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FAREWELL POSTINGS

Parochial Economics

April 2, 2025

In watching Trump on CNN announcing worldwide tariffs on a day he called Liberation Day I was reminded of another man’s myopic vision of economics and commerce. His instructions concerning trade in goods, if applied today, would cripple the modern economy faster than Trump’s tariffs.

SELLING IT!

(Abbreviated from 1,001 Sayings and Deeds of the Prophet Muhammad, Boreal Books)

Nowhere is Islamic law applied more selectively than in commercial transactions. To do as Muhammad demands would completely cripple the modern economy. Take money, for instance.

Narrated Abu Al-Minhal:

I used to practice money exchange, and I asked Zaid bin 'Arqam about it, and he narrated what the Prophet said in the following:

Abu Al-Minhal said, "I asked Al-Bara' bin 'Azib and Zaid bin Arqam about practicing money exchange. They replied, 'We were traders in the time of Allah's Apostle and I asked Allah's Apostle about money exchange. He replied, 'If it is from hand to hand, there is no harm in it; otherwise it is not permissible.’"

Bukhari 34.276

Muhammad would control every aspect of the selling and buying of goods, as he did with everything he came in contact with, often to the point of absurdity. For example, in attempting to make post-Islamic commerce conform to scriptures, such as the Koran’s prohibition against earning interest, he would have changed the nature of bartering everywhere in the Muslim world if Islamic law was uniform in its application. 

Narrated Umar bin Al-Khattab:

Allah's Apostle said, "The bartering of gold for silver is Riba (usury), except if it is from hand to hand and equal in amount, and wheat grain for wheat grain is usury 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, and barley for barley is usury except if it is from hand to hand and equal in amount."

Bukhari 34.344

From Muhammad's experience, the type of bartering that occurred around him was what was done everywhere; it was a micro-economic perspective perfectly suited for the ultimate micro-manager. There was no macro-economic thinking behind the changes he decreed concerning trade in goods to conform with scriptures.

For a religion with global ambitions, it is quite incredible how parochial its founder was in promulgating ostensibly immutable laws (remember, the sayings and example of Muhammad are legal precedents if they do not contradict the Koran) governing the exchange of goods between sellers and buyers. What if the world economy was subjected to Muhammad trade diktats? For one thing, futures markets would be a thing of the past. It would also be impossible, without breaking the law, for individuals, companies, even government to negotiate large scale sales of staples such as rice, wheat, corn… anything, for that matter, on behalf of producers. 

Narrated Ibn Umar:

The Prophet said, "He who buys foodstuff should not sell it till he has received it."

Bukhari 34.343

Narrated Abdullah bin Umar:

Allah's Apostle forbade the sale called Habal-al-Habala which was a kind of sale practiced in the pre-Islamic period of ignorance. One would pay the price of a she-camel which was not born yet.

Bukhari 34.353

It would mean the end of food wholesalers. Say goodbye to the modern supermarket.

 Narrated Tawus:

Ibn Abbas said, "Allah's Apostle said, 'Do not go to meet the caravans on the way (for buying their goods without letting them know the market price); a town dweller should not sell the goods of a desert dweller on behalf of the latter.'"

I asked Ibn Abbas, "What does he mean by not selling the goods of a desert dweller by a town dweller?"

He said, "He should not become his broker."

Bukhari 34.367

It would mean the end of electronic commerce, e.g., the internet and purchases made over the phone.

Narrated Haklm bin Hizam:

The Prophet said, "The buyer and the seller have the option of cancelling or confirming the deal unless they separate."

Bukhari 34.321

Why Muhammad would insist that food purchases made from a passing caravan could not be resold on the spot is a mystery to this twenty-first century consumer.

Narrated Nafi:

Ibn Umar told us that the people used to buy food from the caravans in the lifetime of the Prophet. The Prophet used to forbid them to sell it at the very place where they had purchased it (but they were to wait) till they carried it to the market where foodstuff was sold.

