[The Book of Loan for Use ('Ariyah)]

861- Issue: He said: "A loan for use ( 'ariyah) is guaranteed, even if the borrower does not transgress regarding it."

'Ariyah is the permission to utilize an item among items of wealth. It is derived from 'ara al-shay'u: when it goes and comes. From this, a loafer (battal) is called 'ayyar, due to his pacing back and forth in his idleness. The Arabs say: a'arahu and 'arahu, like ata'ahu and ta'ahu. The basis for it is the Book (Quran), the Sunnah, and consensus. As for the Book, it is the saying of Allah, the Exalted: "And they withhold al-ma'un (the small kindnesses/neighborly needs)" (Surah Al-Ma'un: 7). It is narrated from Ibn 'Abbas and Ibn Mas'ud that they both said: "[It means] the loans (al-'awari)." Ibn Mas'ud explained it, saying: "The pot, the scales, and the bucket." As for the Sunnah, it is what is narrated from the Prophet - may Allah bless him and grant him peace - that he said in the sermon of the year of the Farewell Pilgrimage: "The loan is to be returned, the debt is to be paid, the gift (minhah) is to be returned, and the surety (za'im) is a debtor (ghārim)." Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, who said: "A hasan gharib (good yet singular) hadith." Safwan ibn Umayya narrated that the Prophet - may Allah bless him and grant him peace - borrowed coats of mail from him on the day of Hunayn. He said: "Is it by force, O Muhammad?" He replied: "Rather, a guaranteed loan." Narrated by Abu Dawud. The Muslims have reached a consensus on the permissibility and recommendation of the loan. Furthermore, since the gift of material objects is permissible, the gift of usufruct (benefits) is also permissible; this is why a bequest of both material objects and usufruct is valid. Once this is established, the loan is recommended and not obligatory, according to the opinion of most scholars. It is said: It is obligatory, due to the verse, and because of what Abu Hurayra narrated that the Prophet - may Allah bless him and grant him peace - said: "There is no owner of camels who does not pay their due..." [the rest of the] hadith.