Herbage and pasture (kala')

Kala' means herbage, dry or green; in law it is grass that grows without human work ¹. The jurists agree that grass growing on open land such as valleys, mountains and unowned ground is shared, and no one may forbid another to take it or to graze his animals there, on the hadith that Muslims share three things: water, fire and herbage ^{1 2}. Grass on owned land belongs to its owner, who may bar entry, though no one may be stopped from taking grass he cannot find elsewhere; the Malikis allow grazing on unplanted ground and do not allow grass in unplanted land to be stopped unless a field nearby is at risk ^{2 3}. The imam may reserve unowned land for the herds of the poor-tax and the sadaqa and for the weak, according to the Hanafis, Malikis, Hanbalis and the sounder Shafi'i view, and most jurists allow grazing in the sanctuary of Mecca ^{3 4}.

Kala' means herbage, dry or green. In law it is grass that grows without human work ¹.

The jurists agree that herbage growing on open land such as valleys, mountains and unowned ground is shared: no one may forbid another to take it or to graze his animals there, on the hadith that Muslims share three things, water, fire and herbage ^{1 2}. No ordinary person may reserve it for himself ².

Grass growing on an owned plot without its owner's planting may not be taken without leave, though it is not reserved to him for anything else. If the owner mows grass that grew on his land, it is his property; where others cannot find grass elsewhere, the owner must either let them in or mow it himself and hand it over ^{2 3}. The Malikis hold that one may not be stopped from grazing grass that was not planted on land its owner has left, or grass on land unfit for tillage, unless a sown field nearby is at risk ³. A man who reaches a place with grass and then leaves it, while others graze around it, has three Maliki views: no right to exclude others; a right in proportion to his need; or priority if he has dug a well there, which al-Zurqani prefers ³.

The imam may reserve unowned ground for the herds of the poor-tax and the sadaqa, for strayed animals and for the weak, in a measure that does not harm people; this is the view of the Hanafis, Malikis, Hanbalis and the sounder view of the Shafi'is, while the contrary Shafi'i view relies on the saying that there is no reservation except by God and His messenger ^{3 4}. Details are in the entry on hima.

Most jurists allow grazing the grass of the sanctuary of Mecca, since sacrificial animals were led there in the Prophet ﷺ's time and their mouths were not closed against grazing ⁴. Details are in the entry on the sanctuary.