his permission and does not mention him in the contract, the transaction is valid for him once he subsequently approves it; if he does not approve, ownership remains fixed with the purchaser.

Other than residential dwellings, property in lands taken by force of arms—such as the territories of Syria, Egypt, and Iraq—may not be sold; they are only to be leased. It is likewise invalid to sell the right to draw water from a well, or the grass and thistles that grow naturally on the land; whoever gathers them becomes their owner.

The item must be deliverable. Accordingly, the sale of a runaway slave, a stray animal, a bird in flight, a fish still in the water, or of a usurped article when offered by someone other than the usurper—or by the usurper himself if he cannot hand it over—is void.

The commodity must also be clearly known, either by direct inspection or by an adequate description. Thus, purchasing something unseen, or seen but no longer recognizable, or described with wording that would not suffice in a salam contract, is invalid.

It is impermissible to sell, on their own, a fetus in the womb, milk in the udder, musk while still in its gland, the pit inside a date, wool on the animal’s back, or radishes and the like before they are uprooted. The sales known as mulāmasa (sale by mere touch) and munābaza (sale by throwing) are likewise invalid, as is the wording “one slave from among these slaves” or similar expressions, and no unspecified exception is allowed—any exclusion must identify a particular item. If, however, a seller excludes from an edible animal its head, hide, and extremities, the sale is valid; the opposite holds true for its fat or its fetus.

It is permissible to sell produce whose edible part is inside it, such as pomegranates, watermelons, and broad beans.