Al-Muqaddimāt al-Mumahhidāt - Ibn Rush al-Jadd - (2/480)

Al-Muqaddimāt al-MumahhidātIbn Rush al-Jadd

A second category consists of things that cannot be preserved in the finder’s possession and are liable to perish if left where they are, such as a sheep in open country and food that quickly spoils.

A third category consists of things that can be preserved in the finder’s possession but are not at risk of loss or destruction if left where they are, such as camels.

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The first category—things liable to perish if left where they are, but which can be preserved in the finder’s possession if he takes them—also falls into three classes:

The first consists of things so insignificant as to have no appreciable value, which the owner is known not to seek because of their trivial worth. Such things need not be announced and belong to whoever finds them: he may eat them or give them in charity, as he wishes. The basis for this is the report that “the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, passed a date lying in the road and said, ‘If it were not for the possibility that it came from charity, I would eat it.’” No announcement was mentioned in this report. Ashhab said concerning someone who finds a stick or a whip that he should announce it; if he does not, however, “I hope that this is of little consequence.”

The second consists of things of modest value which nonetheless have some worth and usefulness, and which their owner may be reluctant to lose and may seek. There is no disagreement that these must be announced, though there is disagreement over the duration. One view is that they should be announced for a year, like things of substantial value. This is the apparent meaning of what Ibn al-Qāsim related from Mālik in al-Mudawwana. In al-ʿUtbiyya, ʿĪsā related from Ibn Wahb that they should be announced for that period; this is also Ibn al-Qāsim’s own opinion in al-Mudawwana.

The third consists of things of substantial value. There is no disagreement that these must be announced for a full year.

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As for the second category—things that cannot be preserved in the finder’s possession and are liable to perish if he leaves them, such as a sheep in open country or food that will not keep—the finder may eat them, whether he is rich or poor, because of the words of

وقسم لا يبقى في يد ملتقطه ويخشى عليه التلف إن ترك كالشاة في الفيفاء والطعام الذي يسرع إليه الفساد. وقسم يبقى في يد ملتقطه ولا يخشى عليه الضياع والتلف إن ترك كالإبل. فصل فأما القسم الأول - وهو ما يخشى عليه التلف إن ترك - ويبقى في يد ملتقطه إن التقطه - فإنه ينقسم أيضا إلى ثلاثة أقسام: أحدها: أن يكون يسيرا جدا لا بال له ولا قدر لقيمته، ويعلم أن صاحبه لا يطلبه لتفاهته، فإن هذا لا يعرف وهو لمن وجده - إن شاء أكله وإن شاء تصدق به؛ والأصل في ذلك ما روي «أن رسول الله ﷺ مر بتمرة في الطريق فقال: لولا أن تكون من الصدقة، لأكلتها» - ولم يذكر فيها تعريفا، وقد قال أشهب في الذي يجد العصا والسوط أنه يعرفه، فإن لم يفعل، فأرجو أن يكون خفيفا. والثاني: أن يكون يسيرا إلا أن له قدرا ومنفعة وقد يشح به صاحبه ويطلبه، فإن هذا لا اختلاف في وجوب تعريفه؛ إلا أنه يختلف في حده: فقيل سنة كالذي له بال - وهو ظاهر ما حكى ابن القاسم عن مالك في المدونة، وروى عيسى عن ابن وهب في العتبية أنه يعرفه إياها - وهو قول ابن القاسم من رأيه في المدونة. والثالث: أن يكون كثيرا له بال، فإن هذا لا اختلاف في وجوب تعريفه حولا كاملا. فصل وأما القسم الثاني - وهو ما لا يبقى بيد ملتقطه ويخشى عليه التلف إن تركه - كالشاة في الفيفاء، والطعام الذي لا يبقى؛ فإن هذا يأكله غنيا كان أو فقيرا - لقول