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Qur'an, Hadith and

Scholars:Rape
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Contents
Qur'an

Hadith
Raping Prisoners of War

Raping Slaves

Punishments for Raping Slaves (Owned by

Someone Else)

Punishment for Rape of a Free Woman

Scholars
 Classical Views

Modern Views

See Also

References

Qur'an

They ask thee concerning women's

courses. Say: They are a hurt and a
pollution: So keep away from women in
their courses, and do not approach them
until they are clean. But when they have
purified themselves, ye may approach
them in any manner, time, or place
ordained for you by Allah.
"Your women are a tilth for you (to
cultivate) so go to your tilth as ye will,
and send (good deeds) before you for
your souls, and fear Allah, and know that
ye will (one day) meet Him. Give glad
tidings to believers, (O Muhammad)."
Qur'an 2:222-223

If ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal

justly with the orphans, Marry women of
your choice, Two or three or four; but if
ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal
justly (with them), then only one, or (a
captive) that your right hands possess.
Quran 4:3
"Also (prohibited are) women already
married, except those whom your right
hands possess: Thus hath Allah
ordained (Prohibitions) against you:
Except for these, all others are lawful,
provided ye seek (them in marriage) with
gifts from your property,- desiring
chastity, not lust, seeing that ye derive
benefit from them, give them their
dowers (at least) as prescribed; but if,
after a dower is prescribed, agree
Mutually (to vary it), there is no blame on
you, and Allah is All-knowing, All-wise."
Quran 4:24
Who abstain from sex, Except with those
joined to them in the marriage bond, or
(the captives) whom their right hands
possess,- for (in their case) they are free
from blame,
Qur'an 23:5-6

O Prophet! We have made lawful to thee

thy wives to whom thou hast paid their
dowers; and those whom thy right hand
possesses out of the prisoners of war
whom Allah has assigned to thee; and
daughters of thy paternal uncles and
aunts, and daughters of thy maternal
uncles and aunts, who migrated (from
Makka) with thee; and any believing
woman who dedicates her soul to the
Prophet if the Prophet wishes to wed
her;- this only for thee, and not for the
Believers (at large); We know what We
have appointed for them as to their
wives and the captives whom their right
hands possess;- in order that there
should be no difficulty for thee. And Allah
is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.
Quran 33:50

"Not so the worshippers, who are

steadfast in prayer, who set aside a due
portion of their wealth for the beggar and
 for the deprived, who truly believe in the
Day of Reckoning and dread the
punishment of their Lord (for none is
secure from the punishment of their
Lord); who restrain their carnal desire
(save with their wives and their slave
girls, for these are lawful to them: he that
lusts after other than these is a
transgressor..."
Qur'an 70:22-30

Hadith
Raping Prisoners of War
Narrated Ibn Muhairiz: I entered the
Mosque and saw Abu Said Al-Khudri and
sat beside him and asked him about Al-
Azl (i.e. coitus interruptus). Abu Said
said, "We went out with Allah's Apostle
for the Ghazwa of Banu Al-Mustaliq and
we received captives from among the
Arab captives and we desired women
and celibacy became hard on us and we
loved to do coitus interruptus. So when
we intended to do coitus interrupt us, we
said, 'How can we do coitus interruptus
before asking Allah's Apostle who is
present among us?" We asked (him)
about it and he said, 'It is better for you
not to do so, for if any soul (till the Day of
Resurrection) is predestined to exist, it
will exist."
Sahih Bukhari 5:59:459

Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (Allah her pleased

with him) reported that at the Battle of
Hanain Allah's Messenger (may peace be
upon him) sent an army to Autas and
encountered the enemy and fought with
them. Having overcome them and taken
them captives, the Companions of
Allah's Messenger (may peace te upon
him) seemed to refrain from having
intercourse with captive women because
of their husbands being polytheists.
Then Allah, Most High, sent down
regarding that:" And women already
married, except those whom your right
hands possess (iv. 24)" (i. e. they were
lawful for them when their 'Idda period
came to an end).
Sahih Muslim 8:3432

Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (Allah be pleased

with him) reported that Allah's Apostle
(may peace be upon him) sent a small
army. The rest of the hadith is the same
except this that he said: Except what
your right hands possessout of them are
lawful for you; and he did not mention"
when their 'idda period comes to an
end". This hadith has been reported on
the authority of AbuSa'id (al-Khudri)
(Allah be pleased with him) through
another chain of transmitters and the
words are: They took captives (women)
on the day of Autas who had their
husbands. They were afraid (to have
sexual intercourse with them) when this
verse was revealed:" And women already
married except those whom you right
hands posses" (iv. 24)
 Sahih Muslim 8:3433 , See also: Sahih Muslim
8:3433

