86 Malik related to me from Musa ibn Maysara that he heard a man ask Said ibn al-Musayyab, "I am a man who sells for a debt." Said said, "Do not sell except for what you take to your camel." Malik spoke about a person who bought goods from a man provided that he provide him with those goods by a specific date, either in time for a market in which he hoped for their saleability, or to fulfil a need at the time he stipulated. Then the seller failed him about the date, and the buyer wanted to return those goods to the seller. Malik said, "The buyer cannot do that, and the sale is binding on him. If the seller does bring the goods before the completion of the term, the buyer cannot be forced to take them." Malik spoke about a person who bought food and measured it. Then some one came to him to buy it and he told him that he had measured it for himself and taken it in full. The new buyer wanted to trust him and accept his measure. Malik said, "Whatever is sold in this way for cash has no harm in it but whatever is sold in this way on delayed terms is disapproved of until the new buyer measures it out for himself. The sale with delayed terms is disapproved of because it leads to usury and it is feared that it will be circulated in this way without weight or measure. If the terms are delayed it is disapproved of and there is no disagreement about that with us." Malik said, "One should not buy a debt owed by a man whether present or absent, without the confirmation of the one who owes the debt, nor should one buy a debt owed to a man by a dead person even if one knows what the deceased man has left. That is because to buy that is an uncertain transaction and one does not know whether the transaction will be completed or not completed." He said, "The explanation of what is disapproved of in buying a debt owed by someone absent or dead, is that it is not known what unknown debtor may be connected to the dead person. If the dead person is liable for another debt, the price which the buyer gave on strength of the debt may become worthless." Malik said, "There is another fault in that as well. He is buying something which is not guaranteed for him, and so if the deal is not completed, what he paid becomes worthless. This is an uncertain transaction and it is not good." Malik said, "One distinguishes between a man who is only selling what he actually has and a man who is being paid in advance for something which is not yet in his possession. The man advancing the money brings his gold which he intends to buy with. The seller says, 'This is 10 dinars. What do you want me to buy for you with it?' It is as if he sold 10 dinars cash for 15 dinars to be paid later. Because of this, it is disapproved of. It is something leading to usury and fraud."  