Ibn Umar said, "The Prophet also forbade the reselling of foodstuff by somebody who had bought it unless he had received it with exact full measure"

Bukhari 34.334

Nowhere is the micro-management obsession of Muhammad more evident than in his insistence, at the risk of a beating, that if you bought perishables without first insisting on them being measured, i.e., weighed before your eyes, you must take them home—where I assume you had a scale of some sort—and confirm for yourself that the measure was accurate. What about modern pre-wrapped food that is weighed at the factory where it is packaged?

Narrated Ibn Umar:

I saw the people buy foodstuff randomly (i.e. blindly without measuring it) in the life-time of Allah's Apostle and they were punished (by beating), if they tried to sell it before carrying it to their own houses.

Bukhari 34.347

Muhammad’s life experience was mostly that of trader and merchant. He did not even know how date growers went about their business until he left the desert trading hub of Mecca for the oasis city of Medina. He was scandalized to discover that date-bearing palms were artificially pollinated, and ordered the practice stopped. He reinstituted the practice the following year after date production plummeted, but insisted it be done when he wasn’t present. Of course, this did not mean he could not regulate the sale of the fruits of date-palms that were not pollinated the old-fashioned way.

Narrated Abdullah bin Umar:

Allah's Apostle said, "If someone sells pollinated date-palms, their fruits will be for the seller, unless the buyer stipulates the contrary."

Bukhari 50.877

Dates being a staple of the Arab diet and a favourite of God’s spokesperson meant that the vast majority of hadiths about the sale of fruits and vegetable refer to dates.

Narrated Aisha:

The family of Muhammad did not eat two meals on one day, but one of the two was of dates.

Bukhari 76.462

A word you should get familiar with, which you will now frequently encounter, is ‘Sa’ as a unit of measurement.

Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet allowed the sale of the dates of Araya provided they were about five Awsuq (singular: Wasaq which means sixty Sas) or less (in amount).

Bukhari 34.395

You cannot sell dates that are still on the tree.

Narrated Abu Bakhtari At-Tai:

I asked Ibn Abbas about Salam for (the fruits of) date-palms. He replied "The Prophet forbade the sale of dates on the trees till they became fit for eating and could be weighed."

A man asked what to be weighed (as the dates were still on the trees). Another man sitting beside Ibn Abbas replied, "Till they are cut and stored."

Bukhari 35.450

What about fruits that do not turn red when ripe?

Narrated Anas bin Malik:

Allah's Apostle forbade the sale of fruits till they are almost ripe. He was asked what is meant by 'are almost ripe.'

He replied, "Till they become red."

Bukhari 34.403

Even in the trading of dates, you had to be sure you were not circumventing Allah’s prohibition against earning interest.

Narrated Abu Said al-Khudri:

Once Bilal brought Barni (i.e. a kind of dates) to the Prophet and the Prophet asked him, "From where have you brought these?"

Bilal replied, "I had some inferior type of dates and exchanged two Sas of it for one Sa of Barni dates in order to give it to the Prophet to eat."

Thereupon the Prophet said, "Beware! Beware! This is definitely Riba (usury)! This is definitely Riba (Usury)! Don't do so, but if you want to buy (a superior kind of dates) sell the inferior dates for money and then buy the superior kind of dates with that money."

Bukhari 39.506

Muhammad’s knowledge of trade practices during the Dark Ages, in what we now call the Middle East, was undoubtedly unparalleled. However, his knowledge of animal husbandry, or the science of breeding and caring for farm animals, while undoubtedly superior to that of farming, could not have been as comprehensive. What he knew about the care and feeding of domesticated animals, apart from the camels in the caravans he was part of, seems to have come from a short stint as a shepherd, which was, according to Muhammad, a rite of passage for all of those selected to speak on God’s behalf.

Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet said, "Allah did not send any prophet but shepherded sheep."

His companions asked him, "Did you do the same?"

The Prophet replied, "Yes, I used to shepherd the sheep of the people of Mecca for some Qirats."