"Abu Sirma said to Abu Sa'id al Khadri

(Allah he pleased with him): 0 Abu Sa'id,
did you hear Allah's Messenger (may
peace be upon him) mentioning al-'azl?
He said: Yes, and added: We went out
with Allah's Messenger (may peace be
upon him) on the expedition to the Bi'l-
Mustaliq and took captive some
excellent Arab women; and we desired
them, for we were suffering from the
absence of our wives, (but at the same
time) we also desired ransom for them.
So we decided to have sexual
intercourse with them but by observing
'azl (Interruptus Coitus - Withdrawing the
male sexual organ before emission of
semen to avoid-conception). But we
said: We are doing an act whereas Allah's
Messenger is amongst us; why not ask
him? So we asked Allah's Mes- senger
(may peace be upon him), and he said: It
does not matter if you do not do it, for
every soul that is to be born up to the
Day of Resurrection will be born."
Sahih Muslim 8:3371
"Abu Sa’id al-Khudri said: The Apostle of
Allah (may peace be upon him) sent a
military expedition to Awtas on the
occasion of the battle of Hunain. They
met their enemy and fought with them.
They defeated them and took them
captives. Some of the Companions of
the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon
him) were reluctant to have intercourse
with the female captives because of their
pagan husbands. So Allah, the Exalted,
sent down the Qur’anic verse: “And all
married women (are forbidden) unto you
save those (captives) whom your right
hands possess.” That is to say, they are
lawful for them when they complete their
waiting period."
Sunan Abu Dawud 2155 (Dar-us-Salam Ref)

Narrated Ruwayfi' ibn Thabit al-Ansari:

Should I tell you what I heard the Apostle
of Allah (peace be upon him) say on the
day of Hunayn: It is not lawful for a man
who believes in Allah and the last day to
water what another has sown with his
water (meaning intercourse with women
who are pregnant); it is not lawful for a
man who believes in Allah and the Last
Day to have intercourse with a captive
 woman till she is free from a menstrual
course; and it is not lawful for a man
who believes in Allah and the Last Day to
sell spoil till it is divided.
Sunan Abu Dawud 11:2153 , See also Abu
Dawud vol.2 no.2154

Raping Slaves

Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri: That while

he was sitting with the Prophet a man
from the Ansar came and said, "O Allah's
Apostle! We get slave girls from the war
captives and we love property; what do
you think about coitus interruptus?"
Allah's Apostle said, "Do you do that? It is
better for you not to do it, for there is no
soul which Allah has ordained to come
into existence but will be created."
Sahih Bukhari 8:77:600

Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri: that while

he was sitting with Allah's Apostle he
said, "O Allah's Apostle! We get female
captives as our share of booty, and we
are interested in their prices, what is your
opinion about coitus interrupt us?" The
Prophet said, "Do you really do that? It is
better for you not to do it. No soul that
which Allah has destined to exist, but will
surely come into existence.
Sahih Bukhari 3:34:432

Jabir (Allah be pleased with him)

reported that a man came to Allah's
Messenger (may peace be upon him)
and said: I have a slave-girl who is our
servant and she carries water for us and
I have intercourse with her, but I do not
want her to conceive. He said: Practise
'azl, if you so like, but what is decreed for
her will come to her. The person stayed
back (for some time) and then came and
said: The girl has become pregnant,
 whereupon he said:I told you what was
decreed for her would come to her.
Sunan Abu Dawud 8:3383

Narrated Mu'awiyah ibn Haydah: I said:

Apostle of Allah, from whom should we
conceal our private parts and to whom
can we show? He replied: conceal your
private parts except from your wife and
from whom your right hands possess
(slave-girls)...
Sunan Abu Dawud 31:4006

Punishments for Raping Slaves

(Owned by Someone Else)
Apologists point to a certain incident
narrated in Abu Dawud and Nasai'i against
rape of slaves. However, these hadiths
concern slaves owned by someone other
than the rapist, and reparations is due to
the owner in the form of a replacement
slave or the amount by which the slave's
value has been depreciated. The
authenticity of hadiths concerning this
incident are graded da'if (weak) by al-
Albani, while Dar-us-Salam grade them
hasan (good).
 It was narrated that Salamah bin Al-
Muhabbaq said: "The Prophet passed
judgment concerning a man who had
intercourse with his wife's slave woman:
'If he forced her, then she is free, and he
has to give her mistress a similar slave
as a replacement; if she obeyed him in
that, then she belongs to him, and he has
to give her mistress a similar slave as a
replacement.'"
Sunan an-Nasa'i 4:26:3365

The same hadith is found in Sunan Abu

Dawud 38:4445 .
In another version of the incident, the
rapist of his wife's slave is to be punished
by stoning.

