Ma malakat aymanukum

Ma malakat aymanukum ("what your right hands possess", Arabic: ما ملكت أيمانکم‎) is a reference in the Qur'an to slaves.

Meaning and usage of the term

The term itself is normally considered to refer to prisoners of war, or more broadly to slaves in general, according to the classic tafsirs. Bernard Lewis proposes the translation "those whom you own." Abdullah Yusuf Ali translates it as "those whom your right hands possess", as does M. H. Shakir. N. J. Dawood translates the phrase more idiomatically as "those whom you own as slaves."

The general term ma malakat aymanukum (literally "what your right hands possess") appears fourteen times in the Qur'an, in the following Arabic variations:

• Note: Masculine plural may also refer to a group of males and females.

Muhammad's treatment of captives

After the Muslims executed the male members (between 600 and 900) of the Banu Qurayza tribe, the women and children were taken as slaves. Muhammad himself took Rayhana as his slave. He presented three women from the conquered Banu Hawazin as slaves to his key supportive close marital relatives in early 630: Reeta, to Ali; Zeinab, to Uthman; and an unnamed third to Umar.

Sexual relations with captives

According to the traditional interpretation of Islamic law (Sharia), it is lawful for male masters to have sexual relations with female captives and slaves under threat of punishment if they do not consent.

"The woman does not have the right to refuse her husband, rather she must respond to his request every time he calls her, so long as that will not harm her or keep her from doing an obligatory duty ... Similarly a slave woman does not have the right to refuse her master’s requests unless she has a valid excuse. If she does that she is being disobedient and he has the right to discipline her in whatever manner he thinks is appropriate and is allowed in sharee’ah."

Al-Muminun 6 and Al-Maarij 30 both, in identical wording, draw a distinction between spouses and "those whom one's right hands possess", saying " أَزÙ'وَاجِهِمÙ' Ø£ÙŽÙˆÙ' مَا مَلَكَتÙ' Ø£ÙŽÙŠÙ'مَانُهُمÙ'" (literally, "their spouses or what their right hands possess"), while clarifying that sexual intercourse with either is permissible. Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi explains that "two categories of women have been excluded from the general command of guarding the private parts: (a) wives, (b) women who are legally in one's possession". The purchase of female slaves for sex was lawful from the perspective of Islamic law, and this was the most common motive for the purchase of slaves throughout Islamic history.

The verse can be broken into three parts:

Imam Al-Shafi‘i, however, says that "[i]f a man acquires by force a slave-girl, then has sexual intercourse with her after he acquires her by force, and if he is not excused by ignorance, then the slave-girl will be taken from him, he is required to pay the fine, and he will receive the punishment for illegal sexual intercourse."

According to Hadith no. 18685 from Sunan Al Bayhaqi:

"Abu al-Hussain bin al-Fadhl al-Qatan narrated from Abdullah bin Jaffar bin Darestweh from Yaqub bin Sufyan from al-Hassab bin Rabee from Abdullah bin al-Mubarak from Kahmas from Harun bin Al-Asam who said: "Umar bin al-Khatab may Allah be pleased with him sent Khalid bin al-Walid in an army, hence Khalid sent Dharar bin al-Auwzwar in a squadron and they invaded a district belonging to the tribe of Bani Asad. They then captured a pretty bride, Dharar liked her hence he asked his companions to grant her to him and they did so. He then had sexual intercourse with her, when he completed his mission he felt guilty, and went to Khalid and told him about what he did. Khalid said: 'I permit you and made it lawful to you.' He said: 'No not until you write a message to Umar'. (Then they sent a message to Umar) and Umar answered that he (Dharar) should be stoned. By the time Umar's message was delivered, Dharar was dead." (Khalid) said: 'Allah didn't want to disgrace Dharar'

One rationale given for recognition of concubinage in Islam is that "it satisfied the sexual desire of the female slaves and thereby prevented the spread of immorality in the Muslim community." Most schools restrict concubinage to a monogamous relationship between the slave woman and her master, but according to Sikainga, "in reality, however, female slaves in many Muslim societies were prey for members of their owners' household, their neighbors, and their guests."

Rules

Regarding rules for having sexual intercourse with Ma malakat aymanukum, a man may not have sexual intercourse with a female slave belonging to his wife. Neither may he have relations with a female slave if she is co-owned. He may have sex with a female captive who was previously married prior to captivity, provided their Idda (waiting) period had come to an end.

If the female slave has a child by her master, she then receives the title of "Ummul Walad" (lit. Mother of the child), which is an improvement in her status as she can no longer be sold and is legally freed upon the death of her master. The child, by default, is born free due to the father (i.e., the master) being a free man. Although there is no limit on the number of concubines a master may possess, the general marital laws are to be observed, such as not having sexual relations with the sister of a female slave.

People are told that if they do not have the means to marry free-women, they can marry, with the permission of their masters, slave-women who are Muslims and are also kept chaste. In such marriages, they must pay their dowers so that this could bring them gradually equal in status to free-women.

