Zakaat - Rules and modern issues

Those who don’t give Zakaat will be punished with snakes

In the exegesis of the aforementioned verse of the Holy Quran, Hadith have been mentioned like this Hadith of Musnad Imam Ahmad Bin Hambal:

Translation: Hadhrat Abu Hurairah (May Allah be well pleased with him) relates from the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) that when someone hoards wealth without giving Zakaat then on the Day of Judgment, that wealth will become a highly poisonous snake and there will be 2 dark points on its eyes.  The snake will chase that person and that person will run from it.  The snake will keep chasing it to the point that out of terror, that person will chew away his (or her) own fingers.  (Musnad Imam Ahmad Bin Hambal, Hadith No. 9168)

More details of this warning are given in Sahih Bukhari:

Translation: It has been narrated on the authority of Hadhrat Abu Hurairah (May Allah be well pleased with him), he says:  The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said:  The person to whom Allah Most High has granted wealth and he (or she) didn’t give Zakaat of that wealth, then on the Day of Judgment, that wealth will be turned into a poisonous snake.  There will be 2 dark points on its eyes.  On the Day of Judgment, this snake will be put on the neck of the person like a yoke.  It will bite both the jaws of that person and say:  I am that wealth, that treasure of yours, on which you gave no Zakaat.

Then the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) recited this verse of the Holy Quran:

And those who are niggardly in giving away (from the wealth) which Allah has bestowed upon them out of His bounty must never consider this miserliness of any benefit for themselves; it is rather injurious to them. Soon on the Day of Resurrection this wealth, which they are niggardly about, will be put around (their necks) like a neck-fetter. To Allah belongs the heritage of the heavens and the earth (i.e. He will remain the Owner of the universe after your death in the same way as He owns it today). And Allah is Well Aware of all your deeds.  Surah Al Imran (3:180)

(Sahih Bukhari, Hadith No. 1403)