It was narrated from An-Nu'man bin

Bashir that the Prophet said, concerning
a man who had intercourse with his
wife's slave woman: "If she let him do
that, I will flog him with one hundred
stripes , and if she did not let him, I will
stone him (to death)."
Sunan an-Nasa'i 4:26:3362

The same hadith in found in Sunan Abu

Dawud 38:4444 .
Additionally, Malik in his Muwatta is
reported as commenting:

Malik related to me from Ibn Shihab that

Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan gave a
judgment that the rapist had to pay the
raped woman her bride- price. Yahya
said that he heard Malik say, "What is
done in our community about the man
who rapes a woman, virgin or non-virgin,
if she is free, is that he must pay the
bride-price of the like of her. If she is a
slave, he must pay what he has
diminished of her worth. The hadd-
 punishment in such cases is applied to
the rapist, and there is no punishment
applied to the raped woman. If the rapist
is a slave, that is against his master
unless he wishes to surrender him.
Al-Muwatta 36:14

The mention of paying the depreciation in

her value implies that as with the other
hadiths, this concerns only slaves owned
by someone else rather than by the rapist.

Punishment for Rape of a Free

Woman
Narrated 'Alqamah bin Wa'il Al-Kindi:

From his father: "A women went out

during the time of the Prophet (‫ )ﷺ‬to go
to Salat, but she was caught by a man
and he had relations with her, so she
screamed and he left. Then a man came
across her and she said: 'That man has
done this and that to me', then she came
across a group of Emigrants (Muhajirin)
and she said: 'That man did this and that
to me.' They went to get the man she
thought had relations with her, and they
brought him to her. She said: 'Yes, that's
him.' So they brought him to the
Messenger of Allah (‫)ﷺ‬, and when he
ordered that he be stoned, the man who
had relations with her, said: 'O
Messenger of Allah, I am the one who
had relations with her.' So he said to her:
'Go, for Allah has forgiven you.' Then he
said some nice words to the man (who
was brought). And he said to the man
who had relations with her: 'Stone him.'
Then he said: 'He has repented a
repentance that, if the inhabitants of Al-
Madinah had repented with, it would
have been accepted from them.'"
 Jami` at-Tirmidhi 3:15:1454

Scholars
Classical Views

Also (forbidden are) women already

married, except those whom your right
hands possess. The Ayah means, you
are prohibited from marrying women
who are already married, except those
whom your right hands possess, except
those whom you acquire through war, for
you are allowed such women after
making sure they are not pregnant. Imam
Ahmad recorded that Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri
said, "We captured some women from
the area of Awtas who were already
married, and we disliked having sexual
relations with them because they already
had husbands. So, we asked the Prophet
about this matter, and this Ayah was
revealed, Also (forbidden are) women
already married, except those whom
your right hands possess. Consequently,
we had sexual relations with these
women." This is the wording collected by
At-Tirmidhi An-Nasa'i, Ibn Jarir and
Muslim in his Sahih.
The Prohibition of Taking Two Sisters as Rival
Wives (Qur'an 4:24)
Tafsir Ibn Kathir

And, forbidden to you are, wedded

women, those with spouses, that you
should marry them before they have left
their spouses, be they Muslim free
women or not; save what your right
hands own, of captured [slave] girls,
whom you may have sexual intercourse
with, even if they should have spouses
among the enemy camp, but only after
they have been absolved of the
possibility of pregnancy [after the
completion of one menstrual cycle]...
Qur'an 4:24
Tafsir al-Jalalayn

And all married women (are forbidden

unto you save those (captives) whom
your right hands possess of captives,
even if they have husbands in the Abode
of War, after ascertaining that they are
not pregnant, by waiting for the lapse of
one period of menstruation....
Qur'an 4:24
Tafsir 'Ibn Abbas
And all married women (are forbidden
unto you) save those (captives) whom
your right hands possess… [4:24].
Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Rahman al-
Bunani informed us through Abu Sa‘id al-
Khudri who said: “We had captured
female prisoners of war on the day of
Awtas and because they were already
married we disliked having any physical
relationship with them. Then we asked
the Prophet, Allah bless him and give
him peace, about them. And the verse,
And all married women (are forbidden
unto you) save those (captives) whom
your right hands possess, was then
revealed, as a result of which we
consider it lawful to have a physical
relationship with them”. Ahmad ibn
Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn al-Harith
informed us through ‘Abd Allah ibn
Muhammad ibn Ja‘far through Abu
Yahya through Sahl ibn ‘Uthman through
‘Abd al-Rahim through Ash‘ath ibn
Sawwar through ‘Uthman al-Batti
through Abu’l-Khalil through Abu Sa‘id
who said: “When the Messenger of Allah,
Allah bless him and give him peace,
captured the people of Awtas as
prisoners of war we said: ‘O Prophet of
Allah! How can we possibly have
physical relationships with women
whose lineage and husband we know
very well?’ And so this verse was
revealed: And all married women (are
forbidden unto you) save those
(captives) whom your right hands
possess”. Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn
Ibrahim al-Farisi informed us through
Muhammad ibn ‘Isa ibn ‘Amrawayh
through Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn
Sufyan through Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj
through ‘Ubayd Allah ibn ‘Umar al-
Qawariri through Yazid ibn Zuray‘through
Sa‘id ibn Abi ‘Arubah through Qatadah
through Abu Salih Abu Khalil through
Abu ‘Alqamah al-Hashimi through Abu
Sa‘id al-Khudri who reported that on the
day of Hunayn the Messenger of Allah,
Allah bless him and give him peace, sent
an army to Awtas. This army met the
enemy in a battle, defeated them and
captured many female prisoners from
them. But some of the Companions of
the Messenger, Allah bless him and give
him peace, were uncomfortable about
having physical relations with these
prisoners because they had husbands
who were idolaters, and so Allah, exalted
is He, revealed about this: And all
married women (are forbidden unto you)
save those (captives) whom your right
hands possess.
Qur'an 4:24
Tafsir al-Wahidi

