1. A number of our people have narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad from Sahl ibn Ziyad from al-Hassan ibn Mahbub from Ibrahim al-Karkhiy who has narrated the following: “I once said to abu ‘Abd Allah, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, ‘I become a partner of an al-‘ilj (a great non-Muslim person). I provide land, seed, and the bull. Al-‘ilj does the plantation and other works for the farm. When the wheat or barely comes, the produce is divided; al-Sultan takes away his right, one-third is for al-‘ilj and the remaining is for me. He (the Imam) said, ‘It is not unlawful.’ I then asked if the seed can be given to me from the produce of the land and the rest is divided. He (the Imam) said, ‘You have formed a partnership which required you to provide the seed and he must provide water and other works.’”

Translation: Muhammad Sarwar — attributed by Thaqalayn·The Arabic above is the original.

2. Muhammad ibn Yahya has narrated from Muhammad ibn Al-Husayn from Safwan from Ya’qub ibn Shu’ayb who has narrated the following: “This is concerning my question before abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), about the case of a man who had a land of al-Kharaj (of government) which he had given to a man to develop, pay its taxes and the extra of its produce were to be shared by the two of them. He (the Imam) said, ‘It is not unlawful.’ I asked abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), about the case of a man who gave his land to a man which had pomegranate, palm trees or fruit bearing trees. He told him to water and develop it for one-half of the produce thereof. He (the Imam) said, ‘It is not unlawful.’ This is concerning my question before abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), about the case of a man who told a man to have his land for three or five years or as Allah wills. He (the Imam) said, ‘It is not unlawful.’ I then asked about sharecropping. He (the Imam) then said, ‘The expenses are from you and the land is from the land-owner. Its produce is divided in portions. This is how the Messenger of Allah, O Allah, grant compensation to Muhammad and his family worthy of their services to Your cause, gave the people of Khaybar when they came to him. He (the Messenger of Allah) gave it to them to develop for one-half of its produce.’”

Translation: Muhammad Sarwar — attributed by Thaqalayn·The Arabic above is the original.

3. Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from his father from Ibn Abi ‘Umayr from Hammad from al-Halabiy who has narrated the following: “Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘In a land contract you can have it for twenty years or less from its people to develop it and pay its expenses; such contract is not unlawful.’”

Translation: Muhammad Sarwar — attributed by Thaqalayn·The Arabic above is the original.

4. A number of our people have narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad from ‘Uthman ibn ‘Isa from Sama‘ah who has narrated the following: “This is concerning my question before abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), about sharecropping of a Muslim and a pagan in which the Muslim provides seed and bull, the land, water, taxes and work is by the al-‘ilj. He (the Imam) said, ‘It is not unlawful.’ I then asked about sharecropping saying that a man spreads seed on one hundred Jirib (acre) or less or more for grain or other produce. A man then comes and says to take one-half of the value of the seed from me and one-half of the expenses and give me a share in it. He (the Imam) then said, ‘It is not unlawful.’ I then asked, ‘What happens if he has not bought the seed, it just was with him?’ He (the Imam) then said, ‘He must appraise it with that day’s prices, then take one-half of its value and one-half of his expenses and then share the farm with him.’”

Translation: Muhammad Sarwar — attributed by Thaqalayn·The Arabic above is the original.