Explanation of the author's statement: "Or a permissible benefit, such as a passageway through a house, for the like of one of them"

The Shaykh : The author said "Or a permissible benefit, such as a passageway in a house". A permissible benefit means exchanging wealth for a permissible benefit. An example is a passageway in a house. How is a passageway in a house? This is a man who has a house and a neighbor. A house and a neighbor. The neighbor is between him and the street. So the other one says, "I will buy from you a passageway through your house to where? To the street." He says, "Fine, there is no obstacle. Buy the passageway to the street from me for dirhams." This is called exchanging wealth for what? For a benefit. So the neighbor who bought from his neighbor does not have the benefit; he only has the right of passage from his house through his neighbor's house to the street. He does not have the right to dispose of this passageway. That is, if he says, "I want to pave the passageway," the one who wants to pass to the street says, "The owner of the house has the right to prevent you. It is not your property. You only have the right of passage. The right of passage is a benefit. You have the benefit. I am obligated not to stand between you and its use. I will not come one day and put obstacles in front of you. No, because you own the benefit. So this is exchanging wealth for what? For a benefit. Fine. It is now clear that what the contract is concluded upon is either things or benefits. And things are either specified or in the debt. Is that not so? Fine. And the author's statement "permissible benefit" is a precaution against a non-permissible benefit. For example, if he bought from him the use of a musical instrument. He said, "I sold you the use of this instrument. For example, the instrument is worth one hundred riyals. I want to buy from you only the use of it for fifty riyals." He said, "I sold it to you." Is it permissible or not?

The questioner : It is not permissible.

The Shaykh : It is not permissible. Why? Because the benefit here is forbidden, and every contract on a forbidden thing is invalid . Fine.
He said "for the like of one of them". This is connected to exchange, meaning that wealth, even if in the debt, or a benefit, is exchanged for the like of one of them. Fine. "For the like of one of them" gives us now multiple scenarios: a specified item for a specified item, a specified item for what is in the debt, what is in the debt for what is in the debt, and now the benefit comes in: a benefit for a specified wealth, a benefit for wealth in the debt, a benefit for a benefit. And for this reason, he mentioned in the explanation that this includes nine scenarios. We do not like to prolong this for you, for I fear you will get confused later. Yes, but in any case, this is the rule: the contract is concluded upon three things: a specified wealth, wealth in the debt, and a benefit. If you multiply some of them by others, three by three is nine, because the exchange is between these things. So you get, for example, first, a specified wealth to be for a specified wealth, for wealth in the debt, for a benefit. Then we come to wealth in the debt to be for a specified wealth, for what is in the debt, for a benefit. We come to the benefit to be for a specified wealth, for wealth in the debt, for a benefit. So all of them now are nine scenarios. And we ask Allah not to confuse your heads. You might say, "Since there is exchange, why do we not make it six scenarios?" We say: because what the preposition "ba" (for) enters upon is the price, and what the action falls upon is the thing being sold. Did you understand? What the preposition "ba" enters upon is the price, and what the action falls upon is the thing being sold. So if I say, "I sold you a book for a dirham," the action fell upon what?

The questioner : Upon the book.

The Shaykh : Upon the book. So it is the thing being sold. "For a dirham": the preposition "ba" entered upon "dirham," so it is the price. This is the rule: what the action falls upon is the thing being sold, and what the preposition "ba" enters upon is the price.