But not if she be refractory.—If a wife be

disobedient or refractory and go abroad
without her husband’s consent, she is
not entitled to any support from him,
until she return and make submission,
because the rejection of the matrimonial
restraint in this instance originates with
her; but when she returns home, she is
then subject to it, for which reason she
again becomes entitled to her support as
before. It is otherwise where a woman,
residing in the house of her husband,
refuses to admit him to the conjugal
embrace, as she is entitled to
maintenance, notwithstanding her
opposition, because being then in his
power, he may, if he please, enjoy her by
force.
The Hidaya (ref. 11, p. 141)
Sheikh Burhanuddin Abi Al Hasan Ali
 Marghinani

A man may view his wife or his slave in

any part.—It is lawful for a man to look at
his slave girl in any part, provided he be
not related him within the prohibited
degrees; and also at his wife in any part,
even in the pudenda, if he pleases;
because the Prophet said, “shut your
eyes from all excepting your wives and
female slaves.” Nevertheless, it is most
becoming that a husband and wife
should neither of them look at the genital
parts of the other, as the Prophet gas
said, “when ye copulate with women of
your own tribe, you must conceal as
much s possible; and be not then naked,
as that savours too much of the custom
of asses.”
The Hidaya p.599. Archived at [2]

A man may gratify his passion with his

female slave in whatever way he
pleases- It is lawful for a man to perform
the act of Azil (i.e. coitus interruptus)
with his female slave without her
consent, whereas he cannot lawfully do
so by his wife unless with her
permission. –The reason of this is that
the Prophet has forbidden the act of Azil
with a free woman without her consent
but has permitted it to a master in the
case of his female slave. Besides, carnal
connexion is the right of a free woman
for the gratifying of her passion, and the
propagation of children (whence it is that
a wife is at liberty to reject a husband
who is an eunuch or impotent); whereas
a slave possesses no such right.—A
man, therefore, is not at liberty to injure
the right of his wife, whereas a master is
absolute with respect to his slave. If,
also, a man should marry the female
slave of another, he must not perform
the act of Azil with her without the
consent of her master.
The Hidaya p.600. Archived at [3]

Modern Views

Question: Is it permissible for a man to

force his wife or slave to have
intercourse if she refuses?.

Answer: Praise be to Allaah.

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.

Al-Bukhaari (3237) and Muslim (1436)

narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah
be pleased with him) said: The
Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “If
a man calls his wife to his bed and she
refuses, and he spends the night angry
with her, the angels curse her until
morning.”

If she refuses with no excuse, she is

disobeying and is being defiant
(nushooz), and he is no longer obliged to
spend on her and clothe her.

The husband should admonish her and

remind her of the punishment of Allaah,
and forsake her in her bed. He also has
the right to hit her, in a manner that does
not cause injury. Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):

“As to those women on whose part you

see ill-conduct, admonish them (first),
(next) refuse to share their beds, (and
last) beat them (lightly, if it is useful); but
if they return to obedience, seek not
against them means (of annoyance).
Surely, Allaah is Ever Most High, Most
Great”

[al-Nisa’ 4:34]

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may

Allaah have mercy on him) was asked
what a husband should do if his wife
refuses him when he asks for intimacy.

He replied:

It is not permissible for her to rebel

against him or to withhold herself from
him, rather if she refuses him and
persists in doing so, he may hit her in a
manner that does not cause injury, and
she is not entitled to spending or a share
of his time [in the case of plural
marriage].” Majmoo’ al-Fataawa, 32/279.

