one of the two aspects of the transfer of possession. The buyer could do no more than this. The buyer is only required to take possession of the property purchased in the customary, usual manner entailed by the contract, whether possession follows immediately upon the contract or is delayed, and whether it occurs all at once or gradually.

We apply this principle consistently to all contracts. Taking possession need not follow immediately upon the contract; rather, it must occur as the contract requires, according to its wording and customary practice. Thus, according to the correct view, it is permissible to reserve some of the use of the property sold for a specified period, even if this delays taking possession. Likewise, it is permissible to sell property that is leased out, or to sell trees while reserving their fruit for the seller, even though this delays the completion of possession. It is also permissible to conclude a lease for a period that does not begin immediately after the contract.

The underlying reason is that taking possession is an obligation arising from the contract. What is required in this regard is therefore what the contracting parties have made binding, according to their intention as expressed through their wording and customary practice. For this reason, we have said that if they stipulate immediate picking, this is permissible, provided it entails no harm prohibited by Islamic law. For Muslims are bound by their stipulations, except a stipulation that makes lawful what is forbidden or forbids what is lawful. If they leave the matter unspecified, customary practice is to delay picking and harvesting until the produce has fully ripened.

As for their argument that taking possession consists in placing the property at the buyer’s disposal, what constitutes taking possession is determined by people’s customary practice, since neither language nor Islamic law provides a fixed definition of it. Taking possession of fruit on the trees