Muslim

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
In general circumstances, the sale and purchase of fruits still on the tree in exchange for dried fruits is prohibited, but the owners of ‘ariyah (plural: ‘araya) have been granted a specific concession to a certain extent. That specific limit is five wasq, as has been mentioned earlier.

(2)
‘Ariyah is a date palm tree which its owner temporarily gives to the needy (masakin) so that they may eat its fruit that year, but the owner finds it unpleasant for the poor to come and go in the orchard, since the owner resides in his garden. In such circumstances, he gives the needy dried dates in exchange for the fresh dates, so that they do not continue to come and go in the garden. The purpose of Imam Bukhari rahimahullah is that if someone has temporarily given date palm trees to another, then the owner of ‘ariyah cannot be prevented from entering the garden either; he too is entitled to water and the right of way.

Hadith Commentary:
Allamah Shawkani rahimahullah presents the details of ‘Araya in these words:
“‘Araya’ is the plural of ‘Ariyyah’. It is stated in Al-Fath: In origin, it refers to the gift of the fruit of a date-palm without transferring ownership of the tree itself. During times of drought, the Arabs would voluntarily give such gifts to those who had no fruit, just as the owner of sheep or camels would give a ‘Maniha’—that is, a gift of milk without transferring ownership of the animal.”
(Nayl)
That is, ‘Araya’ is the plural of ‘Ariyyah’, and in essence, it is to give only the fruit of a date-palm as a loaned gift to a needy, destitute person.
It was the custom of the Arabs that, during the harvest, they would give the fruit of a tree as a gift to the poor and needy, just as it was the practice of those who owned goats and camels to entrust a goat or camel to a poor person solely for the purpose of drinking its milk.

Further, Allamah rahimahullah states:
“And Imam Ahmad has narrated from Sufyan ibn Husayn that ‘Araya refers to date-palms that are gifted to the poor, and since they are unable to wait for the fruit to ripen, they are permitted to sell them for whatever amount of dried dates they wish.”
That is, ‘Araya’ refers to those dates which are given as a loaned gift to the poor.
Then, due to their hardship, these poor people are unable to wait for the fruit to ripen.
Thus, they are given a concession to exchange them for dried dates as they see fit.

“And Jawhari said: It is the date-palm whose owner gives its fruit as a loaned gift to a needy person, by hastening its fruit to him for a year.”
That is, Jawhari said that these are those dates whose fruit is given by their owner to a needy person as a loaned gift for the entire year.

Many other forms of ‘Araya’ have also been described; for details, the study of Fath al-Bari is necessary.

Allamah Shawkani, at the end, states:
“In summary, every form of ‘Araya’ for which there is a sound hadith, or which is established from the people of the Shari‘ah or the people of the language, is permissible, as it falls under the general permission. The specification in some hadiths regarding certain forms does not contradict what is established from other sources.”
That is, all forms of the sale of ‘Araya’ that are mentioned in authentic hadiths, or are established from the people of the Shari‘ah or the people of the language, are all permissible.
This is because they fall under the general permission.
And the specification in some hadiths regarding certain forms, which is mentioned as a text, does not contradict those forms that are established from other sources.

The important aspect in the permissibility of the sale of ‘Araya’ is the benefit of the poor and needy, who, due to their hardship, are unable to wait for the fruit to ripen.
They are in immediate need of sustenance, so they have been permitted this sale.
It is thus established that sound reason also supports its permissibility.

The elder mentioned in the chain of transmission, Nafi‘, was the freed slave of Abdullah ibn Umar radi Allahu anhu, the son of Sirjis.
He was a Daylami and among the eminent Tabi‘in.
He heard hadith from Ibn Umar radi Allahu anhu and Abu Sa‘id radi Allahu anhu.
Many people, including Zuhri and Imam Malik, narrated from him.
He is among the well-known narrators of hadith.
He is also among those trustworthy narrators whose narrations are fully relied upon and whose narrated hadiths are acted upon. A large portion of the hadiths of Abdullah ibn Umar radi Allahu anhu are narrated through him.
Imam Malik rahimahullah said: When I hear a hadith from Nafi‘, I become unconcerned about hearing it from any other narrator.
He passed away in 117 AH.
Rahimahullah.

Hadith Commentary:
The narrator has been concise in the explanation of ‘Araya, because in it, dates that are still on the tree are purchased in exchange for dried dates.
Since this matter is well-known in ‘Araya, it has not been mentioned explicitly.
And Allah knows best.