And he was asked about a man who has

a wife who is rebellious and refuses
intimacy – does she forfeit the right to
maintenance and clothing, and what
should she do?

He replied:
She forfeits her right to maintenance and
clothing if she does not let him be
intimate with her. He has the right to hit
her if she persists in being defiant. It is
not permissible for her to refuse
intimacy if he asks for that, rather she is
disobeying Allaah and His Messenger
(by refusing). In al-Saheeh it says: “If a
man calls his wife to his bed and she
refuses, the One Who is in heaven will be
angry with her until morning comes.”

From Majmoo’ al-Fataawa, 32/278. The

hadeeth was narrated by Muslim, 1736.
So the wife should be admonished first,
and warned against defiance (nushooz)
and of the anger of Allaah and the curse
of the angels. If she does not respond,
then the husband should forsake her in
her bed, and if she does not respond to
that, then he may hit her in a manner that
does not cause injury. If none of these
steps are effective, then he may stop
spending on her maintenance and
clothing, and he has the right to divorce
her or to allow her to separate from him
by khula’ in return for some financial
settlement, such as giving up the mahr.
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.

And Allaah knows best.

Husband forcing his wife to have intercourse
Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 33597

Question: Could you please clarify for me

something that has been troubling me
for a while. This concerns the right of a
man to have sexual relations with slave
girls. Is this so? If it is then is the man
allowed to have relations with her as well
his wife/wives. Also, is it true that a man
can have sexual relations with any
number of slave girls and with their own
wife/wives also? I have read that Hazrat
Ali had 17 slave girls and Hazrat Umar
also had many. Surely if a man were
allowed this freedom then this could
lead to neglecting the wife's needs.
Could you also tell clarify wether the wife
has got any say in this matter.

Answer: Praise be to Allaah.

Islam allows a man to have intercourse
with his slave woman, whether he has a
wife or wives or he is not married.

A slave woman with whom a man has

intercourse is known as a sariyyah
(concubine) from the word sirr, which
means marriage.

This is indicated by the Qur’aan and

Sunnah, and this was done by the
Prophets. Ibraaheem (peace be upon
him) took Haajar as a concubine and she
bore him Ismaa’eel (may peace be upon
them all).
Our Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) also did that, as did
the Sahaabah, the righteous and the
scholars. The scholars are unanimously
agreed on that and it is not permissible
for anyone to regard it as haraam or to
forbid it. Whoever regards that as
haraam is a sinner who is going against
the consensus of the scholars.

Allaah says (interpretation of the

meaning):

“And if you fear that you shall not be able

to deal justly with the orphan girls then
marry (other) women of your choice, two
or three, or four; but if you fear that you
shall not be able to deal justly (with
them), then only one or (slaves) that your
right hands possess. That is nearer to
prevent you from doing injustice”

[al-Nisa’ 4:3] What is meant by “or

(slaves) that your right hands possess”
is slave women whom you own.

And Allaah says (interpretation of the

meaning):
“O Prophet (Muhammad)! Verily, We have
made lawful to you your wives, to whom
you have paid their Mahr (bridal‑money
given by the husband to his wife at the
time of marriage), and those (slaves)
whom your right hand possesses —
whom Allaah has given to you, and the
daughters of your ‘Amm (paternal
uncles) and the daughters of your
‘Ammaat (paternal aunts) and the
daughters of your Khaal (maternal
uncles) and the daughters of your
Khaalaat (maternal aunts) who migrated
(from Makkah) with you, and a believing
woman if she offers herself to the
Prophet, and the Prophet wishes to
marry her a privilege for you only, not for
the (rest of) the believers. Indeed We
know what We have enjoined upon them
about their wives and those (slaves)
whom their right hands possess, in order
that there should be no difficulty on you.
And Allaah is Ever Oft‑Forgiving, Most
Merciful”

[al-Ahzaab 33:50]

“And those who guard their chastity (i.e.

private parts from illegal sexual acts).
Except from their wives or the (women
slaves) whom their right hands possess
for (then) they are not blameworthy.

But whosoever seeks beyond that, then it

is those who are trespassers” [al-Ma’aarij
70:29-31]

Al-Tabari said:

Allaah says, “And those who guard their

chastity” i.e., protect their private parts
from doing everything that Allaah has
forbidden, but they are not to blame if
they do not guard their chastity from
their wives or from the female slaves
whom their rights hands possess.

Tafseer al-Tabari, 29/84

Ibn Katheer said:

Taking a concubine as well as a wife is

permissible according to the law of
Ibraaheem (peace be upon him).
Ibraaheem did that with Haajar, when he
took her as a concubine when he was
married to Saarah.

