Equivalent Price and Market Justice in Ibn Taymiyyah’s Thought: A Qualitative Examination of Pricing Narratives in Banjarbaru, Indonesia

Abstract

The background of this research highlights the importance of the concept of fair pricing in buying and selling transactions. Ibn Taymiyyah developed the concept of tsaman al-mithl or equivalent price, which refers to a fair value of goods based on market conditions and ensures that no party is disadvantaged. This concept is particularly relevant in addressing the issue of price fluctuations of basic commodities in society. This study examines that distinction through a qualitative reading of reported pricing practices in Banjarbaru, Indonesia. Its source material comprises interviews with 15 traders and service providers, a summary of responses from 15 consumers, and an account from one local trade-office representative, alongside Ibn Taymiyyah’s discussion of market exchange and conditional price regulation. A theory-informed descriptive reanalysis grouped the available statements by costs, comparison prices, supply conditions, product or service differences, negotiated terms, and institutional claims. Traders described cost-based pricing, competitor comparisons, bargaining, scarcity adjustments and reseller discounts; several did not consult competitor prices. Consumer summaries emphasized price, quality and need. The official account described price monitoring and selective intervention, without accompanying administrative records. These narratives show partial correspondence with the economic considerations relevant to equivalent pricing; they do not establish that actual prices were equivalent or that market injustice was absent. The study’s contribution is an evidence-sensitive framework that separates market-price formation, procedural fairness and demonstrable market distortion, and specifies what additional transaction and policy records would be needed to assess them.