We would say: because it is a conditional sale; and because the Prophet, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him, said: “A pledge is not forfeited by its owner” (1)—that is, it is not taken from its owner by force.

In response, it may be said: As for this hadith, it provides no proof here, because the pledged item in this case was not taken by force; rather, it was taken by mutual choice, and it was the purchaser who chose this arrangement. The meaning of a pledge being forfeited by its owner is that, when the term falls due, the pledgee is not entitled to take the pledged item from the pledgor by force. But if it is by his choice, then there is no forfeiture involved.

Likewise, the argument that it is a conditional sale is not sound, since this premise is not conceded. The rule in the school is that every sale made conditional upon a stipulation is invalid, except that they exempted contracts of appointment to authority and agency, which they deemed permissible. This is because the Prophet, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him, said to the Companions at the Battle of Mu'tah: “Your commander is Zayd; if he is killed, then Ja'far; and if he is killed, then Abdullah ibn Rawahah” (2). Thus, he made the appointment to authority conditional upon a stipulation. They therefore said: all positions of authority in which