Chapter: The Prohibition of Selling Fruit Before Its Ripeness Becomes Apparent (1)
First Ḥadīth
On the authority of ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿUmar, may Allah be pleased with them both: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ forbade selling fruit until its soundness is evident; he prohibited both the seller and the buyer from doing so.
Second Ḥadīth
On the authority of Anas ibn Mālik, may Allah be pleased with him: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ forbade the sale of fruits until they tuzhā. It was asked, “What does tuzhā mean?” He replied, “Until they turn red or yellow.” Then he said, “Tell me—if Allah should withhold the fruit, what right would any one of you have to take his brother’s wealth?”
Unfamiliar Terms
• tuzhā: with ḍammah on the tāʾ, from azhā – yazhā. For fruit it means the stage when it turns red or yellow, signalling the onset of edibility.
• ḥattā yabdū: al-Nawawī explains that yabdū here means “becomes visible”; the verb is written without a hamzah.
Overall Meaning
Before signs of ripeness appear, fruit is highly susceptible to many blights, and selling it at that stage brings the buyer no real benefit. For that reason the Prophet ﷺ forbade both seller and purchaser from concluding such a transaction until the fruit reaches the stage called tuzhā—that is, the initial ripeness indicated, in the case of dates, by redness or yellowness. The Lawgiver then explained the wisdom behind the ban: were a calamity to strike all or part of the crop, on what basis, O seller, would you lawfully keep your brother’s money, having taken payment without delivering anything useful in return?
Points Derived from the Two Ḥadīths
- A clear prohibition against selling fruits before the first signs of ripeness appear.
- Such a prohibition entails invalidity; therefore a sale concluded at that stage is unsound.
- Once ripeness appears the sale is permissible. Likewise, if the fruit is sold earlier on condition that it be picked immediately, the transaction is valid; this is the view of the majority.
- The sign of ripeness for dates is when they turn red or yellow, even if that occurs only on part of the bunch; thus the onset of ripeness is established