the fruit’s ripening.’ He offered this as advice to them because of their frequent disputes and disagreements.” Khārijah ibn Zayd mentioned:

“Zayd would not sell the fruit of his land until the Pleiades rose, when the red could be distinguished from the yellow.”

Al-Bukhārī related it with the beginning of its chain of transmission omitted, and Abū Dāwūd related it up to the words “their disputes.”

Ahmad also related in his Musnad that he said:

“The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, came to Medina while we were buying and selling fruit before it showed signs of ripening. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, heard a dispute and asked, ‘What is this?’ He was told, ‘These people bought fruit and are saying that it suffered rot and premature shedding.’ The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, then said, ‘Do not buy or sell it until it shows signs of ripening.’”

He thus reported that the reason for the Prophet’s prohibition, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was the disputes to which these transactions led. The same applies to sales involving uncertainty. His prohibition against selling fruit before it shows signs of ripening is established in the two Sahīh collections through reports from Ibn ‘Umar, Ibn ‘Abbās, Jābir, and Anas. Muslim also records it through a report from Abū Hurayrah.

The report of Anas explains the reason for this prohibition. In the two Sahīh collections, Anas reported:

“The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, prohibited selling fruit until it began to ripen. It was asked, ‘What is meant by ripening?’ He replied, ‘Until it turns red or yellow.’ The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, then said, ‘Tell me: if Allah withholds the fruit, on what grounds would any of you take his brother’s money?’”

Another version states:

“The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, prohibited selling fruit until it began to ripen. We asked Anas, ‘What is meant by its ripening?’ He replied, ‘It turns red