ts for
exemption, the categories of income concerned, the frequency of payments,
and the scale of rates for the various categories of Zakat are not
mentioned in the Qur'an, these matters will have to be set forth in the
future by the Universal House of Justice. Shoghi Effendi has indicated
that pending such legislation the believers should, according to their
means and possibilities, make regular contributions to the Baha'i Fund.

162. It is unlawful to beg, and it is forbidden to give to him who
beggeth. #147

In a Tablet 'Abdu'l-Baha expounds the meaning of this verse. He states
that "mendicancy is forbidden and that giving charity to people who take
up begging as their profession is also prohibited". He further points out
in that same Tablet: "The object is to uproot mendicancy altogether.
However, if a person is incapable of earning a living, is stricken by dire
poverty or becometh helpless, then it is incumbent on the wealthy or the
Deputies to provide him with a monthly allowance for his subsistence... By
'Deputies' is meant the representatives of the people, that is to say the
members of the House of Justice."

The prohibition against giving charity to people who beg does not preclude
individuals and Spiritual Assemblies from extending financial assistance
to the poor and needy or from providing them with opportunities to acquire
such skills as would enable them to earn a livelihood (see note 56).

163. A fine ... had formerly been prescribed ... for anyone who was the
cause of sadness to another #148

Baha'u'llah abrogates the law of the Persian Bayan concerning the payment
of a fine in reparation for causing sadness to one's neighbour.

164. the sacred Lote-Tree # 148

The "sacred Lote-Tree" is a reference to the Sadratu'l-Muntaha, the "Tree
beyond which there is no passing" (see note 128). It is used here
symbolically to designate Baha'u'llah.

165. Recite ye the verses of God every morn and eventide. #149

Baha'u'llah states that the essential "requisite" for reciting "the verses
of God" is the "eagerness and love" of the believers to "read the Word of
God" (Q and A 68).

With regard to the definition of "verses of God", Baha'u'llah states that
it refers to "all that hath been sent down from the Heaven of Divine
Utterance". Shoghi Effendi, in a letter written to one of the believers in
the East, has clarified that the term "verses of God" does not include the
writing