Chapter on Salam (Forward Sales)

The term salam is derived from taslim (delivery) and islam (advance payment), and it is also called salaf. Some scholars claimed that salaf is the dialect of the Hijaz, whereas salam is the dialect of Iraq.

Others said that the two have the same meaning and that each is used in both regions. This is correct. The evidence is that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was from the Hijaz: he was sent in Makkah and emigrated to Madinah, both of which are in the Hijaz; yet he said, “Whoever enters into a salam contract for something, let him do so.” (1) Thus, the correct view, held by the leading linguists, is that there is no difference between them, and that aslafa and aslama have the same meaning in both the Hijaz and Iraq. Salam is therefore derived from delivery, because the buyer hands over the price in advance to the seller. Salaf, on the other hand, is derived from putting something forward in advance.

Its form is that you come to a farmer and say, “So-and-so, take these ten thousand riyals in exchange for one hundred kilograms of dates, due in one year.” This is salam, because the buyer has paid the price in advance while the commodity is deferred.

Salam is permissible according to the Quran, the Sunnah, scholarly consensus, and sound analogy.

As for the Quran, Allah Most High says: “O you who believe, when you contract a debt”