What is the required compensation if the buyer exercises the option to return a Musrah animal?
Chapter on Selling the Musarrah (Animal with milk retained in udder)
Al-Mughni
Book of Sales
Primary text
If the buyer returns the Musrah animal, they are obligated to return an equivalent measure of dates (Sa' min tamr), as explicitly mentioned in the authentic Hadith of Abu Hurairah. This ruling is the position of Al-Layth, Ishaq, Al-Shafi'i, Abu Ubayd, and Abu Thawr. The dates must be good quality, not defective, and represent the minimum standard of good quality (not necessarily the highest grade). This specified measure of dates serves to settle disputes and avoid conflict, similar to how the Lawgiver specifies compensation for injury.
Supporting text
Malik and some Shafi'is mandate returning a measure of the staple foodstuff (qut) of the locality, interpreting the conflicting narrations regarding dates and grain as pointing to the local predominant food. Abu Yusuf maintained that the buyer must return the monetary value of the milk, treating it as compensation for a destroyed item. A rejected opinion suggests returning the equivalent weight of the milk in wheat, based on rulings concerning Zakat al-Fitr and expiations.