As its annotator, Dr. Shakir Dhib Fayyad, has observed, it is a powerful corroboration of the earlier report narrated by Ibn Jurayj.

In short, the claim of consensus on this issue cannot stand in the face of these traditions and the other evidence Ibn Hazm cites in al-Muhallā. This calls to mind the statement of Imām Aḥmad, may Allah have mercy on him:

“Whoever alleges a consensus is a liar; how could he know—perhaps the scholars have differed.”

He spoke the truth—may Allah reward him—for how many a point has been declared unanimous only for it to prove contentious in fact. We have documented examples of this in several of our works, such as Funeral Rulings and Etiquette of the Wedding, among others.

Ibn Hazm devoted an exhaustive discussion to our present question, concluding that no zakat is due on trade goods. He rebutted the proofs of those who deem it obligatory, exposed their inconsistencies, and critiqued them all with meticulous scholarship. Consult him, for his treatment in al-Muhallā (6/233-240) is extremely beneficial.

Al-Shawkānī adopted the same position in al-Durar al-Bahiyyah, as did Ṣiddīq Ḥasan Khān in his commentary al-Rawḍah al-Nadiyyah (1/192-193). Al-Shawkānī also refuted the obligation asserted by the author of Ḥadāʾiq al-Azhar in his al-Sayl al-Jarrār (2/26-27); whoever wishes may refer to it.

He likewise rejected the view—embraced by some modern writers—that zakat is due on al-mustaghallāt¹ (income-producing assets), saying, al-Shawkānī (2/27):

“This is an issue that has never echoed in the ear of time; the people of the first century— the best of generations—never heard of it, nor those of the second, nor the third. It is nothing but a newly invented matter …”