The Book of Agriculture

ʿAli ibn Hujr reported to us: Sharik informed us, from Tariq, from Saʿid ibn al-Musayyib, who said: “There is no harm in renting fallow land for gold and silver.” He also said: If a man gives another man capital as a qirad investment and wants to draw up a written agreement, he should write: “This is a document written by so-and-so, voluntarily, while in sound health and legally competent, for so-and-so. At the beginning of such-and-such month in such-and-such year, you handed over to me ten thousand good, pure dirhams, of the standard weight of seven, as a qirad investment, on condition that I fear Allah in private and in public and fulfill the trust. I may buy whatever I choose with it, use whatever portion I choose in whatever kinds of trade I see fit, travel with whatever portion I choose wherever I wish, and sell whatever I decide to sell of the goods I purchase, for cash or on deferred payment, in coin or in merchandise. I will manage all of this according to my judgment and appoint anyone I choose to act on my behalf. “Whatever increase and profit Allah grants from this venture beyond the principal you entrusted to me, whose amount is specified in this document, will be divided equally between us: half is yours in return for your capital, and I receive the full other half for my work. Any loss is borne by the capital. I received these ten thousand good, pure dirhams from you at the beginning of such-and-such month in such-and-such year, and they became your qirad capital in my hands under the conditions set out in this document.” So-and-so and so-and-so acknowledged this. “If the investor wishes to authorize the agent to buy and sell on deferred payment, he should write [that authorization]. If not, he should write: ‘You have forbidden me to buy and sell on deferred payment.’”

ʿAmr ibn ʿAli reported to us: Yahya ibn Saʿid narrated to us, from Sufyan, who said: Abu Ishaq narrated to me, from Abu ʿUbaydah, from ʿAbdullah, who said: ‘Ammar, Saʿd, and I were partners on the day of Badr. Saʿd came back with two captives, while neither Ammar nor I came back with anything.’

ʿAli ibn Hujr reported to us: Ibn al-Mubarak informed us, from Yunus, from al-Zuhri, concerning two slaves in an equal partnership, one of whom entered into a contract of manumission. He said: ‘That is permissible if they are equal partners; either one may pay on behalf of the other.’