Ma'mar b. Abdullah reported that he sent his slave with a sa' of wheat and said to him:
Sell it, and then buy with it barley. The slave went away and he got a sa' (of barley) and a part of sa' over and above that. When he came to Ma'mar he informed him about that, whereupon Ma'mar said to him: Why did you do that? Go back and return that, and do not accept but weight, for weight, for I used to hear from Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) as saying: Wheat for wheat and like for like. He (one of the narrators) said: Our food in those days consisted of barley. It was said to him (Ma'mar) that (wheat) is not like that (barley). He replied: I am afraid these may not be similar
حَدَّثَنَا هَارُونُ بْنُ مَعْرُوفٍ، حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ وَهْبٍ، أَخْبَرَنِي عَمْرٌو، ح وَحَدَّثَنِي أَبُو الطَّاهِرِ، أَخْبَرَنَا ابْنُ وَهْبٍ، عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ الْحَارِثِ، أَنَّ أَبَا النَّضْرِ، حَدَّثَهُ أَنَّ بُسْرَ بْنَ سَعِيدٍ حَدَّثَهُ عَنْ مَعْمَرِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، أَنَّهُ أَرْسَلَ غُلاَمَهُ بِصَاعِ قَمْحٍ فَقَالَ بِعْهُ ثُمَّ اشْتَرِ بِهِ شَعِيرًا . فَذَهَبَ الْغُلاَمُ فَأَخَذَ صَاعًا وَزِيَادَةَ بَعْضِ صَاعٍ فَلَمَّا جَاءَ مَعْمَرًا أَخْبَرَهُ بِذَلِكَ فَقَالَ لَهُ مَعْمَرٌ لِمَ فَعَلْتَ ذَلِكَ انْطَلِقْ فَرُدَّهُ وَلاَ تَأْخُذَنَّ إِلاَّ مِثْلاً بِمِثْلٍ فَإِنِّي كُنْتُ أَسْمَعُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ
" الطَّعَامُ بِالطَّعَامِ مِثْلاً بِمِثْلٍ "
. قَالَ وَكَانَ طَعَامُنَا يَوْمَئِذٍ الشَّعِيرَ . قِيلَ لَهُ فَإِنَّهُ لَيْسَ بِمِثْلِهِ قَالَ إِنِّي أَخَافُ أَنْ يُضَارِعَ .
