727 – Anas ibn Mālik (d. 93 AH) reported: “The Prophet ﷺ forbade selling fruits until they begin to tuzhī.” They asked, “What is their zuhū?” He replied, “When they start to turn red or yellow.” Agreed upon, and this wording is al-Bukhārī’s. (1)

• Vocabulary of the ḥadith:
  • tuzhī: from the quadriliteral verb azhā. It means that the fruit has begun to ripen, showing a reddish or yellowish tint. One also says zahi al-nakhl yazhū when the date-palm has grown tall and matured; and azhā min yazhī when it becomes red or yellow—an indication of soundness and freedom from blight. The term zuhū likewise refers to busr (unripe dates) once redness or yellowness appears in them.
  • taḥmār and taṣfār: both words open with a tāʾ pronounced with fatḥah, followed by a silent second letter, and each ends with a doubled rāʾ.
  Al-Khaṭṭābī said: The words “taḥmār and taṣfār” do not refer to a pure, bright red or yellow; rather they mean a muted reddish or yellowish hue. Kumdah is the dulling and fading of color. Ibn al-Tīn explained that the phrase points to the very first appearance of red or yellow before the fruit is fully ripe. Al-Wasīṭ adds: al-kumdah (with ḍammah on the kāf, then sukūn) denotes a change of color and the loss of its original brightness.