Kitab al-Kharaj () is an 8th-century Islamic legal treatise authored by Abu Yusuf, a Hanafi school jurist and chief justice under the Abbasid Caliphate. Written at the request of Caliph Harun al-Rashid, it provides legal and administrative guidance on , land revenue, and public finance in accordance with Sharia. The book discusses principles of justice, fair taxation, and state responsibility toward citizens, outlining the rights and duties of both rulers and taxpayers and emphasizing Welfare spending and the prevention of oppression. Considered the Masterpiece of Abu Yusuf,
Compilation
The treatise was written at the request of Caliph Harun al-Rashid, who sought guidance on organizing state revenue, including taxes such as
kharaj,
ushr, and
jizya, and on distributing resources fairly.
The text begins with an address to Amir al-Mu'minin without mentioning the caliph's name. Abu Yusuf, as chief justice, drew on his access to tax registers, state archives, and consultations with scholars and officials to compile the work.
The text was transmitted in thirty-nine chapters, addressing twenty-six questions posed by the caliph.
Content
The book mainly deals with land and tax law within the broader framework of public finance and state administration. It outlines principles of taxation, including
Kharaj (land tax), ʿushr (tithe), khumus (one-fifth of spoils), and zakāt, explaining how to assess land, collect taxes, and manage state revenues. Abu Yusuf relates these rules to the governance of conquered territories such as Iraq, Syria, and
Khorasan, though Egypt is notably not mentioned. It also examines water rights, irrigation, land cultivation, and the administration of state lands in relation to economic welfare. The book emphasizes justice, fairness, and stability in the treatment of taxpayers and the duties of officials, and concludes with discussions on the legal status of non-Muslim taxpayers (dhimmīs), customs duties, and the salaries of tax and judicial officers.
Methodology
Abu Yusuf based his work mainly on the practices of the Prophet Muhammad, his Companions, and the early generations of Muslims (Tabi'un). He often supported his views with hadiths but did not always use formal chains of transmission, sometimes citing sources anonymously, such as 'some scholars of Kufa' or 'some sheikhs of Medina.' Alongside these reports, he referred to the opinions of leading jurists of his time, including Al-Shafi'i, Malik ibn Anas, and Al-Layth ibn Sa'd, and added his own legal reasoning (
Ijtihad) when differences arose. In several cases, he preferred the views of other jurists over those of his teacher, Abu Hanifa, when he believed the evidence was stronger. The structure of the book reflects its practical purpose rather than a fixed legal framework. Its chapters vary in length and often contain subsections without titles.
Translations
It has been translated into Ottoman Turkish by Muderszade Mehmed Ataullah Efendi (simplified by Ismail Karakaya, Ankara, 1982) and Rodosizade Mehmed Efendi, and into modern Turkish by Ali Ozek (Istanbul, 1968 and 1973). English translations include Abid Ahmad Ali (Lahore, 1979) and a partial translation by Aharon Ben-Shemesh titled
Taxation in Islam. Other translations include French (E. Fagnan, Paris, 1921), Russian (A. Shmidt, St. Petersburg, 2001), Urdu (M. N. Siddiqi, Lahore, 1966), and Italian (brief, Rome, 1906).
Critical studies
English
Indonesian
Urdu
Turkish
External links
