Exchanging Goods (Ahadith 1797 – 1798)

Bismillah.

Volume 3, Book 34, Number 302:

Narrated ‘Ali (radiallaahu `anhu):

I got an old she-camel as my share from the booty, and the Prophet had given me another from Al-Khumus. And when I intended to marry Fatima (radiallaahu `anhaa) (daughter of the Prophet), I arranged that a goldsmith from the tribe of Bani Qainuqa’ would accompany me in order to bring Idhkhir and then sell it to the goldsmiths and use its price for my marriage banquet.

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Volume 3, Book 34, Number 303:

Narrated Ibn ‘Abbas (radiallaahu `anhu):

Allah’s Apostle (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) said, “Allah made Mecca a sanctuary and it was neither permitted for anyone before, nor will it be permitted for anyone after me (to fight in it). And fighting in it was made legal for me for a few hours of a day only. None is allowed to uproot its thorny shrubs or to cut down its trees or to chase its game or to pick up its Luqata (fallen things) except by a person who would announce it publicly.” ‘Abbas bin ‘Abdul-Muttlib (radiallaahu `anhu) requested the Prophet, “Except Al-Idhkhir, for our goldsmiths and for the roofs of our houses.” The Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) said, “Except Al-Idhkhir.” ‘Ikrima said, “Do you know what is meant by chasing its game? It is to drive it out of the shade and sit in its place.” Khalid said, “(‘Abbas said: Al-Idhkhir) for our goldsmiths and our graves.”

We learnt previously that we have to be careful while exchanging goods; one: they have to be of the same kind, two: they have to be of the same amount. For example, good dates for good dates and not bad dates for good dates.
If a person has to exchange one kind of goods with another, the right way to go about it is to sell those goods, and buy the desired goods with the money acquired. And that’s what’s being reiterated here (in the two narrations above). During that time in Arabia, people used to exchange Idhkhir (a kind of grass) with gold. What Ali (radiallaahu `anhu) did for his walima was that he sold whatever Idhkhir he collected to the goldsmiths and used the dirhams/dinars for the banquet preparations.

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Honesty Vs. $$$ (Hadith No. 1796)

Bismillah.

Hadith no. 1795 (below) is a repeat. Read it here.

Volume 3, Book 34, Number 300:

Narrated Abu Huraira (radiallaahu `anhu):

I heard Allah’s Apostle (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) saying, “The swearing (by the seller) may persuade the buyer to purchase the goods but that will be deprived of Allah’s blessing.”

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Honesty Vs. $$$

Volume 3, Book 34, Number 301:

Narrated ‘Abdullah bin Abu Aufa (radiallaahu `anhu):

A man displayed some goods in the market and swore by Allah that he had been offered so much for that, that which was not offered, and he said so, so as to cheat a Muslim. On that occasion the following Verse was revealed: “Verily! Those who purchase a small gain at the cost of Allah’s covenant and their oaths (They shall have no portion in the Hereafter ..etc.)’ (3.77)

Ibn Kathir comments on this ayah (3:77):

There is No Share in the Hereafter for Those Who Break Allah’s Covenant

Allah states that whoever prefers the small things of this short, soon to end life, instead of fulfilling what they have promised Allah by following Muhammad , announcing his description ﴿from their books﴾ to people and affirming his truth, then,

﴿أُوْلَـئِكَ لاَ خَلَـقَ لَهُمْ فِى الاٌّخِرَةِ﴾

(they shall have no portion in the Hereafter.)

They will not have a share or part in the Hereafter’s rewards,

﴿وَلاَ يُكَلِّمُهُمُ اللَّهُ وَلاَ يَنظُرُ إِلَيْهِمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَـمَةِ﴾

(Neither will Allah speak to them nor look at them on the Day of Resurrection) with His mercy. This Ayah indicates that Allah will not speak words of kindness nor look at them with any mercy,

﴿وَلاَ يُزَكِّيهِمْ﴾

(nor will He purify them) from sins and impurities. Rather, He will order them to the Fire,

﴿وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ﴾

(and they shall have a painful torment.)

There are several Hadiths on the subject of this Ayah, some of which follow. The First Hadith

Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Dharr said, “The Messenger of Allah said, c

«ثَلَاثَةٌ لَا يُكَلِّمُهُمُ اللهُ، وَلَا يَنْظُرُ إِلَيْهِمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ، وَلَا يُزَكِّيهِمْ، وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيم»

قلت: يا رسول الله، من هم؟ خابوا وخسروا قال: وأعاده رسول اللهصلى الله عليه وسلّم ثلاث مرات، قال:

«الْمُسْبِلُ، وَالْمُنَفِّقُ سِلْعَتَهُ بِالْحَلِفِ الْكَاذِبِ، وَالْمَنَّان»

(There are three persons whom Allah will not speak to, look at on the Day of Resurrection or purify, and they shall taste a painful torment. I said, `O Messenger of Allah! Who are they, may they gain failure and loss’ He said, repeating this statement thrice, `The Musbil (man whose clothes reach below the ankles), he who swears while lying so as to sell his merchandize and the one who gives charity and reminds people of it).’)” This was also recorded by Muslim, and the collectors of the Sunan. Another Hadith

