an orchard: may all its fruit be sold, or may only the fruit that has begun to ripen be sold? There are two reports from him on this question.

The better-known report is that only fruit showing signs of ripeness may be sold. This was the position adopted by his early followers, such as Abū Bakr and Ibn Shāqlā.

The second report is that the appearance of signs of ripeness in some of the fruit counts as ripeness for all of it. This was the position adopted by most of his followers, such as Ibn Hāmid, al-Qādī and those who followed them.

His explicit statement in this second report is:

“If some fruit in an orchard is ripe and some is not, it may be sold if most of it is ripe.”

Some of his followers therefore distinguished between a small and a large proportion of ripe fruit. These include al-Qādī in his later position, Abū Hakīm al-Nahrawānī, Abū al-Barakāt and others who restricted this ruling to cases where most of the fruit showed signs of ripeness. Others, such as Abū al-Khattāb and numerous other scholars, made no distinction between a small and a large proportion. This is also the position of Mālik, al-Shāfiʿī and al-Layth.

Mālik went further, saying:

“This also counts as ripeness for the fruit in adjoining plots.”

They also related this as a report from Ahmad.

These scholars differed over whether signs of ripeness in one variety—such as Barnī fresh dates—count as ripeness for all other varieties of fresh dates. There are two views within the schools of al-Shāfiʿī and Ahmad.

The first does not permit this; it is the position of al-Qādī, Ibn ʿAqīl and Abū Muhammad.

The second permits it; it is the position of Abū al-Khattāb.

Al-Layth went further than these scholars, saying: