The Difference Between Riba And Sood

What is called Riba in Quran

Is called Sood in Urdu
This gives the impression that Riba and Sood are one and the same

However, the difference is as follows:

-Riba carries a general and wider connotation

-Sood is a form of Riba
Sood refers to
-Lending of money
-For a specified period
-At a specific rate

This is indeed Riba

However, Riba is not limited to Sood

It has a much wider connotation

The actual reach of the Riba prohibition goes far beyond compensation
for lending money

It includes many transactions of sale and purchase where there is no

element of credit
In the days of ignorance, Riba was generally considered what is today called
Sood

The Prophet elaborated on the meaning of Riba

And included certain transactions where there was no element of
credit

Various forms of Riba were in vogue in Arabia when the prophet was sent

Most common practice was:

-To lend a specific amount of money
-For a specific period
-At a known rate

If the borrower paid on time, only the agreed amount was charged
Otherwise the interest would be increased
Hence, even before the revelation of the Quran, Riba was considered to
be
-A gain made out of lending of money

Almost 8 years after Hijra, verses in respect of Riba were revealed, and
Riba was categorically prohibited

After these verses were revealed,

Everyone realized that these related to profit on loans, and gave it up.
However, subsequently, the Prophet elucidated on these verses and
included in the definition of Riba, a kind of trade which was not
previously considered Riba

The second kind of Riba, in the words of the Prophet was :

Gold for Gold, silver for silver, wheat for wheat, barley for barley, dates
for dates and salt for salt; like for like,equal for equal and hand to hand,
if the commodities differ, then you may sell as you wish, provided that
the exchange is hand-to-hand
 Summary of discussion
The obvious meaning of Riba i.e.
Charging interest on loans or credit
Was well-known even in the days of jahilayyah

The Prophet specified a new dimension to the issue

That certain type of sale & purchase transactions also fall under the
domain of Riba

This is why scholars generally mention two kinds of Riba

The first is called – Riba Al Nasia OR

Riba Al Jahiliyyah OR
Riba Al Quran

The second is called Riba al Fadl OR

Riba al Hadith
Ahadith on seriousness of Riba
It has been reported by hazrat Abu Hurairah that the prophet sad:
“Refrain from seven things which are deadly”. The companions asked
him, what are these? He said,

 “To associate partners with Allah

 To cast spells

 To kill someone without a reason valid in the eyes of Allah

 To devour interest

 To devour the property of an orphan

 To run away from the battle field

 To falsely implicate innocent and chaste women of vulgarity”

Hazrat aun Bin Juhaifah has reported the prophet to have said

The Prophet

 Cursed the women who get themselves tattooed and those who
perform this act,
 Those who charge and pay interest.

He (PBUH) stopped his followers from earnings obtained through

the sale of dogs and the earnings of a prostitute.

He also cursed those who draw pictures.

Hazrat Abu Hurairah has reported the prophet to have said

“Four categories of people are such that Allah has made it binding upon
himself to refuse them admission to paradise or to let them enjoy its
bounties.

 The first is the one who is a habitual drinker of alcoholic drinks,

 The second is the one who devours interest,
 The third is the one who devours the wealth of an orphan,
 And the fourth is the one who is disobedient to his parents. “
Hazrat Abdullah Ibn-e Masood has reported that the prophet said:

“The ills of interest are a little over seventy, and it is as bad as

associating partners with Allah.”
Hazrat Hanzala Bin Abdullah reported that the prophet said “
Devouring a dirham of interest is worse than committing adultery
thirty six times, provided one is aware that he is utilizing money
earned by way of interest.”
Hazrat Ibn-e-Abbas has reported that the prophet instructed not to
sell any edible fruits before they were fully ripe.

He (PBUH) also said that when interest and adultery come in vogue
in any society, then it is like they have invited Allah’s wrath upon
themselves.
 Hazrat Abu Hurairah is reported to have said

“The Prophet said that when he reached the seventh stage of the
heavens, on the night of Mairaj, and looked overhead, he (PBUH) saw
lightning and heard thunder. He (PBUH) then said that I passed on a
people whose stomachs were large like houses, and they were full of
snakes which were visible from outside. I asked Gabriel as to whom
these people were and he said that these are the ones who devour
interest.
Hazrat Anas has said that when you lend to someone and he then
sends you food as a gift, do not accept it, or if he offers you a ride,
do not accept his offer except if the two of you had such relationship
prior to the lending of money.
Hazrat Ali has reported that the prophet said, “when Allah intends to
destroy a people, interest-based business becomes popular among
them”
Riba al Jahiliyyah
 Riba al Jahilayyah

This is the basic form of Riba

Various writings of leading scholars elaborate on this

Lisan-ul arab: One of the most authentic dictionaries of the Arabic

language

“There are two kinds of Riba, and prohibited is every loan on which
an excess is charged or some benefit is obtained out of this loan”.
 Riba al Jahilayyah