Bukhari 36.463

As can be expected, the hadiths concerning the sale of livestock are very much about what grazed in Muhammad’s neighbourhood and what was sold at his local market. Note the use of dates in arriving at a fair exchange in the following hadiths about the sale and disposition of camels and sheep that need milking:

Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet said, "Don't keep camels and sheep unmilked (sic) for a long time, for whoever buys such an animal has the option to milk it and then either to keep it or return it to the owner along with one Sa of dates."

Bukhari 34.358

Narrated Abdullah bin Mas'ud:

Whoever buys a sheep which has not been milked for a long time, has the option of returning it along with one Sa of dates; and the Prophet forbade going to meet the seller on the way (as he has no knowledge of the market price and he may sell his goods at a low price).

Bukhari 34.359

Transfer of ownership of a pregnant camel must await the birth of its offspring.

Narrated Abdullah:

The people used to sell camels on the basis of Habal-al-Habala. The Prophet forbade such sale. Nafi explained Habalal-Habala by saying. "The camel is to be delivered to the buyer after the she-camel gives birth."

Bukhari 35.457

Rules for traders in precious metals:

Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri:

Allah's Apostle said, "Do not sell gold for gold unless equivalent in weight, and do not sell less amount for greater amount or vice versa; and do not sell silver for silver unless equivalent in weight, and do not sell less amount for greater amount or vice versa and do not sell gold or silver that is not present at the moment of exchange for gold or silver that is present.”

Bukhari 34.385

Real estate agents will not love the following:

Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet forbade two kinds of dressing; (one of them) is to sit with one's legs drawn up while wrapped in one garment. (The other) is to lift that garment on one's shoulders. And also forbade two kinds of sale: Al-Limas (“a sale in which the deal is completed if the buyer touches a thing, without seeing or checking it properly”) and An-Nibadh (“a sale in which the deal is completed if the seller throws a thing towards the buyer giving him no opportunity to see, touch or check it”).

Bukhari 34.355

The advantage to being the nearest neighbour if you covet your neighbour's home and he puts it up for sale:

Narrated Amr bin Ash-Sharid:

While I was standing with Sad bin Abi Waqqas, Al-Miswar bin Makhrama came and put his hand on my shoulder. Meanwhile Abu Rafi, the freed slave of the Prophet came and asked Sad to buy from him the (two) dwellings which were in his house.

Sad said, "By Allah I will not buy them."

Al-Miswar said, "By Allah, you shall buy them."

Sad replied, "By Allah, I will not pay more than four thousand (Dirhams) by installments."

Abu Rafi' said, "I have been offered five hundred Dinars (for it) and had I not heard the Prophet saying, 'The neighbor has more right than anyone else because of his nearness', I would not give them to you for four-thousand (Dirhams) while I am offered five-hundred Dinars (one Dinar equals ten Dirhams) for them."

So, he sold it to Sad.

Bukhari 35.459

Mixing it up!

Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Apostle forbade the selling of things by a town dweller on behalf of a desert dweller; and similarly Najsh (to offer a high price for something you do not care for simply to deprive someone else of it) was forbidden. And one should not urge somebody to return the goods to the seller so as to sell him his own goods; nor should one demand the hand of a girl who has already been engaged to someone else; and a woman should not try to cause some other woman to be divorced in order to take her place.

Bukhari 34.350

Arranged marriages can provide a novel way of settling disputes, including one about mineral rights after a sale.

Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Apostle said, "A man bought a piece of land from another man, and the buyer found an earthenware jar filled with gold in the land. The buyer said to the seller. 'Take your gold, as I have bought only the land from you, but I have not bought the gold from you.' The (former) owner of the land said, ‘I have sold you the land with everything in it.' So both of them took their case before a man who asked, 'Do you have children?' One of them said, ‘I have a boy.' The other said, ‘I have a girl.' The man said, 'Marry the girl to the boy and spend the money on both of them and give the rest of it in charity.'"

 Bukhari 56.678

You can probably buy and sell gold jewelry but wearing your purchase may be out of the question.

Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet forbade the wearing of a gold ring.

Bukhari 72.754