Is a Musaqah contract valid if the condition specifies sharing half of the principal (the trees/land) along with half of the fruit?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Sharecropping (Musāqāh)
Primary text
The contract is invalid. The basis of Musaqah is sharing in the growth and yield (the fruit). Stipulating a share in the principal itself is impermissible, analogous to stipulating a share in the capital in a Mudarabah (profit-sharing investment). Consequently, the worker is entitled only to the customary wage for his labor (ajr mithl).