قَالَ مَالِكٌ فِي الَّذِي يَشْتَرِي السِّلْعَةَ مِنَ الرَّجُلِ عَلَى أَنْ يُوَفِّيَهُ تِلْكَ السِّلْعَةَ إِلَى أَجَلٍ مُسَمًّى إِمَّا لِسُوقٍ يَرْجُو نَفَاقَهَا فِيهِ وَإِمَّا لِحَاجَةٍ فِي ذَلِكَ الزَّمَانِ الَّذِي اشْتَرَطَ عَلَيْهِ ثُمَّ يُخْلِفُهُ الْبَائِعُ عَنْ ذَلِكَ الأَجَلِ فَيُرِيدُ الْمُشْتَرِي رَدَّ تِلْكَ السِّلْعَةِ عَلَى الْبَائِعِ إِنَّ ذَلِكَ لَيْسَ لِلْمُشْتَرِي وَإِنَّ الْبَيْعَ لاَزِمٌ لَهُ وَإِنَّ الْبَائِعَ لَوْ جَاءَ بِتِلْكَ السِّلْعَةِ قَبْلَ مَحِلِّ الأَجَلِ لَمْ يُكْرَهِ الْمُشْتَرِي عَلَى أَخْذِهَا قَالَ مَالِكٌ فِي الَّذِي يَشْتَرِي الطَّعَامَ فَيَكْتَالُهُ ثُمَّ يَأْتِيهِ مَنْ يَشْتَرِيهِ مِنْهُ فَيُخْبِرُ الَّذِي يَأْتِيهِ أَنَّهُ قَدِ اكْتَالَهُ لِنَفْسِهِ وَاسْتَوْفَاهُ فَيُرِيدُ الْمُبْتَاعُ أَنْ يُصَدِّقَهُ وَيَأْخُذَهُ بِكَيْلِهِ إِنَّ مَا بِيعَ عَلَى هَذِهِ الصِّفَةِ بِنَقْدٍ فَلاَ بَأْسَ بِهِ وَمَا بِيعَ عَلَى هَذِهِ الصِّفَةِ إِلَى أَجَلٍ فَإِنَّهُ مَكْرُوهٌ حَتَّى يَكْتَالَهُ الْمُشْتَرِي الآخَرُ لِنَفْسِهِ وَإِنَّمَا كُرِهَ الَّذِي إِلَى أَجَلٍ لأَنَّهُ ذَرِيعَةٌ إِلَى الرِّبَا وَتَخَوُّفٌ أَنْ يُدَارَ ذَلِكَ عَلَى هَذَا الْوَجْهِ بِغَيْرِ كَيْلٍ وَلاَ وَزْنٍ فَإِنْ كَانَ إِلَى أَجَلٍ فَهُوَ مَكْرُوهٌ وَلاَ اخْتِلاَفَ فِيهِ عِنْدَنَا قَالَ مَالِكٌ لاَ يَنْبَغِي أَنْ يُشْتَرَى دَيْنٌ عَلَى رَجُلٍ غَائِبٍ وَلاَ حَاضِرٍ إِلاَّ بِإِقْرَارٍ مِنَ الَّذِي عَلَيْهِ الدَّيْنُ وَلاَ عَلَى مَيِّتٍ وَإِنْ عَلِمَ الَّذِي تَرَكَ الْمَيِّتُ وَذَلِكَ أَنَّ اشْتِرَاءَ ذَلِكَ غَرَرٌ لاَ يُدْرَى أَيَتِمُّ أَمْ لاَ يَتِمُّ قَالَ وَتَفْسِيرُ مَا كُرِهَ مِنْ ذَلِكَ أَنَّهُ إِذَا اشْتَرَى دَيْنًا عَلَى غَائِبٍ أَوْ مَيِّتٍ أَنَّهُ لاَ يُدْرَى مَا يَلْحَقُ الْمَيِّتَ مِنَ الدَّيْنِ الَّذِي لَمْ يُعْلَمْ بِهِ فَإِنْ لَحِقَ الْمَيِّتَ دَيْنٌ ذَهَبَ الثَّمَنُ الَّذِي أَعْطَى الْمُبْتَاعُ بَاطِلاً قَالَ مَالِكٌ وَفِي ذَلِكَ أَيْضًا عَيْبٌ آخَرُ أَنَّهُ اشْتَرَى شَيْئًا لَيْسَ بِمَضْمُونٍ لَهُ وَإِنْ لَمْ يَتِمَّ ذَهَبَ ثَمَنُهُ بَاطِلاً فَهَذَا غَرَرٌ لاَ يَصْلُحُ قَالَ مَالِكٌ وَإِنَّمَا فُرِقَ بَيْنَ أَنْ لاَ يَبِيعَ الرَّجُلُ إِلاَّ مَا عِنْدَهُ وَأَنْ يُسَلِّفَ الرَّجُلُ فِي شَىْءٍ لَيْسَ عِنْدَهُ أَصْلُهُ أَنَّ صَاحِبَ الْعِينَةِ إِنَّمَا يَحْمِلُ ذَهَبَهُ الَّتِي يُرِيدُ أَنْ يَبْتَاعَ بِهَا فَيَقُولُ هَذِهِ عَشَرَةُ دَنَانِيرَ فَمَا تُرِيدُ أَنْ أَشْتَرِيَ لَكَ بِهَا فَكَأَنَّهُ يَبِيعُ عَشَرَةَ دَنَانِيرَ نَقْدًا بِخَمْسَةَ عَشَرَ دِينَارًا إِلَى أَجَلٍ فَلِهَذَا كُرِهَ هَذَا وَإِنَّمَا تِلْكَ الدُّخْلَةُ وَالدُّلْسَةُ  

Yahya related to me from Malik from a reliable source from Amr ibn Shuayb from his father from his father's father that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ forbade transactions in which nonrefundable deposits were paid. Malik said, "That is, in our opinion, but Allah knows best, that for instance, a man buys a slave or slave-girl or rents an animal and then says to the person from whom he bought the slave or leased the animal, 'I will give you a dinar or a dirham or whatever on the condition that if I actually take the goods or ride what I have rented from you, then what I have given you already goes towards payment of the goods or hire of the animal. If I do not purchase the goods or hire the animal, then what I have given you is yours without liability on your part.' " Malik said, "According to