Al-Sharḥ al-Mumtiʿ - Ibn al-'Uthaymin - (9/208)

Al-Sharḥ al-MumtiʿIbn al-'Uthaymin

the principal: “You would stand surety for me?! I am more trusted among people than you, more faithful than you, and of higher standing than you. You would stand surety for me—who are you?!”

So he says here, “I do not consent to your standing surety for me.” Is his consent taken into consideration?

The answer is: it is not taken into consideration, because the right belongs to the beneficiary of the suretyship and to the surety; they are the parties entitled to it. As for the principal, he has no right in the matter. However, as mentioned earlier regarding a guarantee, if this would result in damage to the principal’s reputation, then no one may come forward to stand surety for him, because that would harm his reputation. The Prophet ﷺ said: “There should be neither harm nor reciprocal harm.” (1)

His statement, “If he dies”: the pronoun refers to the principal; that is, if he dies, the surety is discharged, even from the debt. For once the principal has died, it is impossible to produce him. If the person entitled to the right demands that he be produced, the surety might say to him, “Come, and I will make him stand before you at the graveyard; then take your right from him!” This is impossible. Indeed, if such a statement were made to him, he would say, “You are mocking me.” Thus, if the principal dies, the surety is discharged. This is one of the differences between suretyship and a guarantee: if the person whose obligation is guaranteed dies, the guarantor is not discharged; whereas in suretyship, if the principal dies, the surety is discharged.

His statement, “or if the specified property perishes through an act of Allah, Most High”: this applies where he has stood surety for the production of specified property that is subject to liability, and that property perishes through an act of Allah—for example, a great flood comes and sweeps away that property. In that case, it has perished through an act of Allah, not through transgression or negligence, so the surety is discharged. Were it a guarantee, however, he would not be discharged.

It is understood from the author’s words, “through an act of Allah,” that if it perished through the act of

(1) Its source has previously been cited on p. 37.

المكفول: أنت تكفلني؟! أنا أوثق منك عند الناس وأوفى منك، وأعلى منك حسباً، أنت تكفلني، من أنت؟! فهنا يقول: أنا لا أرضى أن تكفلني، فهل يعتبر؟ الجواب: لا يعتبر؛ لأن عندنا حقاً للمكفول له، وحقاً للكفيل فهما صاحبا الحق، أما المكفول فليس له حق، لكن كما سبق في الضمان، إذا كان يترتب على هذا سوء السمعة بالنسبة للمكفول، فإنه لا يجوز أن يتقدم أحد في كفالته؛ لأن ذلك يضر بسمعته، وقد قال النبي ﷺ: «لا ضرر ولا ضرار» (١). قوله: «فإن مات» الضمير يعود على المكفول، أي: إن مات برئ الكفيل حتى من الدين؛ لأنه لما مات المكفول فلا يمكن إحضاره، فإن طالب من له الحق بإحضاره، قال له الكفيل: تعال وأوقفه عند المقبرة، وقال له: خذ حقك منه!! وهذا لا يمكن، ولو قيل هذا القول له، لقال: إنها سخرية بي، فيقال: إذا مات المكفول برئ الكفيل، وهذا من الفروق بين الكفالة والضمان، فالضمان إذا مات المضمون لم يبرأ الضامن، أما الكفالة فإذا مات المكفول برئ الكفيل. قوله: «أو تلفت العين بفعل الله تعالى» وهذا يعود على ما إذا كفله بعين مضمونة فتلفت العين بفعل الله، مثل أن يأتي سيل عظيم يجترف هذه العين، فهذه تلفت بفعل الله لا بتعدٍّ ولا تفريط فيبرأ الكفيل، ولو كان ضماناً لم يبرأ. وعلم من قول المؤلف: «بفعل الله» أنها لو تلفت بفعل

(١) سبق تخريجه ص (٣٧).