Introduction<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
After the Book of Partnership, Imam al-Nawawi (631\u2013676 AH \/ 1233\u20131277 CE) presents the Book of Agency (Kitab al-Wakalah<\/em>). The word wakalah<\/em> comes from the root meaning to entrust, and in the legal sense it refers to a contract in which one person authorizes another to act on his behalf in a matter that may lawfully be delegated. The person who gives the authority is the principal (muwakkil<\/em>), and the person who receives it is the agent (wakil<\/em>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Agency is a practical necessity. No one can personally attend to every transaction, and the law allows people to appoint others to act for them. The tradition supports this with several sources. The Qur’an recounts how the companions of the cave sent one of their number to the city with money to buy food, and the Prophet is reported to have appointed agents to buy an animal for sacrifice and to conclude a marriage on his behalf. This article follows the main themes of the book in the general order of the Minhaj<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The contract has several elements, each with its own conditions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Al-Nawawi explains that acceptance by the agent need not be spoken. It is enough that he does not reject the appointment, and acts on it. The school treats agency as a permitted contract, not a binding one, which has consequences for how it ends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In general, any act that a person may do himself, and that does not require his personal performance, may be delegated. This includes contracts such as sale, purchase, lease, and marriage, as well as claims, the collection of debts, and the payment of obligations. The book states several limits:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The subject of the agency must also be specified. A general grant of authority over all of one’s affairs is not valid in the school’s position, because of the uncertainty and risk it involves. The principal must name the type of act and the property it concerns, at least in general terms, so that the agent knows the limits of his role.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The agent has only the authority that was granted to him, and the book explains how that is interpreted. Some of the main rules are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The school adds that an agent may not sell to himself, or to those whose interests he represents, unless the principal permits it, since this creates a conflict of interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The agent holds whatever he receives on behalf of the principal as a trust (amanah<\/em>). This means that he is not liable for loss or damage unless he was negligent or exceeded his authority. If he is negligent, he must make good the loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A question arises about who bears the rights and obligations of the contract he concludes. In the school’s position, as presented in the book, when the agent contracts, certain rights of the contract, such as delivering the goods and receiving the price, fall to him as the one who concluded it, while the ownership and the benefit pass to the principal. The book also considers when the agent may appoint a sub-agent. Generally, he may do so only with the principal’s permission, or where the task is one that he cannot reasonably carry out himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n An agent may act without pay, as a favor, or he may be paid a fee as agreed. The book notes that if a fee is stipulated, it must be known and fixed, so that the contract is clear and free of uncertainty. Where no fee is stated, the agent’s work is treated as voluntary, though the school discusses certain situations in which a customary fee may apply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Because the contract is not binding, either party may end it at any time. The agency also ends when:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The book explains the effect of ending the agency on acts that the agent carries out afterward, and states that the termination takes effect for the agent only when he knows of it, in the position the school relies upon, so that acts done in good faith before he hears of it remain valid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The final section addresses the common disputes. If the agent says that he sold the property for a certain price, or that the goods were lost, or that he returned what he received, his statement under oath is generally accepted, since he is a trustee, unless there is evidence against him. If the principal and the agent disagree about the scope of the authority, such as whether he was permitted to sell on credit, the principal’s statement is generally accepted, since he is the one who knows what he authorized. The book explains the exceptions and the special cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The book begins with the pillars, then determines what may and may not be delegated, then explains the agent’s authority and duties, and ends with termination and disputes. This order follows the life of the contract, from its formation through its performance to its ending. It also prepares the student for the books that follow, in which agency appears repeatedly, as in profit-sharing investment, deposit, and judicial proceedings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For al-Nawawi, agency is built on trust, and the rules aim to protect that trust on both sides. The principal is protected by the limits of the authority and the requirement that the agent act in good faith. The agent is protected by the rule that he is not liable for loss that happens without his fault. The result is a contract that allows people to extend their reach through others, without allowing trust to become a means of exploitation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Note: This article summarizes the general Shafi’i position as presented in Minhaj al-Talibin. Details, including the allocation of contractual rights between the agent and the principal, can vary between editions and commentaries and differ among the schools. Readers who need a precise ruling, especially for modern agency and power-of-attorney arrangements, should consult a qualified teacher or scholar.<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Part 2: Transactions (Mu\u2019amalat) – Agency (Wakalah) Part of a series on the structure of Minhaj al-Talibin, the classical Shafi’i<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":188,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","video_url":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[54,12,15,14,27,53],"class_list":["post-187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-part-2-transactions-muamalat","tag-agency","tag-fiqh","tag-imam-al-nawawi","tag-minhaj-al-thalibin","tag-transactions-muamalat","tag-wakalah"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lslam.info\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lslam.info\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lslam.info\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lslam.info\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lslam.info\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=187"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lslam.info\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":190,"href":"https:\/\/lslam.info\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187\/revisions\/190"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lslam.info\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/188"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lslam.info\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lslam.info\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lslam.info\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}1. The pillars of agency<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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2. What may be delegated<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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3. The scope of the agent’s authority<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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4. The agent as a trustee<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
5. Payment of the agent<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Payment](\"https:\/\/lslam.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/5-Payment-of-the-Agent_-Wakalah-Explained-1024x683.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n6. Ending the agency<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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7. Disputes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Why the order matters<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Closing reflection<\/h2>\n\n\n\n