Tafseer Ibn Katheer, 1/383

And Ibn Katheer also said:

The phrase “and those (slaves) whom

your right hand possesses — whom
Allaah has given to you” [al-Ahzaab
33:50] means, it is permissible for you
take concubines from among those
whom you seized as war booty. He took
possession of Safiyyah and Juwayriyah
and he freed them and married them; he
took possession of Rayhaanah bint
Sham’oon al-Nadariyyah and Maariyah al-
Qibtiyyah, the mother of his son
Ibraaheem (peace be upon them both),
and they were among his concubines,
may Allaah be pleased with them both.

Tafseer Ibn Katheer, 3/500

The scholars are unanimously agreed

that it is permissible.

Ibn Qudaamah said:

There is no dispute (among the scholars)

that it is permissible to take concubines
and to have intercourse with one's slave
woman, because Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
“And those who guard their chastity (i.e.
private parts from illegal sexual acts).

Except from their wives or the (women

slaves) whom their right hands possess
for (then) they are not blameworthy.”

[al-Ma’aarij 70:29-30]

Maariyah al-Qibtiyyah was the umm

walad (a slave woman who bore her
master a child) of the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him),
and she was the mother of Ibraaheem,
the son of the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him), of
whom he said, “Her son set her free.”
Haajar, the mother of Isma’eel (peace be
upon him), was the concubine of
Ibraaheem the close friend (khaleel) of
the Most Merciful (peace be upon him).
‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab (may Allaah be
pleased with him) had a number of slave
women who bore him children, to each
of whom he left four hundred in his will.
‘Ali (may Allaah be pleased with him) had
slave women who bore him children, as
did many of the Sahaabah. ‘Ali ibn al-
Husayn, al-Qaasim ibn Muhammad and
Saalim ibn ‘Abd-Allaah were all born from
slave mothers

Al-Mughni, 10/441

Al-Shaafa’i (may Allaah have mercy on

him) said:

Allaah says (interpretation of the

meaning):

“And those who guard their chastity (i.e.

private parts from illegal sexual acts).

Except from their wives or the (women

slaves) whom their right hands possess
for (then) they are not blameworthy.”

[al-Ma’aarij 70:29-30]

The Book of Allaah indicates that the

sexual relationships that are permitted
are only of two types, either marriage or
those (women slaves) whom one’s right
hand possesses.

Al-Umm, 5/43.

The wife has no right to object to her

husband owning female slaves or to his
having intercourse with them.
And Allaah knows best.
Ruling on having intercourse with a slave
woman when one has a wife
Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 10382, November 24,
2005

Question: Hadith 3.718 : I saw Abu Said

and asked him about coitus interrupts.
Abu Said said, "We went with Allah's
Apostle, in the Ghazwa of Bani Al-
Mustaliq and we captured some of the
'Arabs as captives, and the long
separation from our wives was pressing
us hard and we wanted to practice coitus
interruptus. We asked Allah's Apostle
(whether it was permissible). He said, "It
is better for you not to do so. No soul,
(that Allah has) destined to exist, up to
the Day of Resurrection, but will
definitely come into existence."

Does this mean that the Companions of

the Prophet (SAW) didn't commit
adultery when they practiced 'azl with the
captive girls?.

Answer: Praise be to Allaah.

Firstly:
This hadeeth was narrated by al-
Bukhaari (2542) from Ibn Muhayreez
who said: I saw Abu Sa’eed (may Allaah
be pleased with him) and I asked him. He
said: We went out with the Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) on the campaign of Banu al-
Mustaliq, and we captured some
prisoners from among the Arabs. We
desired women and the period of
abstention was hard for us, and we
wanted to engage in ‘azl (coitus
interruptus). We asked the Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) and he said, “There is no point
in doing that, for there is no soul which
Allaah has decreed should exist until the
Day of Resurrection but it will come into
existence.” According to another report,
They captured some female prisoners
and wanted to be intimate with them
without them becoming pregnant. They
asked the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) about ‘azl and he
said, “There is no point in doing that, for
Allaah has decreed who should be
created until the Day of Resurrection.”
This hadeeth was also narrated by
Muslim (1438), whose version says: We
captured some women of the Arabs and
we had been abstinent for a long time;
and we wanted to be able to sell them,
but we wanted to engage in intimacy
with coitus interruptus. We said, “Shall
we do that when the Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) is among us without asking
him about it?” So we asked the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) and he
said, “There is no point in doing that, for
Allaah has not decreed that any soul
should be created until the Day of
Resurrection but it will come into
existence.”

It may be understood from the hadeeth

that those who wanted to engage in ‘azl
did so for two reasons: they did not want
the women to become pregnant, and
they wanted to be able to sell them – if a
slave woman got pregnant she could not
be sold.

It may also be understood that ‘azl

(coitus interruptus) does not change
anything. If Allaah decrees that a child
should be born, water (semen) will come
out before the man realizes it.

