in standing water that does not flow, and then bathing in it.” Ahmad understood this as referring to the stagnant bodies of water familiar in the Prophet’s time, such as wells and the pools between Mecca and Medina. As for the large reservoirs that cannot be drained and were constructed after his time, he did not include them within the general wording, because of the substantive distinction between the two cases and the absence of wording that would encompass them both.

Evidence that the wording is not general in the present case is found in the two Sahih collections, in the report of Anas ibn Mālik—may Allah be pleased with him—that “the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—forbade the sale of fruit until it began to ripen.” He was asked, “What does ‘began to ripen’ mean?” He replied, “It turns red or yellow.” Another version states: “He forbade the sale of fruit until it ripened,” while Muslim’s wording is: “He forbade the sale of date-palm fruit until it ripened.” It is well known that what is meant is date-palm fruit, as expressly specified in the latter version, for that is the fruit which ripens by turning red or yellow. Other fruits, however, ripen by turning white, such as mulberries, apples, white grapes, white plums—which the people of Damascus call khawkh—and white peaches, known as firsik and called durraq by the Damascenes. Still others, such as figs and the like, ripen by softening without changing color.

Hence the two Sahih collections contain the report of Jābir, who said: “The Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—forbade the sale of fruit until it began to color.” He was asked, “What does ‘began to color’ mean?” He replied, “It turns red or yellow and becomes fit to eat.” The fruit meant here is fresh dates. Likewise, Sahih Muslim reports from Abū Hurayra—may Allah be pleased with him—that the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—said: “Do not purchase fruit until signs of its ripeness appear, and do not purchase dates in exchange for dates.” The latter use of “dates” undoubtedly means fresh dates, and so does the former, since the same word is used. And in Sahīh Muslim, he said: He said—