Even if the principal were to say, “I meant that dirhams and dinars are money. As for these paper notes, you bring them to me, moths may eat them and fire may burn them. I do not want this; you must give me gold or silver,” he has no such right, because the prevailing custom today is that these notes take the place of gold and silver, serving instead of dinars and dirhams.
His statement: “Nor on deferred terms”—that is, for a deferred price, whether it is stipulated for a fixed term or not. Rather, it must be paid in cash, hand to hand. According to the author’s wording, if he sells something which you authorized him to sell and does not take possession of the price, he is liable. However, the author’s statement here should be qualified to cases in which customary practice does not indicate deferment. Nowadays, if I sell you something today, you may take it away, and I may not receive payment from you until a day or two later, depending on whether the price is large or small and on the circumstances of the buyer. But if the buyer is unknown, then if he does not sell it for immediate cash, hand to hand, he is liable, because he has been negligent.
For example, a man offers a car for bidding, and an unknown person comes and says, “The car is worth ten thousand, and I will take it from you for eleven thousand.” He takes it and leaves. The agent cannot allow him to go without immediate payment; if he were to do so, he would be liable, because he has been negligent.
May he sell on deferred terms? A stipulated deferred payment is different from nasāʾ (delay in taking possession). Nasāʾ is delaying possession, even where no fixed term has been stipulated, whereas a deferred sale is the postponement of payment.
For example, if I say, “I have sold you this item for a price due after one month,” this is a deferred sale. If I say, “I have sold you this item,” but do not receive the price, this is nasāʾ, because it involves delay. And if I sell you this item for ten, you give it to me, and you take the item, then this is hand to hand.