The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "The selling of wheat for wheat is Riba (usury) except if it is handed from hand to hand and equal in amount. Similarly the selling of barley for barley, is Riba except if it is from hand to hand and equal in amount, and dates for dates is usury except if it is from hand to hand and equal in amount. (See Riba-Fadl in the glossary).
Hadith Text
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "The selling of wheat for wheat is Riba (usury) except if it is handed from hand to hand and equal in amount. Similarly the selling of barley for barley, is Riba except if it is from hand to hand and equal in amount, and dates for dates is usury except if it is from hand to hand and equal in amount."
Source Reference
Book: Sales and Trade
Author: Sahih al-Bukhari
Hadith: Sahih al-Bukhari 2170
Scholarly Commentary
This hadith establishes the fundamental principles of Riba al-Fadl, which prohibits the exchange of specified commodities of the same kind with inequality or delay. The wisdom behind this prohibition is to prevent hidden usury that may occur when trading identical items.
The six commodities mentioned in other narrations (gold, silver, wheat, barley, dates, salt) are considered monetary standards or staple foods. When exchanging identical commodities, two conditions must be met: 1) Equal measure (taqabudh) 2) Immediate exchange (hand to hand).
Scholars explain that these commodities serve as price determinants in society. Allowing unequal exchange would enable hidden interest and economic exploitation. The prohibition ensures fairness and prevents deception in commercial transactions.
This ruling applies to all items sharing the same effective cause ('illah) as these specified commodities, which scholars identify as being either monetary in nature or staple food items measured by weight or volume.