al-madāmīn being what is in the wombs of female animals, and al-malāqīh what is in the loins of male camels. The reverse has also been stated: al-malāqīh refers to what is in the wombs of female animals, and al-madāmīn to what is in the loins of male camels. The first explanation appears in al-Muwattaʾ and is attributed to Mālik, Ibn Shihāb, or Saʿīd ibn al-Musayyab; it was also adopted by Abū ʿUbayd. The second explanation is that of Ibn Habīb and others.
Another example is his prohibition, peace and blessings be upon him, of the sale known as habal al-habala, meaning the sale of an animal’s offspring’s offspring. It has also been explained as a sale with payment deferred until the offspring itself produces offspring. Either way, it involves uncertainty, whether concerning the item sold or the payment deadline.
Another example is his prohibition, peace and blessings be upon him, of the pebble sale. This occurs when two men bargain over an item while one holds a pebble and says to the other, “When the pebble falls from my hand, the sale between us becomes binding.” It has also been explained as a transaction in which goods are spread out and the buyer throws a pebble: whichever item it lands on becomes his at the price they have agreed upon. Either form likewise involves the uncertainty that is prohibited.
Another example is his prohibition, peace and blessings be upon him, of two sales in one sale, concerning whose meaning there is disagreement. Another is his prohibition, peace and blessings be upon him, of a sale with a forfeitable deposit. This means that a man buys an item and gives the seller a dinar or a dirham, saying, “If I take it, this will count towards the price; if I leave it, this will be forfeited, with nothing in return.” This too involves clear uncertainty.
All these were forms of sale practised in pre-Islamic times. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, prohibited them because they involve consuming wealth unjustly. Allah, Mighty and Majestic, says:
“Do not consume one another’s wealth unjustly, but only through trade by mutual consent.” [al-Nisāʾ: 29]
This means trade involving neither uncertainty, risk, nor gambling. Mutual consent to a transaction involving uncertainty, risk, or gambling does not make it lawful or permissible, for it is a form of gambling that Allah prohibited in His Book when He said:
“Wine, gambling, stone altars, and divining arrows are nothing but an abomination of Satan’s handiwork. So shun it, that you may prosper.” [al-Māʾidah: 90]