He thus explicitly stated that the matter may be addressed by having whatever had spread from the tree removed, and that its owner should be ordered to do this rather than the official undertake it himself, because the claim is directed against the owner, who is responsible for keeping it within its proper bounds—just as the pledgor is called upon to sell the pledged property.

According to a report from Isḥāq ibn Hāniʾ, he said: “Regarding a man who has a tree in his house, from whose roots another tree has grown in the house of a different man: To whom does the tree belong?” He replied: “I do not know what this is. Perhaps it is harmful to the owner of the land.”

The apparent meaning of this is that if it causes no harm—that is, if its roots remain beneath the ground—he is not to be compelled to uproot it, since harm is what he took into consideration; and harm occurs only when the roots emerge above the surface of the ground.

Abū Ḥafṣ al-ʿUkbarī narrated through his chain of transmission from Abū Bakr ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz, from Abū Bakr al-Khallāl, from Ḥarb, from ʿAmr ibn ʿUthmān, from Baqiyyah ibn al-Walīd, from Salamah al-Qurashī, from al-ʿAlāʾ ibn al-Ḥārith, from Makhūl, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Whoever has a tree shading his house may choose either to eat its fruit or to cut away whatever part of it casts shade over his house.” This is understood to mean that the owner of the tree is the one who eats its fruit.

Abū Ḥafṣ also narrated through his chain of transmission from Muḥammad ibn ʿAlī, who said: “Samurah ibn Jundub had a date palm in the walled garden of a man from the Anṣār. He and his family used to enter upon the man, causing him distress. The Anṣārī complained about this to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), who said to him, ‘Sell it to him.’ He refused. He said, ‘Then uproot it.’ He refused. He said, ‘Give it to him, and you will have one like it in Paradise.’ He refused. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) then said, ‘You are causing harm. Go and uproot his palm tree.’” Thus, he ordered him to uproot it.

If the owner installs an oven in his house and the neighbor is disturbed by its smoke, or installs a millstone, or sets up blacksmiths or fullers there, is he to be prohibited from doing so?