Secondly:

Allaah has permitted intimacy with a

slave woman if the man owns her. This
is not regarded as adultery as suggested
in the question. Allaah says, describing
the believers (interpretation of the
meaning):

“those who guard their chastity (i.e.

private parts, from illegal sexual acts)
Except from their wives or (the slaves)
that their right hands possess,__ for then,
they are free from blame”

[al-Mu’minoon 23:5]

What is meant by “those whom their

right hands possess” is slave women or
concubines. See also question no.
10382, 12562.

Once this is understood, it should be

noted that what is suggested in the
question, that this was zina, never
occurred to the Sahaabah (may Allaah
be pleased with them). What they were
asking about was the ruling on practicing
‘azl with the slave women whom they
had acquired in the course of jihad.

Moreover ‘azl may be done with a

concubine or with a wife, if she agrees to
that. See question no. 11885.

And Allaah knows best.

Intercourse with a slave woman is not regarded
as zina (adultery)
Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 20802

[It is] un-Islamic to stop husbands from

having sex with their wives even if they
were doing so without their consent.[1]
Dr Aamir Liaqat Hussain, Pakistan's minister of
state for religious affairs

A husband has the right to be intimate

with his wife and the wife must obey. If
the wife refuses, then the rule of 'nusyuz'
(disobedient) applies and the husband is
not required to provide financial
assistance to her.[2]
Malaysia's Perak state mufti Harussani Zakaria

It is clear that offensive jihad, which I

was talking about in that interview, that
its purpose is to call people to Islam, and
it is not permissible for anyone to hide
the divine guidance from the people,
under any name. They rejected Islam and
the jizya, that's it. The Prophet (PBUH)
said: "If they refuse, then seek Allah's aid
and fight them." If fighting occurs, there
is going to be a winner and a loser. If the
army of the Muslims is victorious, it will
take spoils. Taking spoils is a fixed ruling
in the Qur'an. Allah permitted it at the
day of the Battle of Badr, as it is
(recorded) in Surat al-Anfal. Allah
Almighty said: "And know that out of all
the booty that ye may acquire (in war), a
fifth share is assigned to Allah,- and to
the Messenger, and to near relatives,
orphans, the needy, and the wayfarer,- if
ye do believe in Allah and in the
revelation We sent down to Our servant
on the Day of Testing,- the Day of the
meeting of the two forces. For Allah hath
power over all things" [Qur'an 8:41].

This (position) on spoils is clear. There is

also the saying in the two Sahihs [Sahih
al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim] from Abi-
Hurayra, the first of which is, "One
among the prophets (PBUH) raided..." In
the other hadith from Yush'a bin Nun, the
Prophet (PBUH) said, "When Allah saw
our weakness, he made it permissible for
us," meaning spoils. The Prophet (PBUH)
said, "Spoils were not permitted for any
masters besides you." Allah Almighty
forbade (the taking of) spoils for all
nations before us. He permitted it on the
day of the Battle of Badr, as agreed to by
all scholars. Not a single Muslim scholar
has a problem with this.

'Spoils' refers to what? It refers to people

and wealth. The people are those who
are taken prisoner. I want to say that it is
not at all permissible to take prisoners
from among Muslims, even if they are
heretics, because the rule for Muslims is
that they are free, and not prisoners.
Jihad, as I stated in the beginning, is
between Muslims and non-Muslims,
from among the infidels. But if two
Muslims fought each other, like from Iraq
and Iran for example; if Iraq invaded Iran
to occupy it, it would not be permissible
for an Iraqi man to take a Shi'ite woman
captive, because she is Muslim, even
though she's a heretic. Likewise if Iran
invaded Iraq, it would not be permissible
for one of their men to take a Muslim
woman captive, because she is free.

Therefore jihad is only between Muslims

and infidels. That between Muslims and
Muslims is called oppression, or fighting:
"If two parties among the believers fall
into a quarrel..." [Qur'an 49:9]. They are
called 'believers,' and this name is not
taken from them, even though they are
fighting. "If one of them transgresses
beyond bounds against the other, then
fight ye (all) against the one that
transgresses..." Here they are called
transgressors, but the name of believers
is still not taken away from them. In the
verse directly following this one, Allah
Almighty says: "The believers are but a
single brotherhood..." They were
brothers, even though a party of them
transgressed against the other, and
some of them fought each other. But the
name of believers was not taken from
them.

Do you understand what I'm saying?

Spoils, slaves, and prisoners are only to
be taken in war between Muslims and
infidels. Muslims in the past conquered,
invaded, and took over countries. This is
agreed to by all scholars--there is no
disagreement on this from any of them,
from the smallest to the largest, on the
issue of taking spoils and prisoners. The
prisoners and spoils are distributed
among the fighters, which includes men,
women, children, wealth, and so on.