Imam Ahmad recorded that `Adi bin `Amirah Al-Kindi said, “Imru’ Al-Qays bin `Abis, a man from Kindah, disputed with a man from Hadramut in front of the Messenger of Allah concerning a piece of land. The Prophet required the man from Hadramut to present his evidence, but he did not have any. The Prophet required Imru’ Al-Qays to swear to his truthfulness, but the man from Hadramut said, `O Messenger of Allah! If you only require him to swear, then by the Lord of the Ka`bah (Allah), my land is lost.’ The Messenger of Allah said,

«مَنْ حَلَفَ عَلى يَمِينٍ كَاذِبَةٍ لِيَقْتَطِعَ بِهَا مَالَ أَحَدٍ، لَقِيَ اللهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ وَهُوَ عَلَيْهِ غَضْبَان»

(Whoever swears while lying to acquire the property of others, will meet Allah while He is angry with him.)” Raja’ one of the narrators of the Hadith, said that the Messenger of Allah then recited,

﴿إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَشْتَرُونَ بِعَهْدِ اللَّهِ وَأَيْمَـنِهِمْ ثَمَنًا قَلِيًلا﴾

(Verily, those who purchase a small gain at the cost of Allah’s covenant and their oaths…)

Imru’ Al-Qays said, `What if one forfeits this dispute, what will he gain, O Messenger of Allah’ The Prophet answered, `Paradise.’ Imru’ Al-Qays said, `Bear witness that I forfeit all the land for him.”’ An-Nasa’i also recorded this Hadith. Another Hadith

Imam Ahmad recorded that `Abdullah said that the Messenger of Allah said,

«مَنْ حَلَفَ عَلى يَمِينٍ هُوَ فِيهَا فَاجِرٌ، لِيَقْتَطِعَ بِهَا مَالَ امْرِى مُسْلِمٍ، لَقِيَ اللهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ وَهُوَ عَلَيْهِ غَضْبَان»

(Whoever takes a false oath to deprive a Muslim of his property will meet Allah while He is angry with him.)

Al-Ash`ath said, “By Allah! This verse was revealed concerning me. I owned some land with a Jewish man who denied my right, and I complained against him to the Messenger of Allah. The Prophet asked me, `Do you have evidence’ I said, `I don’t have evidence.’ He said to the Jew, `Take an oath then.’ I said, `O Allah’s Messenger! He will take a (false) oath immediately, and I will lose my property.’ Allah revealed the verse,

﴿إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَشْتَرُونَ بِعَهْدِ اللَّهِ وَأَيْمَـنِهِمْ ثَمَنًا قَلِيًلا﴾

(Verily, those who purchase a small gain at the cost of Allah’s covenant and their oaths…)”

The Two Sahihs recorded this Hadith. Another Hadith

Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah said,

«ثَلَاثَةٌ لَا يُكَلِّمُهُمُ اللهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ، وَلَا يَنْظُرُ إِلَيْهِمْ، وَلَا يُزَكِّيهِمْ، وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ: رَجُلٌ مَنَعَ ابْنَ السَّبِيلِ فَضْلَ مَاءٍ عِنْدَهُ، وَرَجُلٌ حَلَفَ عَلى سِلْعَةٍ بَعْدَ الْعَصْرِ يَعْنِي كَاذِبًا وَرَجُلٌ بَايَعَ إِمَامًا، فَإِنْ أَعْطَاهُ وَفَى لَهُ، وَإِنْ لَمْ يُعْطِهِ لَمْ يَفِ لَه»

(Three persons whom Allah shall not speak to on the Day of Resurrection, or look at, or purify them, and they shall taste a painful torment. (They are) a man who does not give the wayfarer some of the water that he has; a man who swears, while lying, in order to complete a sales transaction after the `Asr prayer; and a man who gives his pledge of allegiance to an Imam (Muslim Ruler), and if the Imam gives him (something), he fulfills the pledge, but if the Imam does not give him, he does not fulfill the pledge).

Abu Dawud and At-Tirmidhi also recorded this Hadith, and At-Tirmidhi graded it Hasan Sahih.

The Forbidden Four (Hadith No. 1794)

Bismillah.

Hadith no. 1793 (below) is a repeat. Read it here.

Volume 3, Book 34, Number 298:

Narrated Samura bin Jundab (radiallaahu `anhu):

The Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) said, “This night I dreamt that two men came and took me to a Holy land whence we proceeded on till we reached a river of blood, where a man was standing, and on its bank was standing another man with stones in his hands. The man in the middle of the river tried to come out, but the other threw a stone in his mouth and forced him to go back to his original place. So, whenever he tried to come out, the other man would throw a stone in his mouth and force him to go back to his former place. I asked, ‘Who is this?’ I was told, ‘The person in the river was a Riba-eater.”

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The Forbidden Four

Volume 3, Book 34, Number 299:

Narrated ‘Aun bin Abu Juhaifa:

My father bought a slave who practiced the profession of cupping. (My father broke the slave’s instruments of cupping). I asked my father why he had done so. He replied, “The Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) forbade the acceptance of the price of a dog or blood, and also forbade the profession of tattooing, getting tattooed and receiving or giving Riba, (usury), and cursed the picture-makers.”