the way of doing things with us there is nothing wrong in bartering an arabic speaking merchant slave for abyssinian slaves or any other type that are not his equal in eloquence, trading, shrewdness, and know-how. There is nothing wrong in bartering one slave like this for two or more other slaves with a stated delay in the terms if he is clearly different. If there is no appreciable difference between the slaves, two should not be bartered for one with a stated delay in the terms even if their racial type is different." Malik said, "There is nothing wrong in selling what has been bought in such a transaction before taking possession of all of it as long as you receive the price for it from some one other than the original owner." Malik said, "An addition to the price must not be made for a foetus in the womb of its mother when she is sold because that is gharar (an uncertain transaction). It is not known whether the child will be male or female, good-looking or ugly, normal or handicapped, alive or dead. All these things will affect the price." Malik said that in a transaction where a slave or slave-girl was bought for one hundred dinars with a stated credit period that if the seller regretted the sale there was nothing wrong in him asking the buyer to revoke it for ten dinars which he would pay him immediately or after a period and he would forgo his right to the hundred dinars which he was owed. Malik said, "However, if the buyer regrets and asks the seller to revoke the sale of a slave or slave-girl in consideration of which he will pay an extra ten dinars immediately or on credit terms, extended beyond the original term, that should not be done. It is disapproved of because it is as if, for instance, the seller is buying the one hundred dinars which is not yet due on a year's credit term before the year expires for a slave-girl and ten dinars to be paid immediately or on credit term longer than the year. This falls into the category of selling gold for gold when delayed terms enter into it." Malik said that it was not proper for a man to sell a slave-girl to another man for one hundred dinars on credit and then to buy her back for more than the original price or on a credit term longer than the original term for which he sold her. To understand why that was disapproved of in that case, the example of a man who sold a slave-girl on credit and then bought her back on a credit term longer than the original term was looked at. He might have sold her for thirty dinars with a month to pay and then buy her back for sixty dinars with a year or half a year to pay. The outcome would only be that his goods would have returned to him just like they were and the other party would have given him thirty dinars on a month's credit against sixty dinars on a year or half a year's credit. That was not to be done.  

أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ نَهَى عَنْ بَيْعِ الْعُرْبَانِ قَالَ مَالِكٌ وَذلِكَ فِيمَا نُرَى وَاللهُ أَعْلَمُ أَنْ يَشْتَرِيَ الرَّجُلُ الْعَبْدَ أَوِ الْوَلِيدَةَ أَوْ يَتَكَارَى الدَّابَّةَ ثُمَّ يَقُولُ لِلَّذِي اشْتَرَى مِنْهُ أَوْ تَكَارَى مِنْهُ أُعْطِيكَ دِينَاراً أَوْ دِرْهَماً أَوْ أَكْثَرَ مِنْ ذلِكَ أَوْ أَقَلَّ عَلَى أَنِّي إِنْ أَخَذْتُ السِّلْعَةَ أَوْ رَكِبْتُ مَا تَكَارَيْتُ مِنْكَ فَالَّذِي أَعْطَيْتُكَ هُوَ مِنْ ثَمَنِ السِّلْعَةِ أَوْ مِنْ كِرَاءِ الدَّابَّةِ وَإِنْ تَرَكْتُ ابْتِيَاعَ السِّلْعَةِ أَوْ كِرَاءَ الدَّابَّةِ فَمَا أَعْطَيْتُكَ لَكَ بَاطِلٌ بِغَيْرِ شَيْءٍ قَالَ مَالِكٌ وَالْأَمْرُ عِنْدَنَا أَنَّهُ لاَ بَأْسَ بِأَنْ يَبْتَاعَ الْعَبْدَ التَّاجِرَ الْفَصِيحَ بِالْأَعْبُدِ مِنَ الْحَبَشَةِ أَوْ مِنْ جِنْسٍ مِنَ الْأَجْنَاسِ لَيْسُوا مِثْلَهُ فِي الْفَصَاحَةِ وَلاَ فِي التِّجَارَةِ وَالنَّفَاذِ وَالْمَعْرِفَةِ لاَ بَأْسَ بِهذَا أَنْ يَشْتَرِيَ مِنْهُ الْعَبْدَ بِالْعَبْدَيْنِ أَوْ بِالْأَعْبُدِ إِلَى أَجَلٍ مَعْلُومٍ إِذَا اخْتَلَفَ فَبَانَ اخْتِلاَفُهُ فَإِنْ أَشْبَهَ بَعْضُ ذلِكَ بَعْضاً حَتَّى يَتَقَارَبَ فَلاَ تَأْخُذَنْ مِنْهُ اثْنَيْنِ بِوَاحِدٍ إِلَى أَجَلٍ وَإِنِ اخْتَلَفَتْ أَجْنَاسُهُمْ قَالَ مَالِكٌ وَلاَ بَأْسَ بِأَنْ تَبِيعَ مَا اشْتَرَيْتَ مِنْ ذلِكَ قَبْلَ أَنْ تَسْتَوْفِيَهُ إِذَا انْتَقَدْتَ ثَمَنَهُ مِنْ غَيْرِ صَاحِبِهِ الَّذِي اشْتَرَيْتَهُ مِنْهُ قَالَ مَالِكٌ لاَ يَنْبَغِي أَنْ يُسْتَثْنَى جَنِينٌ فِي بَطْنِ أُمِّهِ إِذَا بِيعَتْ لِأَنَّ ذلِكَ غَرَرٌ لاَ يُدْرَى أَذَكَرٌ هُوَ أَمْ 1 أُنْثَى أو حَسَنٌ 2 أَوْ قَبِيحٌ أَوْ نَاقِصٌ أَوْ تَامٌّ أَوْ حَيٌّ أَوْ مَيِّتٌ وَذلِكَ يَضَعُ مِنْ ثَمَنِهَا قَالَ مَالِكٌ فِي الرَّجُلِ يَبْتَاعُ الْعَبْدَ أَوِ الْوَلِيدَةَ بِمِائَةِ دِينَارٍ إِلَى أَجَلٍ ثُمَّ يَنْدَمُ الْبَائِعُ فَيَسْأَلُ الْمُبْتَاعَ أَنْ يُقِيلَهُ بِعَشَرَةِ دَنَانِيرَ يَدْفَعُهَا إِلَيْهِ نَقْداً أَوْ إِلَى أَجَلٍ وَيَمْحُو عَنْهُ الْمِائَةَ دِينَارٍ الَّتِي لَهُ قَالَ مَالِكٌ لاَ بَأْسَ بِذلِكَ وَإِنْ نَدِمَ الْمُبْتَاعُ فَسَأَلَ الْبَائِعَ أَنْ يُقِيلَهُ فِي الْجَارِيَةِ أَوِ الْعَبْدِ وَيَزِيدَهُ عَشَرَةَ دَنَانِيرَ نَقْداً أَوْ إِلَى أَجَلٍ أَبْعَدَ مِنَ الْأَجَلِ الَّذِي اشْتَرَى إِلَيْهِ الْعَبْدَ أَوِ الْوَلِيدَةَ فَإِنَّ ذلِكَ لاَ يَنْبَغِي وَإِنَّمَا كَرِهَ ذلِكَ لِأَنَّ الْبَائِعَ كَأَنَّهُ بَاعَ مِنْهُ مِائَةَ دِينَارٍ لَهُ إِلَى سَنَةٍ قَبْلَ أَنْ تَحِلَّ بِجَارِيَةٍ وَبِعَشَرَةِ دَنَانِيرَ نَقْداً أَوْ إِلَى أَجَلٍ أَبْعَدَ مِنَ السَّنَةِ فَدَخَلَ فِي ذلِكَ بَيْعُ الذَّهَبِ بِالذَّهَبِ إِلَى أَجَلٍ قَالَ مَالِكٌ فِي الرَّجُلِ يَبِيعُ مِنَ الرَّجُلِ الْجَارِيَةَ بِمِائَةِ دِينَارٍ إِلَى أَجَلٍ ثُمَّ يَشْتَرِيهَا بِأَكْثَرَ مِنْ ذلِكَ الثَّمَنِ الَّذِي بَاعَهَا بِهِ إِلَى أَبْعَدَ مِنْ ذلِكَ الْأَجَلِ الَّذِي بَاعَهَا إِلَيْهِ إِنَّ ذلِكَ لاَ يَصْلُحُ وَتَفْسِيرُ مَا كَرِهَ مِنْ ذلِكَ أَنْ يَبِيعَ الرَّجُلُ الْجَارِيَةَ إِلَى أَجَلٍ ثُمَّ يَبْتَاعُهَا إِلَى أَجَلٍ أَبْعَدَ مِنْهُ يَبِيعُهَا بِثَلاَثِينَ دِينَاراً إِلَى شَهْرٍ ثُمَّ يَبْتَاعُهَا بِسِتِّينَ دِينَاراً إِلَى سَنَةٍ أَوْ إِلَى نِصْفِ سَنَةٍ فَصَارَ إِنْ رَجَعَتْ إِلَيْهِ سِلْعَتُهُ بِعَيْنِهَا وَأَعْطَاهُ صَاحِبُهُ ثَلاَثِينَ دِينَاراً إِلَى شَهْرٍ بِسِتِّينَ دِينَاراً إِلَى سَنَةٍ أَوْ إِلَى نِصْفِ سَنَةٍ فَهذَا لاَ يَنْبَغِي