is a weight of two hundred and thirty-four tolas. According to this dictionary, half a sa‘ comes to one seer and seven and a half chhatanks (a unit of weight, 1/16 of a seer, ≈ 58 g).

Answer

In Fatawa Rashidiyya, p. 362, sadaqat al-fitr is given as one and a half full-weight seers of wheat by the Saharanpur weight; as a precaution, two seers are stated. Whoever gives the full two seers deserves additional reward.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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