Chapter 355 - Prohibition of Malpractices in Commerce

Anas bin Malik said: The Messenger of Allah forbade that a person in the city should make a deal on behalf of a villager on commission even if he is his real brother.'' [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]


Commentary: "Al-Hadir'' means one who lives in the city, while "Al-Badi'' means a villager or a desert dweller. "He should not make a deal'' here signifies that the urbanite should not go to the villager and propose to him leave his goods with him for sale and he would send him the sale proceeds of the goods piecemeal as they sell. In the opinion of some `Ulama' this is prohibited if the merchandise is valuable and the villager is not aware of its real worth and the urbanite wants to exploit his ignorance. But, on the contrary, if the proposal is for the welfare of the villager and the urbanite merely wants the owner to receive its due price then the offer is admissible.

The first proposition is prohibited because that will cause a loss to the villager; the second is permissible as it is a well meaning offer.
"A person in the city should not make a deal on behalf of a villager'' has been interpreted by `Abdullah bin `Abbas (Radhi Allahu Huma) to mean that he should not work as a broker for a villager because in that case he will be interested to sell it on a higher price in order to have a better commission in the deal, which will unnecessarily raise its cost.

On one side, the purchase of goods coming from outside has been prohibited before its arrival on the market so that nobody can exploit the ignorance of the outsiders, and on the other side, villagers are enjoined to sell their goods themselves so that the commission of the broker does not increase the price of the goods. If an urbanite sells the merchandise of any villager on a fair price without charging any commission then this is permissible, as is confirmed by Ahadith. If the people living in cities charge each other commission on the purchase or sale of their goods this is permissible.

Ibn `Umar (Radhi Allahu Huma) said: The Messenger of Allah said,

"Do not meet the merchandise till they arrive in the market.'' [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].


Commentary:   "Do not meet the merchandise''  signifies "Do not meet trade caravans in transit.'' The purpose being that those who bring food grains from villages, should not suffer any loss because of their ignorance of the market
conditions. But if someone does it with a good intention then this is permissible.

Ibn `Abbas (Radhi Allahu Huma) said: The Messenger of Allah said,

"The caravans carrying merchandise should not be met on the way to purchase from them; a man in the city should not sell for a man of the desert.''

Tawus asked him (Ibn `Abbas): "What do these words really imply?''   He said: "He should not work as an agent on
his behalf.'' [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].


Commentary: This Hadith makes it clear that no one should work as a broker to exploit the ignorance of villagers who bring their merchandise in the market. But if one does it with a good intention then this is permissible. Nowadays different forms of brokerage are in vogue in our markets out of which some are permissible and some are prohibited.

Abu Hurairah said: The Messenger of Allah forbade that a man in the city should be the commission agent of a man from the desert and prohibited the practice of Najsh (i.e., offering a high price for something in order to allure another customer who is interested in the thing); and that a man should make an offer while the offer of his brother is pending; or that he should make a proposal of marriage while that of his brother is pending; or that a woman should try that a sister of hers might be divorced so that she might take her place.

Another narration is: The Messenger of Allah forbade the people from meeting the caravan on the way for entering into business transaction with them; and the selling of the goods by a dweller of the city on behalf of a man of the desert; and the seeking by a woman the divorce of her sister (from her husband); and the practice of Najsh and leaving the animals unmilked (for sometime for the purpose of accumulation of milk to deceive the buyer). [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].


Commentary: "Litakfa ma fi ina'iha'' means that "Whatever is in her vessel is overturned.'' This is a figurative expression meaning "She would marry her (Muslim sister's) husband when he divorces her present wife.'' "Leaving the animals unmilked'' means that a saleable cattle is not milked for two or three times to create an impression that the cattle is rich in milk, which is not the true case. This is also prohibited. Other points mentioned in this Hadith have been discussed earlier.

Ibn `Umar (Radhi Allahu Huma) said: The Messenger of Allah said,

"A person should not enter into a transaction when his (Muslim) brother has already negotiated, nor should he make a proposal of marriage when that of his brother is pending, except with the permission of the latter.'' [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]


Commentary: We learn from this Hadith that if a man knows that such and such person has asked some woman for marriage and she has accepted the proposal then he should not make an offer of marriage to her. But if the matter has ended and the first proposal permits him to try his luck then he can make a proposal to her for marriage. On the same analogy, it is prohibited for a woman to send a proposal of marriage to a man with whom some woman is already negotiating or has already negotiated.

Uqbah bin `Amir said: The Messenger of Allah said,

"A Mu'min is the brother of another Mu'min; and thus it is not permissible for a Mu'min to make an offer while the offer of his brother is pending, nor should he make a proposal of marriage while that of his brother is pending till he withdraws his proposal.''  [Muslim].


Commentary: All the acts prohibited in the Ahadith cited above are such that they can cause or increase ill-will and enmity among people. For this reason, all these things have been forbidden by Islam to obviate all possibilities of dissension and discord and bring about mutual affection, fraternity and accord.