Nihaya Ibn-e-Khatir : A very authentic and well known book

explaining the terminology used in Hadith:

“Riba has been mentioned in Ahadith time and again, and the basic
concept is charging of any excess on principal without any
contract of sale is Riba”

Tafseer-e-Mazhari mentions :

“The prohibition of Riba means that Allah has forbidden taking

back anything more than the value lent”
 Riba al Jahilayyah
Tafseer-e-Kabir of Imam Razi

“Take a note that there are two kinds of Riba: Riba on loans or credit
and Riba by way of excess in spot transactions. Riba on loans / credit
is the one which has been in vogue and well-known since the period
of ignorance of which the modality was that one would lend a sum
of money with the condition that a fixed sum would be paid by the
borrower by way of interest and the principal amount would remain
intact. When the loan matured, the borrower was asked to return the
principal. If the borrower was unable to repay, the lender would
extend the maturity of the loan and increase the interest. This kind of
Riba was in vogue in the period of ignorance. Riba on account of
excess of one commodity in spot transactions is; e.g. the exchange of
one maund of wheat with two maunds of wheat and similarly, other
commodities.
 Riba al Jahilayyah

Ahkam-ul-Quran – Abu Bakar Jassas Hanafi

One kind of Riba is that which occurs in sale and there is another
which is not related to sale & purchase. It is the latter kind which
was in vogue in the period of ignorance of which the essence is that
money is lent for a period of time on the condition that the borrower
will repay more that the sum borrowed.
 Conclusion derived from the above commentary

The fact that Riba Al Nasia is categorically haram has never been
disputed in the Muslim community.

The interest of present days is nothing but this Riba

Its prohibition stand proved on the authority of

 Seven verses of the Quran

 More than 40 Ahadith

 The consensus of the Muslim community

Riba AL Fadl (Riba of Excess)
 Riba AL Fadl (Riba of Excess0

The second category of Riba is Riba Al Fadl

Riba Al Fadl means that excess which is taken in exchange of

specific commodities and encountered in their spot purchases and
sale.

The Prophet said:

Gold for Gold, silver for silver, wheat for wheat, barley for barley,
dates for dates and salt for salt; like for like, equal for equal and hand
to hand, if the commodities differ, then you may sell as you wish,
provided that the exchange is hand-to-hand
 Riba AL Fadl (Riba of Excess)

This Hadith enumerates six commodities

 Gold
 Silver

 Dates

 Wheat
 Salt
 Barley

These six commodities can only be bought or sold in equal

quantities and on spot. An unequal or deferred sale constitutes
Riba

These six commodities, in Fiqh terminology, are called

Amwal-e-Ribawia
 Riba AL Fadl (Riba of Excess)
Questions which come to mind

Does the dictate concern sale of barley and wheat, but not rice?
Of dates, but not raisins

Some scholars think that Riba Al Fadl includes the specified commodities
only

But majority of scholars believe that other commodities are also included

In order to answer the question, “Which other commodities should be

included”?

Some fiqhs hold that characteristics which are common among these
items should be used as a basis to judge the applicability of Riba Al Fadl

Various schools define these characteristics differently

 Riba AL Fadl (Riba of Excess)

Imam Abu Hanifa sees two common characteristics

 Measured by weight
 Measured by volume

Meaning that all these goods are sold either by weight or volume

Therefore, all commodities traded by weight or volume come

under this restriction
 Riba AL Fadl (Riba of Excess)

Imam Shafai

 Medium of exchange
 Edibility

Therefore, this law will apply to all commodities which are either

 Edible
 Have the natural ability to become a medium of exchange
 Riba AL Fadl (Riba of Excess)
Imam Malik

 Edible
 Preservable

Imam Ahmed Bin Hambal

Three citations have been related to him

1) First conforms to Imam Abu Hanifa

2) Second conforms to Imam Shafai
3) Third citation includes three characteristics at the same time
a) Edible
b) Measured by weight
c) Measured by volume
 Riba AL Fadl (Riba of Excess)

All the schools declare that the Hadith’s prohibition apply to

exchange of items that share a single characteristic

Hence:
Hanafi’s and Hambalis prohibit sale on credit of bread for copper
(both measured by weight)
But allow credit sale of bread for salt (one measured by weight,
other by volume)

Malikis and Shafais

Concerned only with exchange among food and currencies
Reach results opposite to the other two schools in these cases.
 Riba AL Fadl (Riba of Excess)

After a detailed study, it has been declared by Islamic scholars

If a commodity bears both the following characteristics,

1. It is measured by weight
2. It can be used as a medium of exchange

Then the following two transactions are not allowed when goods are
being exchanged:
1. A deferred sale of goods
2. Sale of un-equal quantities of the same goods

However, if only one of the two characteristics is present

Then:

 Exchange of un-equal goods is allowed

 Deferred sale is not allowed