Hadith Commentary:
That is, the hand of the owner of the orchard.
It is correct that ‘Ariyyah is also a form of Muzabanah, but the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) permitted it.
The reason for this is that ‘Ariyyah is an act of charity and benevolence.
If this permission had not been granted in the case of ‘Ariyyah, then people would have stopped giving date or fruit trees to the needy for the sake of Allah.
This is because most people think that the poor will keep entering our orchards day and night.
And their entering and coming at inappropriate times will cause us inconvenience.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
Muzabana is derived from "zabn," which means to repel or drive away. Since muzabana—which refers to selling fresh dates in exchange for dried dates—involves a significant difference between the two exchanged items, there is a greater likelihood of dispute and conflict in such a transaction. If either party feels disadvantaged, they will attempt to annul the sale. The hadith mentions two forms of this:

➊ Selling fresh dates in exchange for dried dates.
➋ Selling grapes in exchange for raisins.

Even if the two exchanged items are equal in measure or weight, fresh fruit decreases in quantity after drying, which is why this transaction is prohibited. However, a limited concession is made in the case of ‘ariyya (عرایا). This pertains to a specific charitable practice among the Arabs. The Arabs would grant date palm trees to the poor and needy, allowing them to use the fruit, but when the beneficiaries would come and go, the orchard owner would feel inconvenienced. Therefore, they were permitted to estimate the amount of dates on the trees and give an equivalent amount of dried dates, keeping the trees for themselves.

This sale is essentially impermissible because it is possible that one side’s dates may be more than the other’s, but the Lawgiver (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) allowed it because it is a sale for the poor. The hadith permits such buying and selling in an amount of five wasq or less.

(2)
In these ahadith, the word "muhaqala" is also used. Its meaning is: selling wheat in the ear (i.e., still on the stalk) in exchange for cleaned wheat. The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) also prohibited this.

English Translation:

‘Araya’ is the plural of ‘ariyyah’. ‘Ariyyah’ refers to that tree which the owner of an orchard gives to a poor person to eat its fruit. The tree itself remains the property of the original owner. For the care and maintenance of this single tree, the poor person would have to repeatedly enter the orchard. This could create difficulties either for the poor person or for the orchard owner. Therefore, the Shari‘ah has permitted that the orchard owner may, in exchange for the fruit growing on that tree, give the poor person an estimated equivalent amount of dry or fresh dates, and take the tree back. This is, in fact, a form of ‘muzabana’ (sale of fresh dates on the tree for dry dates), which is generally prohibited. However, the Shari‘ah also takes people’s necessities into consideration; thus, for the benefit of the poor, it has permitted this sale in a small quantity (five wasq, i.e., fifteen to twenty maunds), but for any amount exceeding this, or for commercial purposes, this sale is not permissible. (For further details, see: Fawa’id wa Masa’il Hadith: 3910)

Benefits and Issues:
➊ The general rule is that the exchange of dates for dates must be hand to hand and equal in amount, but the issue of “‘araya” is an exception to this general rule.

➋ Imam Malik rahimahullah has explained the interpretation of ‘araya as follows:
“‘Araya is when a person gives another a date palm tree (for eating its fruit), then feels discomfort due to his (the recipient’s repeated) visits to the garden, so it is permitted for him to buy back (the tree he had given) in exchange for dried dates.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, al-Buyu‘, Chapter: Tafsir al-‘Araya, before Hadith: 2192)
The method is that the fruit of the tree is estimated as to how many mann it will yield when dried, then that amount of dried dates is given to him and the tree is taken back.
In this case, fresh dates (still on the tree) are bought in exchange for dried dates, and the dried dates are given by measure or weight.
This is permissible on the condition that their quantity is less than five wasq (twenty mann).

Takhrij al-Hadith: [واخرجه البخاري 2188، و مسلم 1539/60، من حديث مالك به]
Explanation (Tafaqquh):
➊ See the previous hadith: 157
➋ If both the shopkeeper and the customer are satisfied, then goods may be sold by estimation, that is, by approximation.
➌ The religion of Islam is a complete religion in which there are clear instructions regarding every stage and issue of life. And all praise is due to Allah.

Benefit:
The permissibility of the sale of ‘Araya is established from this hadith. ‘Araya is the plural of ‘ariyya. Its meaning is that a person desires to eat fresh dates at the time they ripen, but due to his poverty he does not have the means to eat them. However, he possesses dried dates. Thus, he estimates the amount of fresh dates on the tree and purchases them in exchange for five wasq of dried dates. Since ‘Araya, which was originally prohibited, has been permitted due to necessity, one should suffice with the amount of necessity, because it is only permissible up to five wasq or less. This is because, for the purpose of eating as a delight, this amount of fresh dates is sufficient. The quantity for the sale of ‘Araya is that it should be less than or equal to five wasq. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim)