And if a man whose word carries weight with his master is given food or a gift, not in return for having a request fulfilled, may he accept it? If returning it would hurt the giver’s feelings, is it lawful for him to accept it or not?
He replied:
Praise be to Allah. It is reported in Sunan Abī Dāwūd and elsewhere that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said:
“Whoever intercedes for his brother, then accepts a gift that his brother gives him, has entered a great gateway to usury.”
Ibn Masʿūd was asked about unlawful gain. He replied, “It is when you intercede for your brother, and he gives you a gift which you accept.”
The questioner then asked him, “What if the gift is for something wrongful?” He replied, “That is disbelief:
‘And whoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed—then it is those who are the disbelievers.’”
For this reason, the scholars have said that if someone gives a person in authority a gift so that he will do something unlawful for him, it is forbidden for both the giver and the recipient. This is a form of bribery, concerning which the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said:
“May Allah curse the bribe-giver and the bribe-taker.”
A bribe is also called “al-birtīl.” In its lexical sense, “al-birtīl” means a stone with an elongated mouth.
If, however, someone gives him a gift to make him cease his oppression of him, or to obtain a right that he is obliged to grant him, the gift is forbidden for the recipient, but the giver may give it to him. Thus, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, used to say:
“I give one of them a gift, and he goes away with it, tucking fire under his arm.” He was asked, “O Messenger of Allah, why do you give to them?” He replied, “They insist on asking me, and Allah does not allow me to be miserly.”
The same applies to giving something to someone who has freed a slave but concealed the manumission, or has kept some information secret, or oppresses people. Giving to such people is permissible for the giver, but accepting it is forbidden for them.
As for a gift given in return for intercession: