Bai‘ al-sirar

Definition of "Bai‘ al-sirar"

It is a pre-Islam sale transaction that worked as follows. One person says to the other: ‘I will put forth my hand and you shall put forth your hand, and if I produce my signet-ring before you, it is sold to you for such a price; and if you produce your signet-ring before me, it is sold to me for such a price’. If they both produce or both of them do not produce, they will do it again until only one of them produces the signet-ring and the deal is concluded. It was a type of gharar transaction.