Bukhari

Fiqh al-Hadith
◈ Imam Baghawi rahimahullah, after mentioning this hadith, states:
«فيه دليل على جواز إجارة الأراضي، و ذهب عامة أهل العلم إلي جوازها بالدراهم و الدنانيز، و غيرها من صنوف الأموال، سواء كانت مما تنبت الأرض، أولا تنبت، إذا كان معلوما بالعيان، إو بالوصف، كما يجوز إجارة غير الأراضي من العبيد و الدواب و غيرها، و جملته إن ما جاز بيعه، جاز أن يجعل أجرة فى الإجازة۔»
“In this hadith is evidence for leasing land. Most scholars are of the opinion that it is permissible to lease land in exchange for gold, silver (cash), or other types of wealth, whether that thing grows from the land or not, provided its amount and quality are known. This (leasing land) is permissible just as it is permissible to rent out other things besides land, such as slaves, animals, etc. In summary, whatever can be bought and sold, it is also permissible to rent it out in exchange for a wage…” [شرح السنة للبغوي : 263/8]

◈ Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah rahimahullah, after mentioning this hadith, states:
«و ذهب جميع فقهاء الحديث الجامعون لطرقه كلهم، كأحمد بن حنبل و أصحابه كلهم من المتقدمين، والمتأخرين، وإسحاق بن راهويه، وأبي بكر أبي شبية، وسليمان بن داود الهاشمي، و أبي خيثمة زهير بن حرب، و أكثر فقهاء الكوفيين، كسفيان الثوري، و محمد بن عبدالرحمن بن أبي ليلي، و أبي داوٗد، وجماهير فقهاء الحديث من المتأخرين : كابن المنذر، وابن خزيمة، والخطابي، وغيرهم، و أهل الظاهر، و أكثر أصحاب أبي حنيفة إلي جواز المزراعة والمؤعة و نحو ذلك اتباعا لسنة رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم وسنة خلفائه و أصحابه و ما عليه السلف و عمل جمهور المسلمين»
“In following the Sunnah of the Messenger, the practice of the Rightly Guided Caliphs and other Companions radi Allahu anhum, the way of the pious predecessors and the majority of Muslims, the jurists of hadith who have gathered all the narrations of this hadith—such as Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, all his early and later companions, Imam Ishaq ibn Rahwayh, Imam Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah, Imam Sulayman ibn Dawud Hashimi, Imam Abu Khaythamah Zuhayr ibn Harb, most of the jurists of Kufa such as Imam Sufyan Thawri, Muhammad ibn Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Layla, the two students of Imam Abu Hanifah, Abu Yusuf and Muhammad, Imam Bukhari, Imam Abu Dawud, and the majority of later jurists of hadith such as Imam Ibn al-Mundhir, Imam Ibn Khuzaymah, Khattabi, and the literalists, as well as most followers of Imam Abu Hanifah—their position is that sharecropping and leasing, etc., are permissible…” [مجموع الفتاوي لابن تيمية : 95-94/29، القواعد النوانية الفقهية : 163]

◈ Shaykh al-Islam al-Thani, the godly scholar, Imam Ibn al-Qayyim rahimahullah writes:
«و قال ابن المنذر : قد جائت الأخبار عن رافع بعلل، تدل على أن النهي كان بتلك العلل»
“In the narrations from Sayyiduna Rafi‘ ibn Khadij radi Allahu anhu (regarding the prohibition of leasing), several reasons have been mentioned, which prove that the prohibition of leasing was due to those specific reasons (and that the matter of leasing was not absolutely forbidden).” [حاشية ابن القيم على سنن ابي داود : 186/9]

◈ He also writes:
«المخابرة التى نهاهم عنها رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم هي التى كانوا يفعلونها من المخابرة الظالمة الجائزة، و هي التى جائت مفسرة فى أحاديثهم»
“The type of land transaction from which the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam forbade is that form of transaction which was based on injustice and excess. The clarification of this has come in the ahadith narrated by the Companions radi Allahu anhum…” [حاشية ابن القيم على سنن ابي داوٗد : 193/9]

◈ Imam Ibn Daqiq al-‘Id rahimahullah, in his commentary on this hadith, writes:
«فيه دليل على جواز كراء الأرض بالذهب والورق، وقد جاءت أحاديث مطلقة فى النهي عن كرائها، وهذا مفسر لذلك الإطلاق»
“In this hadith is the permissibility of leasing land in exchange for gold, silver (cash). Some general ahadith have come regarding the prohibition of leasing land, but this hadith explains and restricts that generality (i.e., it shows that leasing is not absolutely impermissible)…” [احكام الاحكام شرح عمدة الاحكام لابن دقيق العيد : ص 380]
↰ It is thus understood that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam forbade only the incorrect forms of leasing, not leasing in general, because the very narrator of the hadith, Sayyiduna Rafi‘ Khadij radi Allahu anhu, clarified that the Ansar, at the time of leasing, would designate a specific portion of land such that the produce of this part would go to the lessee and that part to the owner. In this way, sometimes the lessee would incur a loss and sometimes the owner. Similarly, the agreement would be such that regardless of whether the produce was little or much, the owner would take a fixed amount of grain. In this case as well, there was a risk of loss to one party, so this too was prohibited by the Shari‘ah. As for the form of leasing in exchange for cash, this did not exist at the time when the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam forbade it, so how could it be prohibited? This is also the understanding of the noble jurists and great hadith scholars.

