livestock. Thus, if there is a nisab (minimum threshold) between them in which they participate, zakat is obligatory upon them. This is the opinion of Ishaq and al-Awza'i regarding grain and fruit, while the former is the (preferred) school. Abu 'Abd Allah said: Al-Awza'i says regarding crops that if they are partners and five wasqs result from it, he says: there is zakat in it. He drew an analogy from it to sheep, but I do not favor the opinion of al-Awza'i. As for the intermixing of characteristics, it has no role in anything other than livestock at all, because the mixing does not occur. The Qadi derived another perspective, that it does have an effect, because the cost (ma'unah) is lightened if the sire (mu-laqqih), the one who drives them (al-sa'ad), the watchman (al-natur), and the threshing floor (al-jarin) are the same, and likewise for trade assets; if the shop, the warehouse, the scale, and the salesman are the same, then it resembles livestock. The school of al-Shafi'i is along the lines of what we have recounted regarding our school. The correct view is that mixing has no effect in other than livestock, due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): "The two parties who intermix are those who share the watering place, the sire, and the shepherd." This indicates that what does not contain these is not an influential mixing. Also, the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): "Separated property may not be combined out of fear of zakat," only applies to livestock because zakat decreases with their being combined at times, and increases at others, while in all other forms of wealth, zakat is obligatory on what exceeds the nisab in proportion to it, so its combination has no effect. Furthermore, because mixing in livestock has an effect on the benefit at one time and on the harm at another, even if we were to consider it in other than livestock, it would result in pure harm to the owner of the wealth, so it is not permissible to consider it. Once this is established, if a group has a waqf (endowment) or a shared wall between them, which contains fruit or...