We have a problem with the pledge of agricultural land, in which the pledgor receives a sum of money from the pledgee without specifying a duration, and then the pledgee proceeds to cultivate the land.
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The questioner : He says: We have a problem in Sudan regarding the pledge of agricultural land. This is where the owner of the land, who wishes to pledge his agricultural land, receives a sum of money from the pledgee. Then the pledgee proceeds to cultivate this land and does not give the land owner anything from this harvest. When the land owner wishes to redeem the pledge, he returns the amount to the pledgee and his land is returned to him. There is no specific duration for the return of the land; the pledge may continue for decades. There is another type of pledge that also exists among us, and its duration is specified as one year. The pledgee pays an amount to the land owner and then invests it for one year. This type resembles the first type in that the land owner is not given anything from the harvest, but it differs from the first type in that the first type does not specify a duration for when the land will be returned to its owner, but whenever he wishes to reclaim it, it is returned to him. What is the ruling on these two types of transactions involving a pledge?
The Shaykh : Giving land to someone to utilize it has three forms. The first form is that it is for a share of what comes out of it, and this is muzara'ah (sharecropping). For example, one might say, "Take this land and cultivate it, and I will have one-third, one-quarter, one-tenth, or a shared portion of the output, as you both agree." This is permissible. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) contracted with the people of Khaybar for half of what came out of it in fruit or crops.
The second is that he gives him the land to cultivate it for a known wage that is separate from what comes out of it. For example, one might say, "Take this land for ten years, and each year you give me one thousand dirhams."
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : This is also permissible, and there is no harm in it. Rafi' ibn Khadij (may Allah be pleased with him), when mentioning the prohibited sharecropping, said: "But as for a known, guaranteed amount, there is no harm in it".
The third thing is that he gives him the land as a gift, so the farmer benefits from it without compensation. This is also permissible and there is no harm in it; it is an act of kindness toward him. If the one who gave the land as a gift takes something from the farmer to secure himself, then there is no harm in that. Perhaps this last issue is what the questioner intends.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And in that case, it is permissible. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you and reward you.
Dear brothers, at the conclusion of this session, we thank His Eminence Shaykh Muhammad ibn Salih al-Uthaymeen, lecturer at the College of Sharia at Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University in Qassim, and imam and khatib of the Grand Mosque in Unaizah, for answering your questions in this episode.
We have reviewed the letters of our brothers Ahmad Mas'ud Salih, an Egyptian engineer working in Iraq, our brother F M Q residing in the Yemen Arab Republic, and our brother A A F residing in Madinah al-Munawwarah, as well as the question of our Sudanese brother residing in the Kingdom in the Baha region.
Our dear audience, we thank you most sincerely for your good listening. Until we meet you in a future episode, if Allah wills, we entrust you to Allah the Exalted. Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah the Exalted and His blessings.
The Shaykh : Giving land to someone to utilize it has three forms. The first form is that it is for a share of what comes out of it, and this is muzara'ah (sharecropping). For example, one might say, "Take this land and cultivate it, and I will have one-third, one-quarter, one-tenth, or a shared portion of the output, as you both agree." This is permissible. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) contracted with the people of Khaybar for half of what came out of it in fruit or crops.
The second is that he gives him the land to cultivate it for a known wage that is separate from what comes out of it. For example, one might say, "Take this land for ten years, and each year you give me one thousand dirhams."
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : This is also permissible, and there is no harm in it. Rafi' ibn Khadij (may Allah be pleased with him), when mentioning the prohibited sharecropping, said: "But as for a known, guaranteed amount, there is no harm in it".
The third thing is that he gives him the land as a gift, so the farmer benefits from it without compensation. This is also permissible and there is no harm in it; it is an act of kindness toward him. If the one who gave the land as a gift takes something from the farmer to secure himself, then there is no harm in that. Perhaps this last issue is what the questioner intends.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And in that case, it is permissible. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you and reward you.
Dear brothers, at the conclusion of this session, we thank His Eminence Shaykh Muhammad ibn Salih al-Uthaymeen, lecturer at the College of Sharia at Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University in Qassim, and imam and khatib of the Grand Mosque in Unaizah, for answering your questions in this episode.
We have reviewed the letters of our brothers Ahmad Mas'ud Salih, an Egyptian engineer working in Iraq, our brother F M Q residing in the Yemen Arab Republic, and our brother A A F residing in Madinah al-Munawwarah, as well as the question of our Sudanese brother residing in the Kingdom in the Baha region.
Our dear audience, we thank you most sincerely for your good listening. Until we meet you in a future episode, if Allah wills, we entrust you to Allah the Exalted. Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah the Exalted and His blessings.