711 – Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Gold for gold, weight for weight, like for like; and silver for silver, weight for weight, like for like. Whoever gives extra or asks for extra has committed riba.” Reported by Muslim (1).
Vocabulary of the ḥadith
• “Silver for silver” – The first occurrence is in the nominative, standing for an omitted governing word, the meaning being: “the sale of silver for silver.”
• “Silver” – Modern chemists state that silver (fiḍḍa, plural fiḍḍ and fiḍāḍ) is a white element that can be drawn into wire, hammered thin, and polished. It is among the best conductors of heat and electricity, counts as a precious metal used for minting coins, and its salts are employed in photography.
• “Weight for weight” – A verbal noun functioning as a circumstantial qualifier, i.e. gold is exchanged for gold with both amounts actually weighed and equivalent. It may also be read as an emphatic verbal noun: “it must be weighed by weight,” as stated in Fatḥ al-Bārī.
• “Asked for an increase” – From zāda–yazīdu (“to increase”); istazāda means “to request an addition.”
Points derived from the three ḥadiths
- These traditions are the primary authority in this chapter. The Prophet ﷺ enumerated the principal items, explicitly set out their rulings and conditions—whether the sale involves items of the same genus or of different genera—and clarified the effective cause in each, so that the jurist may infer the unknown from the known. He ﷺ mentioned the two media of exchange and the four foodstuffs to indicate that the underlying cause of riba is