Advance Payment for Buying Slaves and Animals

9. Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from his father from ‘Isma’il ibn Marrar from Yunus from Mu‘awiyah who has said the following: “This is concerning my question before abu ‘Abd Allah عليه السلام, about the case of a man who made an advance payment for things of clearly described age and appointed time and not clearly described ages; then he was given below the condition. He (the Imam) said, ‘If it is with fine consent from him and from you it is not unlawful.’ I then asked about a man who made an advance payment to buy sheep of three years and less than three years and others for an appointed time. He (the Imam) said, ‘It is not harmful.’ ‘In case he cannot provide all of them, can he ask the party to accept half or one-third and take back the capital for the remaining sheep in the form of dirhams?’ He (the Imam) said, ‘It is not unlawful but they must not take up his condition without fine consent of the owner.’”