Slavery in Islam
P.S: words that seem to be meaningless are either names of people or books.
The Almighty Allah; God says
(49:13) Human beings,We created you all from a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes so that you may know one another. Verily the noblest of you in the sight of Allah is the most God-fearing of you. Surely Allah is All-Knowing, All-Aware.
In this verse the whole of mankind has been addressed to reform it of the great evil that has always been causing universal disruption in the world, that is, the prejudices due to race, colour, language, country, and nationality.
Islam affirms that Allah created man fully accountable, and enjoined duties upon him, to which reward and punishment are connected on the basis of man’s free will and choice. No human being has the right to restrict this freedom or take away that choice unlawfully; whoever dares to do that is a wrongdoer and oppressor.
When Islam came, there were many causes of slavery:
- warfare
- debt (where if the debtor could not pay off his debt, he became a slave)
- kidnapping and raids
- Poverty and need.
Slavery did not spread in this appalling manner throughout all continents except by means of kidnapping; rather the main source of slaves in Europe and America in later centuries was this method; slave trading.
The texts of Islam took a strong stance against this. It says in a hadeeth qudsi: “Allah said: ‘There are three whose opponent I will be on the Day of Resurrection, and whomever I oppose, I will defeat … A man who sold a free man and consumed his price.’” Narrated by al-Bukhari (2227).
Islam limited the sources of slaves that existed before the beginning of the Prophet’s mission to one way only: enslavement through war which was imposed on prisoners-of-war and on their womenfolk and children.
The reason for allowing slavery is fighting against Allah and His Messenger, unless the ruler chooses to free them for nothing or for a ransom.
It is worth pointing out that you do not find any text in the Quran or the Prophet's traditions which enjoins taking others as slaves, whereas there are dozens of texts in the Quran and the Prophet's traditions which call for freeing them.
Here is a summary of some of the principles of dealing with slaves:
1 – Guaranteeing them food and clothing like that of their masters. The Messenger of Allah said: “They are your brothers whom Allah has put under your authority, so if Allah has put a person’s brother under his authority, let him feed him from what he eats and clothe him from what he wears, and let him not overburden him with work, and if he does overburden him with work, then let him help him.” al-Bukhari (6050).
2 – Preserving their dignity. Abu Hurayrah said: I heard Abu’l-Qasim (Prophet Muhammad) say: “Whoever accuses his slave when he is innocent of what he says will be flogged on the Day of Resurrection, unless he is as he said.” Narrated by al-Bukhari (6858).
Ibn Omar said: I heard the Messenger of Allah say: “Whoever slaps his slave or beats him, his expiation is to manumit him.” Narrated by Muslim (1657).
3 – Being fair towards slaves and treating them kindly
It was narrated that ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan tweaked the ear of a slave of his when he did something wrong, then he said to him after that: Come and tweak my ear in retaliation. The slave refused but he insisted, so he started to tweak it slightly, and he said to him: Do it strongly, for I cannot bear the punishment on the Day of Resurrection. The slave said: Like that, O my master? The Day that you fear I fear also.
When ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn ‘Awf walked among his slaves, no one could tell him apart from them, because he did not walk ahead of them, and he did not wear anything different from what they wore.
One day Omar Ibn al-Khattab passed by and saw some slaves standing and not eating with their master. He got angry and said to their master: What is wrong with people who are selfish towards their servants? Then he called the servants and they ate with them.
A man entered upon Salman and found him making dough – and he was a governor. He said to him: O Abu ‘Abd-Allah, what is this? He said: We have sent our servant on an errand and we do not want to give him two jobs at once.
4 – There is nothing wrong with slaves having precedence over free men in some matters
- With regard to any religious or worldly matters in which he excels over him. For example, it is valid for a slave to lead the prayer. ‘Aa’ishah the Mother of the Believers had a slave who would lead her in prayer. Indeed the Muslims have been commanded to hear and obey even if a slave is appointed in charge of their affairs.
5 – A slave may buy himself from his master and be free.
If a person is enslaved for some reason but then it becomes apparent that he has given up his wrongdoing and forgotten his past, and he has become a man who shuns evil and seeks to do good, may buy himself from his master and be free. This is a contract of manumission between the slave and his master. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): 24:33 “And such of your slaves as seek a writing (of emancipation), give them such writing, if you find that there is good and honesty in them. And give them something (yourselves) out of the wealth of Allah which He has bestowed upon you”
One of the results of these guidelines is that in many cases, the slave would become a friend of his master; in some cases the master would regard him as a son. Sa’d Ibn Hashim al-Khalidi said, describing a slave of his:
He is not a slave, rather he is a son whom [Allah] has put under my care.
He has supported me with his good service; he is my hands and my arms.
Another result of the Muslims treating slaves in this manner is that the slaves became part of Muslim families as if they were also family members.
Islam considers freeing slaves as a way to earn God's rewards. The Holy Quran says (90:11) But he did not venture to scale the difficult steep. (90:12) And what do you know what that difficult steep is? (90:13) It is freeing someone's neck from slavery;
Many opportunities are available for restoring freedom to slaves:
1- Allocating a portion of zakah (obligatory charity) funds to freeing slaves
2- The expiation for accidental killing
3- Zihar (a form of divorce that is forbidden)
4- Breaking vows
5- Having intercourse during the day in Ramadan
6- Muslims are also encouraged in general terms to free slaves for the sake of Allah.