It is also related from Rāfiʿ ibn Khadīj, on the authority of his father, that he said:
“The Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—forbade the leasing of farmlands.”
Abū ʿUmar ibn ʿAbd al-Barr adds: They further cite the report of Ḍamrah, from Ibn Shawdhub, from Muṭarrif, from ʿAṭāʾ, from Jābir, who said:
“The Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—addressed us and declared, ‘Whoever owns land should cultivate it himself, or let his brother cultivate it, but he must not lease it out.’”
These are the aggregate of ḥadīths to which those who disallow the leasing of land cling. They also argue, on rational grounds, that such leasing entails excessive uncertainty (gharār), for the crop may be struck by fire, drought, or flood, obliging the tenant to pay rent without having derived any benefit.
The Qāḍī observes: One might say that the underlying purpose here is to show leniency toward people in view of the sheer abundance of land—just as the sale of water was prohibited—since both land and water are elemental resources created for all.
Those who permit leasing only for dirhams and dinars rely principally on the ḥadīth of Ṭāriq ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān, from Saʿīd ibn al-Musayyib, from Rāfiʿ ibn Khadīj, who attributes to the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—the statement:
“Only three may cultivate: a man who owns land and tills it; a man who is granted land and tills what he has been granted; and a man who rents land for gold or silver.”
They contend that one may not go beyond what this report stipulates. The other traditions are general, whereas this one is specific; accordingly, the general texts must be restricted by the specific.
Those who allow leasing for anything except food—whether the food is stored or not—base themselves on the ḥadīth of Yaʿlā ibn Ḥakīm, from Sulaymān ibn Yasār, from Rāfiʿ ibn Khadīj, who said:
“The Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—said, ‘Whoever owns land should cultivate it himself or let his brother cultivate it; he must not lease it for one-third, one-quarter, or for specified food.’”
They say this embodies the very practice of muḥāqalah that the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—forbade, citing the marfūʿ report of Saʿīd ibn al-Musayyib which states: “Muḥāqalah is leasing land for wheat.” They add that such an arrangement amounts to selling food for food on a deferred basis.
Those who forbid leasing for food or for anything that the land itself produces argue, as to food, with the same proofs advanced by those who disallow it. Their evidence against leasing it for its own produce is the Prophet’s—peace and blessings be upon him—prohibition of mukhābarah, which they define as leasing land for a share of what it yields. This is the view of Mālik and all of his companions.