Prostitution (including the prostitution of slaves) is regarded as an offence in Islam. Muhammad gave exemplary punishment to owners of brothels that were operated using their slave-women for such pleasures. Muhammad also told people that they are all slaves/servants of Allah and so instead of using the words عَبÙ'د (slave-man) and اَمَة (slave-woman), the words used should be فَتَى (boy/man) and فَتَاة (girl/woman) so that the psyche about them should change and a change is brought about in these age-old concepts.

In late 2014 the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant released a pamphlet on the treatment of female slaves which allows sex with them. It includes a discussion of when sex is allowed with a slave who has not yet reached puberty ("It is permissible to have intercourse with the female slave who hasn't reached puberty if she is fit for intercourse; however if she is not fit for intercourse, then it is enough to enjoy her without intercourse.").

"Ma malakat aymanukum" in the Qur'an

Slaves are mentioned in at least twenty-nine verses of the Qur'an, most of these are Medinan and refer to the legal status of slaves. The legal material on slavery in the Qur'an is largely restricted to manumission and sexual relations. According to Sikainga, the Qur'anic references to slavery mainly contain "broad and general propositions of an ethical nature rather than specific legal formulations."

Position of slaves in the Quran

The Quran accepts the distinction between slave and free as part of the natural order and uses this distinction as an example of God's grace, regarding this discrimination between human beings as in accordance with the divinely established order of things. "The Qur'an, however, does not consider slaves to be mere chattel; their humanity is directly addressed in references to their beliefs, their desire for manumission and their feelings about being forced into prostitution. In one case, the Qur'an refers to master and slave with the same word, rajul. Later interpreters presume slaves to be spiritual equals of free Muslims. For example, urges believers to marry 'believing maids that your right hands own' and then states: "The one of you is as the other," which the Jalaalayn interpret as "You and they are equal in faith, so do not refrain from marrying them." The human aspect of slaves is further reinforced by reference to them as members of the private household, sometimes along with wives or children. Pious exhortations from jurists to free men to address their slaves by such euphemistic terms as "my boy" and "my girl" stemmed from the belief that God, not their masters, was responsible for the slave's status. The historian Bruschvig states that from a spiritual perspective, "the slave has the same value as the free man, and the same eternity is in store for his soul; in this earthly life, failing emancipation, there remains the fact of his inferior status, to which he must piously resign himself."

Comparison to neighboring cultures

There are many common features between the institution of slavery in the Quran and that of neighboring cultures. However, the Quranic institution had some unique new features. Bernard Lewis states that the Qur'anic legislation brought two major changes to ancient slavery which were to have far-reaching effects: presumption of freedom, and the ban on the enslavement of free persons except in strictly defined circumstances. According to Brockopp, the idea of using alms for the manumission of slaves appears to be unique to the Quran, assuming the traditional interpretation of verses Quran 2:177 and Quran 9:60. Similarly, the practice of freeing slaves in atonement for certain sins appears to be introduced by the Quran (but compare Exod 21:26-7). The forced prostitution of female slaves, a Near Eastern custom of great antiquity, is condemned in the Quran. Murray Gordon notes that this ban is "of no small significance." Brockopp writes: "Other cultures limit a master's right to harm a slave but few exhort masters to treat their slaves kindly, and the placement of slaves in the same category as other weak members of society who deserve protection is unknown outside the Qur'an. The unique contribution of the Qur'an, then, is to be found in its emphasis on the place of slaves in society and society's responsibility toward the slave, perhaps the most progressive legislation on slavery in its time."

Muslim explanation for Quran permitting slavery

Muslims argue that God sought to incrementally push for the abolishment of slavery through personal humanitarian initiatives. For example, "The Prophet said, 'Give food to the hungry, pay a visit to the sick and release (set free) the one in captivity (by paying his ransom).'" Also when an individual erred such as missing a day of fasting, they were to free a slave. Slavery was not encouraged, i.e. there was no command to take slaves. On the contrary, there were commands that freeing slaves is a righteous act. Therefore, this set the emancipation of slaves in motion. While this emancipation was occurring, the Qur'an and the Prophet established rights for slaves that were not previously enjoyed, as well as limiting the source of slaves to only prisoners of war.

List of slaves amongst Muhammad's companions

A list of people who were amongst Ma malakat aymanukum includes:

622 â€" 719 AD

• Rayhana bint Zayd
• Salim Mawla Abu Hudhayfah
• Safiyya bint Huyayy
• Maria al-Qibtiyya
• Abu Suhail an-Nafi
• Pirouz, the father of Hasan al-Basri

See also

• Islamic views on slavery
• Nikah Mut'ah ("temporary marriage" in Shia Islam)
• Nikah Misyar
• Mamluk
• Pilegesh
• Slavery in 21st century Islamism
• Zina, illicit sex

References

External links

• Sex With Slave Girls

Traditional Sunni viewpoints

• Islam Q&A fatwa

Traditional Shi'a viewpoints

• Slavery in Islam