Gharar

Gambling (Maysar) and Risk (Gharar)

 Gambling
Quranic view on Gambling & Risk

O believers! Intoxicants and gambling and Al Ansab (Animals

sacrificed for idols) and Al Azlam (arrows for seeking luck or
decision) are an abomination of Satan's handiwork. So avoid
them in order that you may be successful. Satan wants only to
excite enmity and hatred between you with intoxicants and
gambling and hinder you from the remembrance of Allah and
from prayer. So, will you not then abstain? (Al Maidah 90 – 91)
 Gharar

The Sunnah speaks not only of gambling but

also of Risk (Gharar)

In Sunnah, Gharar refers to certain transactions

characterized by risk or uncertainty at their
inception

Gharar can be defined as the following:

“The uncertainty that is present in the Basic

elements of an Agreement: like Wordings,
Subject Matter, Consideration and the
Liabilities”
Ahadith on Gharar
 Ahadith on Gharar

The messenger of God forbade the “sale of the

pebble” and the sale of gharar
(Muslim)

“Do not buy fish in the sea, for it is gharar”

(Bukhari)
 Ahadith on Gharar

The Prophet forbade the sale of the unborn calf, sale

of the contents of the udder, sale of a slave when he
is a runaway, and [sale of the ] ‘stroke of the diver’.
(i.e. sale in advance of a diver’s yield, whatever it
may be)

(Ibn Maja, with a weak chain of transmitters)

“Whoever buys foodstuff, let him not sell it until he

has possession of them”
(Bukhari)
 Ahadith on Gharar

‘He who purchases food shall not sell it until he

weighs it”
(Muslim)

The Prophet forbade the sale of grapes until they

become black and the sale of grain until it is strong

(Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawood, Tirmidhi)

 Gharar
All the above cases involve items
•Which may or may not exist
•Or whose characteristics are uncertain

Gharar is the sale of probable items whose existence

or characteristics are not certain
The risky nature makes the trade similar to gambling
It is in the best interest of the parties to be very
specific about
• What is being sold
• At what price
 Gharar

Gharar literally means “Uncertainty”

Forms of Gharar :
 Any bilateral transaction in which the liability of the
party in the transaction is either uncertain or
contingent.
 Consideration of either is not known.
 Ultimate outcome of any one party is uncertain.
 Delivery is not in the control of the obligor.
 Payment form one side is certain, but from the other
side is contingent.
 Gharar

Four (4) necessary conditions regarding Gharar

1. It must be major
2. It should be Aqd-e-Muawada
3. Gharar must affect the principal component of
the contract
4. The need to be met by the contract containing
Gharar cannot be met otherwise