Musnad Shihab

Explanation:
This complete hadith is as follows: “No townsman should sell for a villager; leave the people free, Allah provides sustenance to some through others.”

The commentator of Abu Dawud, Maulana Umar Farooq Saeedi (hafizahullah), while shedding detailed light on this issue, writes:

The ahadith mentioned in this chapter shed light on the issue of brokerage. The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said: “No townsman should sell the goods brought by a villager.” Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (radi Allahu anhu) said: This means that a townsman should not become a broker for a villager.

In the last hadith of the chapter, its wisdom is explained: that there should be no interference in people’s buying and selling; Allah Most High provides sustenance to people through one another. This is an exhortation to keep the forces of the market free. For this reason, the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) did not consider it permissible to fix prices, but rather regarded prices as the result of the natural balance of supply and demand. There is no doubt that those who bring essential goods from villages to the city, and then, by enticing them, cause prices to rise through their own efforts and then become partners in this, are fundamentally engaging in undesirable interference in a free market. This causes essential goods to become unjustifiably expensive. Therefore, the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) forbade this.

On the other hand, in the very first hadith of Abu Dawud’s Book of Transactions (Kitab al-Buyu‘), it is mentioned that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) went to the market and called brokers by the more respectable name of “merchant” (tajir), instead of “simsar,” which is a non-Arabic word. The brokers were very pleased by this. He (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) advised them that, in matters of buying and selling, people are prone to errors, so they should keep giving charity. From this, it is evident that “brokerage” existed as a formal institution, and the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) did not abolish it.

In cities, essential goods often come from far-off places. When the merchant is not present with the goods, or the goods are so plentiful that he cannot sell them all himself, or due to unfamiliarity with local languages, commercial terms, customs, and the reliability or unreliability of local trading parties, those who bring goods face severe difficulties. For them, the services of a local broker or agent are necessary; otherwise, they would not send their goods to the market.

For this reason, this business cannot be abolished, nor did the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) order brokers to cease their business. Apparently, both matters seem contradictory, but if each is considered in its proper context, there is in reality no contradiction. The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), instead of ordering the closure of the brokerage business, said regarding one aspect of this business: “No townsman should sell on behalf of a villager,” meaning that merchants from other regions may benefit from the services of brokers, but as for those who bring their agricultural produce from the surrounding areas to sell in the city, there should be no interference in their case, so that the buying and selling of these goods continues in a natural manner.

This is the very position of Imam Malik (rahimahullah). Our jurists have taken the meaning of his statement: “Allah Most High provides sustenance to people through one another” to be that those who bring goods from villages should sell them cheaply in the market, which will result in collective benefit for the city dwellers. What is seen today is the opposite: municipal authorities have, by law, compelled those who bring small quantities of goods from villages to sell them only through brokers. The result is that, on one hand, goods have become expensive for the common customer, and on the other hand, villagers receive very little for their produce; all the profit is taken by the middlemen.

If daily essential goods, whose supply comes from villages, are kept free from the interference of brokers, as is the command of the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), both parties will benefit greatly. This is the true meaning of his (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) statement: “Do not interfere; Allah Most High provides sustenance to people through one another.” [سنن أبو داود : 3/ 720 ، 721]