35b/45: Chapter
Sunan an-Nasai 3899 — Known and Guaranteed Land Rent
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
Known and Guaranteed Farmland Rent in Islam
Sunan an-Nasai : 3899
Sunan an-NasaiHadith Number 3899
أَخْبَرَنِي الْمُغِيرَةُ بْنُ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا عِيسَى، - هُوَ ابْنُ يُونُسَ - قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا الأَوْزَاعِيُّ، عَنْ رَبِيعَةَ بْنِ أَبِي عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ، عَنْ حَنْظَلَةَ بْنِ قَيْسٍ الأَنْصَارِيِّ، قَالَ سَأَلْتُ رَافِعَ بْنَ خَدِيجٍ عَنْ كِرَاءِ الأَرْضِ، بِالدِّينَارِ وَالْوَرِقِ فَقَالَ لاَ بَأْسَ بِذَلِكَ إِنَّمَا كَانَ النَّاسُ عَلَى عَهْدِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يُؤَاجِرُونَ عَلَى الْمَاذِيَانَاتِ وَأَقْبَالِ الْجَدَاوِلِ فَيَسْلَمُ هَذَا وَيَهْلِكُ هَذَا وَيَسْلَمُ هَذَا وَيَهْلِكُ هَذَا فَلَمْ يَكُنْ لِلنَّاسِ كِرَاءٌ إِلاَّ هَذَا فَلِذَلِكَ زُجِرَ عَنْهُ فَأَمَّا شَىْءٌ مَعْلُومٌ مَضْمُونٌ فَلاَ بَأْسَ بِهِ. وَافَقَهُ مَالِكُ بْنُ أَنَسٍ عَلَى إِسْنَادِهِ وَخَالَفَهُ فِي لَفْظِهِ.
Hanzalah bin Qais Al-Ansari Narrated from:
I asked Rafi' bin Khadij about leasing land in return for Dinars and silver. He said: 'There is nothing wrong with that. During the time of the Messenger of Allah they used to rent land to one another in return for what grew on the banks of streams and where the springs emerged - some areas of which might give good produce and some might give none at all - and the people did not lease land in any other way. So that was forbidden. But as for leases where the return is known and guaranteed, there is nothing wrong with that.'
Reference : Sunan an-Nasa'i 3899In-book reference : Book 35b, Hadith 43English translation : Vol. 4, Book 35, Hadith 3930
Summary of Sunan an-Nasai Hadith 3899
This hadith explains why a certain land-rental practice was forbidden. People rented fields in return for produce from stream banks and places where springs emerged. Some of those areas produced crops while others failed, so one side's return could survive while another's was lost. Rafi' bin Khadij said this was the common rental method at the time and that it was forbidden. He then said there was nothing wrong with a lease whose return was known and guaranteed, including the question about Dinars and silver. For readers searching for clear rental agreements in Islam, the key phrase is known and guaranteed payment. The text contrasts an uncertain crop-area return with a defined return. It teaches parties to avoid the uneven, unpredictable arrangement described and to make the rent clear.
What we learn from this hadith
- Rent based on selected crop areas could result in one area succeeding and another failing.
- The uncertain rental method described was forbidden.
- Rafi' allowed a return that was known and guaranteed.
- Clear rent terms help both parties know what is due.
