The Ruling on the Debt of Salam in Transactions
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
Honorable Shaykh, this questioner says: I borrowed two thousand riyals on the condition that I would return them in the form of forty-four cartons of goods, the value of which does not exceed two thousand riyals. Is this action valid, or is it riba (usury or interest)?
Answer:
No, this is valid. This is a salam debt. You are given money on the condition that you return goods after a set period, such as cartons, cloth, or something else, or wheat, barley, or dates. This is salam, which is paying the price in advance and deferring the delivery of the goods. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) approved of this, saying: He said (peace and blessings be upon him): Mishkat al-Masabih 2883 This is good. It provides a way for people to avoid riba. If people were to use it, they would have no need for forbidden transactions. This is mentioned in the statement of Allah the Exalted: [Al-Baqarah 2:282] Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) said that it was revealed regarding salam, regarding the debt of salam. Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you
Honorable Shaykh, this questioner says: I borrowed two thousand riyals on the condition that I would return them in the form of forty-four cartons of goods, the value of which does not exceed two thousand riyals. Is this action valid, or is it riba (usury or interest)?
Answer:
No, this is valid. This is a salam debt. You are given money on the condition that you return goods after a set period, such as cartons, cloth, or something else, or wheat, barley, or dates. This is salam, which is paying the price in advance and deferring the delivery of the goods. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) approved of this, saying:
When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) arrived in Madinah, they were being extravagant with their fruits in the first and second years.
النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم لما قدم المدينة وهم يسرفون في الثمار السنة والسنتينThose who pay in advance for anything must do so for a specified measure and weight with a specified time fixed.
مَنْ سلف فِي شَيْءٍ فَلْيُسْلِفْ فِي كَيْلٍ مَعْلُومٍ وَوَزْنٍ مَعْلُوم إِلَى أجل مَعْلُومO you who have believed, when you contract a debt for a specified term, write it down.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِذَا تَدَايَنتُم بِدَيْنٍ إِلَىٰ أَجَلٍ مُّسَمًّى فَاكْتُبُوهُThe presenter:
May Allah reward you
Source
75-اللقاء الأسبوعي مع الشيخ صالح الفوزان - 30 — archive.org (56:08)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.