the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, to lease farmland for a third or a quarter of its produce, or for the crops growing along the main irrigation channels and at the heads of smaller watercourses. His prohibition against leasing farmland was issued in response to these practices and was therefore confined to them. Another account of the circumstances behind the prohibition is also given:

“It is reported that Zayd ibn Thābit said: ‘May Allah forgive Rāfi‘ ibn Khadīj! By Allah, I know the hadith better than he does. Two men of the Ansār who had been fighting came to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and he said: “If this is how you behave, then do not lease farmland.”’”

Rāfi‘ heard him say, “Do not lease farmland,” and transmitted it.

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Scholars have differed over whether general wording that is complete in itself, but was uttered on a particular occasion, should be confined to that occasion or understood in its general sense. There are two positions. According to scholars of legal reasoning, the sounder position is that it should be understood in its general sense, rather than confined to its occasion. This is because the authoritative proof lies in the Prophet’s words, not in the occasion: the occasion alone would not constitute proof, whereas the Prophet’s words, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, would constitute binding proof on their own.

As for his prohibition against leasing farmland, however, the sounder position is to confine it to its occasion rather than understand it generally, since its scope has been restricted by his statement, may Allah bless him and grant him peace:

“Only three may cultivate land: a man who owns land and cultivates it; a man granted the use of land who cultivates what he has been granted; and a man who leases land for gold or silver.”

A number of scholars have said that when something is excluded from the scope of a general expression, that expression becomes indeterminate, and its generality can no longer be invoked as proof. Although this is not the position of Mālik or his followers, it supports confining the prohibition to its occasion. Abū Bakr al-Abharī has related in his book that Mālik’s position, may Allah have mercy on him, is that general wording uttered on a particular occasion should be confined to that occasion rather than understood in its general sense.

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Thus, if his prohibition against leasing farmland is confined to leasing it for a third or a quarter of its produce, or for the crops growing along the main irrigation channels and at the heads of smaller watercourses, nothing prevents leasing it for dinars, dirhams, or goods that the land does not produce, particularly given the explicit report from the Prophet, peace be upon him, concerning leasing it