CHAPTER 1. About (sharing) meals and the Nahd (i.e. sharing the expenses of a journey or putting the journey food of the travellers together to be distributed among them in equal shares) -and ‘Urâd (i.e. sharing other goods).

3:664 Narrated by Salama

Once the journey food diminished and the people were reduced to poverty. They went to the Prophet and asked his permission to slaughter their camels, and he agreed. ‘Umar met them and they told him about it, and he said, “How would you survive after slaughtering your camels?” Then he went to the Prophet and said, “O Allah’s Apostle! How would they survive after slaughtering their camels?” Allah’s Apostle ordered ‘Umar, “Call upon the people to bring what has remained of their food.” A leather sheet was spread and al I the journey food was collected and heaped over it. Allah’s Apostle stood up and invoked Allah to bless it, and then directed all the people to come with their utensils, and they started taking from it till all of them got what was sufficient for them. Allah’s Apostle then said, “I testify that None has the right to be worshipped but Allah, and I am His Apostle. “

3:666 Narrated by Abu Musa

The Prophet said, “When the people of Ash’ari tribe ran short of food during the holy battles, or the food of their families in Medina ran short, they would collect all their remaining food in one sheet and then distribute it among themselves equally by measuring it with a bowl. So, these people are from me, and I am from them.”

CHAPTER 2. Division of sheep.

3:668 Narrated by ‘Abaya bin Rafa’a bin Raft’ bin Khadij

My grandfather said, “We were in the company of the Prophet at Dhul-Hulaifa. The people felt hungry and captured some camels and sheep (as booty). The Prophet was behind the people. They hurried and slaughtered the animals and put their meat in pots and started cooking it. (When the Prophet came) he ordered the pots to be upset and then he distributed the animals (of the booty), regarding ten sheep as equal to one camel. One of the camels fled and the people ran after it till they were exhausted. At that time there were few horses. A man threw an arrow at the camel, and Allah stopped the camel with it. The Prophet said, “Some of these animals are like wild animals, so if you lose control over one of these animals, treat it in this way (i.e. shoot it with an arrow).” Before distributing them among the soldiers my grandfather said, “We may meet the enemies in the future and have no knives; can we slaughter the animals with reeds?” The Prophet said, “Use whatever causes blood to flow, and eat the animals if the name of Allah has been mentioned on slaughtering them. Do not slaughter with teeth or fingernails and I will tell you why: It is because teeth are bones (i.e. cannot cut properly) and fingernails are the tools used by the Ethiopians (whom we should not imitate for they are infidels).”

CHAPTER 3. To get a joint property evaluated with an adequate price.

3:672 Narrated by Abu Huraira

The Prophet said, “Whoever manumits his share of a jointly possessed slave, it is imperative for him to get that slave manumitted completely by paying the remaining price, and if he does not have sufficient money to manumit him, then the price of the slave should be estimated justly, and he is to be allowed to work and earn the amount that will manumit him (without overburdening him)”.

CHAPTER 4. Can one draw lots for divisions and shares?

3:673 Narrated by An-Nu’man bin Bashir

The Prophet said, “The example of the person abiding by Allah’s order and restrictions in comparison to those who violate them is like the example of those persons who drew lots for their seats in a boat. Some of them got seats in the upper part, and the others in the lower. When the latter needed water, they had to go up to bring water (and that troubled the others), so they said, ‘Let us make a hole in our share of the ship (and get water) saving those who are above us from troubling them. So, if the people in the upper part left the others do what they had suggested, all the people of the ship would be destroyed, but if they prevented them, both parties would be safe.”

CHAPTER 5. The sharing of food, etc.

3:680 Narrated by ‘Abdullah bin Hisham

That his mother Zainab bint Humaid took him to the Prophet and said, “O Allah’s Apostle! Take the pledge of allegiance from him.” But he said, “He is still too young for the pledge,” and passed his hand on his (i.e. ‘Abdullah’s) head and invoked for Allah’s blessing for him. Zuhra bin Ma’bad stated that he used to go with his grandfather, ‘Abdullah bin Hisham, to the market to buy foodstuff. Ibn ‘Umar and Ibn Az-Zubair would meet him and say to him, “Be our partner, as the Prophet invoked Allah to bless you.” So, he would be their partner, and very often he would win a camel’s load and send it home.