Chapter II: Etiquette of Marriage
It is unlawful to give trouble to the public by unjust dealings and oppression an by decdit and fraud. There are two kinds of loss by deceit and fraud. One kind of loss for the general public and another for some special persons. The loss of the public is of many kinds. One kind of public loss arises from hoarding of food stuffs. It is done with the object of getting enhanced price of food stuffs. It is an oppression to the people in general. There is curse of Shariat on the hoarders of food stuffs. The Prophet said : If a man hoards up food stuffs when they are dear for forty days to get more price, he is displeased with God and God also is displeased with him. Someone said that he commits sin of murdering all people. Hazrat Ali said : If a man hoards up food stuffs even for a day to gain increased price, his heart becomes hard. The Prophet said : He who takes food stuffs from one place to another and sells them on that day according to the market rate will get the rewards of charity. In another narration : He will get the rewards of setting a slave free. The Quran says : If a man intends to transgress the limits unjustly, I will give him taste of a grievous chastiment. This applies to hoarding up for getting more profit.
A certain pious merchant sent food stuffs on a boat in the sea to his agent at Basra with the instruction that he should sell it as soon as they reached him. When the commodities reached Basra, the merchants told him to hoard them for one week and then sell,
52 The Book of Wordly Usages Vol-II
because they would bring greater profit. His agents did accordingly and sold them after one week with increased price and informed his master. His master wrote to him : You have acted contrary to my wish. It was not my wish to make loss in religion and gain profit in commodities. I have committed sin of hoarding . Therefore, distribute all the proceeds to the poor and the destitute. In that case, I may save myself from the sin of hoarding.