• A detailed study on the ahadith about cupping show that doing it and charging money for it is not exactly haraam.
• The prohibition on the price of a dog and the fact that it is among the most evil of earnings and is something vile indicates that it is haraam to sell dogs; the transaction is not valid and the price is not halaal and the one who destroys it is not obliged to repay its value, regardless of whether the dog is trained or not, or whether it is one that it is permissible to keep or not. This is the view of the majority of scholars.
• Tattooing, in which the skin is pierced with a needle and a blue or other coloured dye is injected, is haraam in all forms, whether it causes pain or not, because it involves changing the creation of Allaah, and because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) cursed the one who does tattoos and the one for whom that is done.
• Riba (which means adding something extra to certain products, like selling gold for gold, or by not receiving something when a contract is signed, or paying extra in return for extension of a loan) is haraam because Allaah – who rules as He wills – has forbidden it.
• It is well established from clear, saheeh mutawaatir ahaadeeth that image-making is not allowed, and that the one who does this is cursed and is warned of torment in Hell, as in the hadeeth of Ibn ‘Abbaas which is attributed to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): “Every image maker will be in Hell, and a soul will be given to every image which he made so that it might torment him in Hell.” (Narrated by Muslim).

Trade of Alcohol (Hadith No. 1792)

Bismillah.

Hadith no. 1791 (below) is a repeat. Read it here.

Volume 3, Book 34, Number 296:

Narrated Hakim bin Hizam (radiallaahu `anhu):

The Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) said, “The buyer and the seller have the option to cancel or to confirm the deal, as long as they have not parted or till they part, and if they spoke the truth and told each other the defects of the things, then blessings would be in their deal, and if they hid something and told lies, the blessing of the deal would be lost.”

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Trade of Alcohol:

Volume 3, Book 34, Number 297:

Narrated Aisha (radiallaahu `anhaa):

When the last verses of Surat al-Baqara were revealed, the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) recited them in the mosque and proclaimed the trade of alcohol as illegal.

It is not permissible to deal in foods and other things, such as alcohol and pork, that Allaah has prohibited, even if one is selling to kaafirs, because it was reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “When Allaah forbids a thing, He forbids its price.” And because he (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) cursed alcohol and the one who drinks it, the one who sells it, the one who buys it, the one who carries it, the one to whom it is carried, the one who consumes its price, the one who squeezes the grapes and the one for whom they are squeezed.

Must read: gradual prohibition of alcohol.

The Uninvited Guest (Hadith No. 1790)

Bismillah.

Volume 3, Book 34, Number 295:

Narrated Abu Mas’ud (radiallaahu `anhu):

An Ansari man, called Abu Shu’aib (radiallaahu `anhu), came and told his butcher slave, “Prepare meals sufficient for five persons, for I want to invite the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) along with four other persons as I saw signs of hunger on his face.” Abu Shu’aib (radiallaahu `anhu) invited them and another person came along with them. The Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) said (to Abu Shu’aib), This man followed us, so if you allow him, he will join us, and if you want him to return, he will go back.” Abu Shu’aib (radiallaahu `anhu) said, “No, I have allowed him (i.e. he, too, is welcomed to the meal).”

• It is allowed when inviting people to specify a number and there is no harm or awkwardness in doing so. We find this today on many wedding invitations, where the host writes down the number of guests invited as ‘admit’. There are those that say if we specify a number on the invitation then we are stingy. However, it might just be that the host is poor and needs to specify a number so that he does not burden himself with more than what he can afford to offer for the occasion.

• It is also allowed for a person to follow a person or a group of people who are invited, for the reason of attaining food. This is evident in the Hadith as the Holy Prophet (Peace Be upon Him) did not stop the sixth person from following him, but the final decision still rests with the host on whether or not the follower is allowed to join in the meal.

• In this Hadith there is evidence to show that if someone comes with you that were not invited; you should obtain permission for that person to join, especially if you are not sure if the host invited you for a specific reason that only concerns the two of you.

• There is also proof from this Hadith that there is no harm or awkwardness from the side of the host if he does not give permission for the follower to join them. The reason is because if there was any harm in doing so, the Holy Prophet (Peace Be upon Him) would not have asked permission from the host for the sixth person to join them. This serves as proof that the host has a choice to either permit him to join or send him away.

• There should also be no discomfort if you asked someone permission to visit him or her and that person refused by saying: “Please return home as I am busy at the moment”. The host has the choice either to permit you to enter or to ask you to leave.

Unlike some people, if they seek permission to visit and the person says: “Please return home as I am busy at the moment” they feel upset and uncomfortable. One should try not to have such type of ill feelings. We must remember that people have duties and responsibilities in there homes. It might be that they have other matters to see too. One should rather condition oneself to leave with all ease and comfort as this is more pure for us as Allah Almighty says: “And if it is said to you, “Go back”, then go back; it is purer for you.” [Quran 24:28]

Taken from Fiqhul Hadith.