35b/45: Chapter
Sunan an-Nasai 3875 — Cultivate or Give Land Without Leasing It
Mentioning The Differing Hadiths Regarding The Prohibition Of Leasing Out Land In Return For One Third, Or One Quarter Of The Harvest And The Different Wordings Reported By The Narrators
Hadith About Leasing Land: Cultivate It or Give It to Your Brother
Sunan an-Nasai : 3875
Sunan an-NasaiHadith Number 3875
أَخْبَرَنَا عَمْرُو بْنُ عَلِيٍّ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الْمَلِكِ، عَنْ عَطَاءٍ، عَنْ جَابِرٍ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم " مَنْ كَانَتْ لَهُ أَرْضٌ فَلْيَزْرَعْهَا أَوْ لِيَمْنَحْهَا أَخَاهُ وَلاَ يُكْرِيهَا ". تَابَعَهُ عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ عَمْرٍو الأَوْزَاعِيُّ.
Jabir Narrated from:
The Messenger of Allah said: "Whoever has land, let him cultivate it or give it to his brother, and not lease it to him."
Reference : Sunan an-Nasa'i 3875In-book reference : Book 35b, Hadith 19English translation : Vol. 4, Book 35, Hadith 3906
Summary of Sunan an-Nasai Hadith 3875
This hadith about leasing land is brief and direct. Jabir reports that the Messenger of Allah told anyone who owns land to cultivate it or give it to his brother. He then said not to lease it to him. The narration sets personal farming and helping a brother beside the rejected lease. It does not explain a rental amount, crop percentage, length of contract, or other conditions. Because those details are absent, the meaning should not be expanded beyond the wording. For searchers asking about renting farmland in Islam, this report gives a clear instruction within its own text: use the land yourself or allow your brother to use it, rather than making the lease described here.
What we learn from this hadith
- A landowner is told to cultivate the land personally.
- The land may be given to a brother to use.
- The owner is told not to lease it to the brother in this narration.
- The text does not state extra contract details or exceptions.
