692 – Maʿmar ibn ʿAbd Allah — may Allah be pleased with him — relates that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “No one hoards except a sinner.” It was recorded by Muslim (1).

Vocabulary of the ḥadīth
– “No one hoards except a sinner”: iḥtikār (hoarding) is to purchase foodstuffs and people’s staple provisions for trade and then keep them back, waiting for prices to rise. This is the lexical meaning; the jurists stipulate additional conditions that will be discussed later, Allah willing.
– “A sinner” (khāṭiʾ): the word ends with a hamzah. Al-Rāghib said that khaṭaʾ is to deviate from the right course. The term has several senses, one of which is to will what ought not be willed and then do it; this is the complete error for which a person is held accountable. That is what is meant here.

Lessons drawn from the ḥadīth

1. Hoarding is to buy a commodity for trade and withhold it so that it becomes scarce in the market, thereby driving the price up for buyers.
2. Scholars divide hoarding into two kinds:
   a. Prohibited hoarding, which concerns the staple foods of human beings. Al-Athram narrated from Abū Umāmah that the Prophet ﷺ “forbade the hoarding of food.” This is the type meant in this ḥadīth; its perpetrator is a khāṭiʾ, that is, a disobedient sinner who has committed a wrongdoing.
   b. Permissible hoarding, which pertains to items whose need is not universal, such as condiments, oil, honey, clothing, livestock, fodder, and the like.