Chapter on the Sale of Pasture, Crops, Trees, Lands, Servants, Water Rights, and Real Estate

It is narrated from Muhammad bin Ali bin Mahbub who said: A man wrote to the 'Jurist' (Imam Hasan ibn Ali Al-Askari عليه السلام) regarding a case where a man had a mill situated on a river that passed through a village. The village belonged to one or two men. The owner of the village wanted to divert the water to his village through a different channel, which would disable the mill. He asked whether he had the right to do so. The 'Jurist' Imam عليه السلام responded: "He should fear Allah سبحانه وتعالى and act in a fair manner, and he should not harm his believing brother." He also asked about a man who had a canal in a village, and another man wanted to dig another canal above it. He inquired about the required distance between them so that one would not harm the other, especially if the land was either hard or soft. The 'Jurist' Imam عليه السلام responded: "It should be done in such a way that neither of them harms the other, if Allah سبحانه وتعالى wills."