12 – Commercial profit has no statutory ceiling; it fluctuates entirely according to the forces of supply and demand.

13 – This ḥadith seems to conflict with the earlier report from Samurah stating that the Prophet ﷺ “forbade selling one live animal for another on credit” (reported by Aḥmad 5/12).

The scholars resolved the apparent contradiction by giving precedence to the present ḥadith, which they judged stronger than Samurah’s. Imām al-Shāfiʿī declared that Samurah’s report is not firmly established from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. The sole link in Samurah’s chain is al-Ḥasan, and he only heard from Samurah the tradition concerning the ʿaqīqah. By contrast, the ḥadith of ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ is transmitted by trustworthy narrators and is reinforced by the foundational rule that transactions are valid and permissible unless a sound, explicit proof dictates otherwise.

• Disagreement among the jurists

They differed over the permissibility of lending animals, holding two views:

1. Permissible. This is the position of the imams Mālik, al-Shāfiʿī, Aḥmad, and the vast majority of scholars, early and late. They rely on this ḥadith and on the general presumption of permissibility, from which one may depart only with a clear, authentic proof—and none exists here.

2. Impermissible. This is the school of Imām Abū Ḥanīfah. It contradicts this ḥadith and the basic rule of lawful permissibility. Consequently, the stronger opinion is the first, and Allah knows best.