14/19. Chapter:
Jami at-Tirmidhi 1232 — Do Not Sell What You Do Not Have
What Has Been Related About It Being Disliked To Sell What One Does Not Have
Do Not Sell What You Do Not Have Hadith
Jami at-Tirmidhi : 1232
Jami at-TirmidhiHadith Number 1232
حَدَّثَنَا قُتَيْبَةُ، حَدَّثَنَا هُشَيْمٌ، عَنْ أَبِي بِشْرٍ، عَنْ يُوسُفَ بْنِ مَاهَكَ، عَنْ حَكِيمِ بْنِ حِزَامٍ، قَالَ أَتَيْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَقُلْتُ يَأْتِينِي الرَّجُلُ يَسْأَلُنِي مِنَ الْبَيْعِ مَا لَيْسَ عِنْدِي أَبْتَاعُ لَهُ مِنَ السُّوقِ ثُمَّ أَبِيعُهُ قَالَ " لاَ تَبِعْ مَا لَيْسَ عِنْدَكَ " . قَالَ وَفِي الْبَابِ عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُمَرَ .
Narrated Hakim b. Hizam: "I Asked Messenger Of Allah (ﷺ), I Said: 'A Man Came To Me Asking To Buy Something That I Did Not Have. Can I Buy It From The Market For Him And Then Give It To Him?' He Said: 'Do Not Sell What Is Not With You.'" He Said: There Are Narrations On This Topic From 'Abdullah Bin 'Umar.
[1] That is: Collect the money from him as in a sale, pay it in the market and then give it to him? See Tuhfat Al-Ahwadhi .Reference : Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1232In-book reference : Book 14, Hadith 32English translation : Vol. 1, Book 12, Hadith 1232
Summary of Jami at-Tirmidhi Hadith 1232
This hadith gives a short answer to a real business question. Hakim bin Hizam asked the Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم about a man who comes asking to buy something that Hakim does not have. Hakim asked whether he could buy it from the market for him and then give it to him. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم answered: do not sell what is not with you. The teaching is easy to see. A seller should not present a sale as if he already has the item when he does not. The deal should be based on what the seller actually has or controls. This protects the buyer from false certainty and protects the seller from promising what he may not secure.
What we learn from this hadith
- A seller should not sell an item that is not with him.
- The buyer should not be given a false sense of certainty.
- A sale should be based on real possession or control.
- Islamic trade values honesty before profit.