Hadith Commentary:

At that time, transactions involving cash rent did not take place.
In the aforementioned situation, there was always the possibility of both profit and loss for both the owner and the cultivator.
Therefore, this form of transaction was prohibited due to this situation.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
There is no specific heading for this hadith, as if it has a certain connection with the previous heading. The connection is such that if someone leases land on sharecropping (batai) for a certain period, then during that period he has the right to cultivate whatever he wishes. However, when the period ends, the owner of the land has the right to either uproot his trees or harvest his crop and hand over the land specifically to the owner. In this respect, there is some relevance to the previous heading "Cutting of Trees" (قطع اشجار). According to the temperament of Imam Bukhari rahimahullah, this degree of relevance is sufficient.
(‘Umdat al-Qari: 16/9)
(2)
From this hadith, it is also understood that giving land on sharecropping (batai) is permissible, but it is not permissible to stipulate the condition of taking the produce from a specific portion of the land.
(3)
According to the narrator's statement, the practice of leasing land for a cash payment was not prevalent at that time, but the same narrator states that there is no harm in leasing land for dirhams and dinars (i.e., for monetary compensation).
(Sahih al-Bukhari, al-Harth wa’l-Muzara‘ah, Hadith: 2346)
A complete discussion on this topic will follow.

Fiqh al-Hadith
↰ This hadith indicates that the prohibitive narrations are not absolute, and it explicitly states that leasing land in exchange for cash payment is completely permissible and valid.

English Translation:

“In exchange for gold and silver”: There is no difference between leasing (theka) and sharecropping (batai). Both are not permissible; rather, sharecropping is more beneficial for the sharecropper (muzari‘) compared to leasing. In sharecropping, the sharecropper only has to work, whereas in leasing, he must pay the amount in advance and also bear the expenses of the crop. It is as if leasing is the practice of the wealthy, and sharecropping is for the poor. And the Shari‘ah is supportive of the poor.

Benefit:
It is established from this hadith that if someone commits an injustice, he should be forgiven, and personal revenge should not be taken. It is also understood that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) would not tolerate opposition to the limits set by Allah, the Exalted. The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) was extremely gentle-hearted, but if someone was caught stealing, he would certainly have his hand cut off. Furthermore, it is also understood that the Shariah is easy, but Satan presents the religion to people as something difficult.

Benefit:
Mukhābarah is synonymous with muzāra‘ah; in fact, musāqāt, muzāra‘ah, and mukhābarah all carry the same meaning. Muzāra‘ah is among those practices that have been prevalent among people since ancient times. Sometimes it happens that a person owns some trees but is unable to properly care for them or exert the necessary effort to obtain their fruit, or someone possesses agricultural land but cannot put in the due effort and supervision required to obtain produce from it. Meanwhile, another person may not own any trees or a piece of land, but if he is provided with trees or land, he can work and obtain fruit or produce from them. In view of this situation, the Shariah has permitted both parties to engage in muzāra‘ah and musāqāt, because there is benefit and advantage for both, as well as protection from harm.

In reality, the foundation of every ruling in the Shariah is based on justice, the attainment of benefit, and the prevention of harm. If a person gives his land to another so that he may cultivate it, or gives both the land and the seeds to the cultivator so that he may sow the seeds and supervise the land, then he will be entitled to a (non-specific) share of the income, and the rest of the income will belong to the owner. This is known as muzāra‘ah.

There are several evidences for the permissibility of musāqāt and muzāra‘ah. Sayyiduna ‘Umar radi Allahu anhu said: «أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم عامل أهـل خيبر بشطر ما خرج منها من زرع» “Indeed, the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam made an agreement with the people of Khaybar that whatever fruit and grain was produced from their lands and orchards would be divided equally, half and half.” [صحيح البخاري كتاب الحرث والــمــزارعة بـاب الـمزارعة بالشطر ونحوه حديث : 2328- وصـحـيـح مـسـلـم المساقاة باب المساقاة والمعاملة حديث 1551 واللفظ له]

It is narrated in Sahih Muslim: «أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم دفع إلى يهود خيبر نخل خيبر وأرضها على أن يعتملوها من أموالهم ولهم شطر ثمرها» “The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam handed over the date palms of Khaybar and the land to the Jews, and stipulated that the produce would be divided equally, half and half.” [صـحـيـح مـسـلـم الـمساقاة باب المساقاة والمعاملة حديث 1551]

A narration of this subject has also been reported by Imam Ahmad rahimahullah in his Musnad. [مسند أحمد : 1/ 250]

Imam Ibn al-Qayyim rahimahullah writes: The incident of Khaybar is evidence for the permissibility of musāqāt and muzāra‘ah. This agreement remained in effect until the death of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and was not abrogated. After him, the Rightly Guided Caliphs continued to act upon it. The basis of this agreement was not on wages, but rather it was related to partnership, and the matter was similar to muḍārabah (profit-sharing partnership). (Zād al-Ma‘ād: 3/345)

Ibn Qudāmah rahimahullah states: “The Rightly Guided Caliphs radi Allahu anhum acted upon this during their respective caliphates, and it is not established that anyone objected to it.” [المغنى والشرح الكبير 5/ 555]

Furthermore, the aforementioned Imam states: That which is contrary to hadith and consensus cannot be relied upon. Most owners of date palms or other trees are unable to irrigate them, nor can they hire someone for wages. And there are many people who do not own trees but are in need of fruit, so through the legislation of this muzāra‘ah, the needs of both are fulfilled and both parties benefit. [المغنى والشرح الكبير 5/ 555]