When a slave market is erected, which is

a market in which are sold slaves and
sex-slaves, which are called in the Qur'an
by the name milk al-yamin, "that which
your right hands possess" [Qur'an 4:24].
This is a verse from the Qur'an which is
still in force, and has not been
abrogated. The milk al-yamin are the sex-
slaves. You go to the market, look at the
sex-slave, and buy her. She becomes like
your wife, (but) she doesn't need a
(marriage) contract or a divorce like a
free woman, nor does she need a wali.
All scholars agree on this point--there is
no disagreement from any of them.

These are called slaves. The Prophet

(PBUH) talked about them in the hadith
narrated by al-Bukhari in his Book of
Jihad: "Allah is delighted at a people who
enter the Garden in chains." Also as
narrated by Abu-Dawud: "They are led to
the Garden in chains." Naturally, many
people might not understand someone
being jerked along in chains in order to
enter the Garden. This is because all
people, even the worst of the
unbelievers, say the garden is for them
and no others. They run to the Garden
without anybody pulling them in chains.
The meaning of the hadith is this: these
slaves were in a religion other than
Islam. However, when they were
conquered, and defeated, and taken
prisoner, they came to live in the land of
Islam. Then when they witnessed the
justice, compassion, and mercy of Islam,
they became Muslims. These did not
convert to Islam except in the chains of
war. If they had not been chained, bound,
and had their freedom taken from them,
they would not have converted to Islam.
Therefore this hadith is referring to these
slaves.
I am very shocked and surprised at those
who say that we permit slavery. We don't
call people to become slaves. In fact,
there are vows to free the necks (i.e.
slaves). The same Islam which permits
us to take slaves, also urges us to free
their necks.
...

When I want a sex slave, I just go to the

market and choose the woman I like and
purchase her. I choose the man I like,
one with strong muscles, or if I want a
boy to work in the house, and so forth. I
choose one, and pay him a wage. I
employ him in a variety of different tasks,
then I sell him afterwards. Now, the
country that I entered and took captive
its men and women--does it not also
have money, gold, and silver? Is that not
money? When I say that jihad--offensive
jihad--with the well-known conditions
that I already mentioned from the hadith
of the Prophet (PBUH), from the hadith
of Burayda in Sahih Muslim, the coffers
of the Muslims were full. Would
someone who is pious and intelligent--
would he say that this is a type of
poverty? Or that it is a type of wealth?
No--this will fill the coffers of the
Muslims with riches and wealth, but as
we said, with the recognized conditions.
"When I want a sex slave, I just go to the market
and choose the woman I like and purchase her"
Shaykh Abu-Ishaq al-Huwayni, al-Hikma TV, May
22, 2011

In the "Jihads" (Islamic wars) that took

place, women were also, at times, taken
as prisoners of war by the Muslim
warriors. These women captives used to
be distributed as part of the booty
among the soldiers, after their return to
Islamic territory. Each soldier was then
entitled to have relations ONLY with the
slave girl over whom he was given the
RIGHT OF OWNERSHIP and NOT with
those slave girls that were not in his
possession. This RIGHT OF OWNERSHIP
was given to him by the "Ameerul-
Mu'mineen" (Head of the Islamic state.)
Due to this right of ownership, it became
lawful for the owner of a slave girl to
have intercourse with her.

It may, superficially, appear distasteful to

copulate with a woman who is not a
man's legal wife, but once Shariah makes
something lawful, we have to accept it
as lawful, whether it appeals to our taste,
or not; and whether we know its
underlying wisdom or not. It is necessary
for a Muslim to be acquainted with the
laws of Shariah, but it is not necessary
for him to delve into each law in order to
find the underlying wisdom of these laws
because knowledge of the wisdom of
some of the laws may be beyond his
puny comprehension. Allah Ta'ala has
said in the Holy Quraan: "Wa maa
ooteetum min al-ilm illaa qaleelan" which
means, more or less, that, "You have
been given a very small portion of
knowledge". Hence, if a person fails to
comprehend the underlying wisdom of
any law of Shariah, he cannot regard it as
a fault of Shariah (Allah forbid), on the
contrary, it is the fault of his own
perception and lack of understanding,
because no law of Shariah is
contradictory to wisdom.

Nevertheless, the wisdom underlying the

permission granted by Shariah to
copulate with a slave woman is as
follows: The LEGAL possession that a
Muslim receives over a slave woman
from the "Ameerul-Mu'mineen" (the
Islamic Head of State) gives him legal
credence to have coition with the slave
woman in his possession, just as the
marriage ceremony gives him legal
credence to have coition with his wife. In
other words, this LEGAL POSSESSION is,
in effect, a SUBSTITUTE of the
MARRIAGE CEREMONY. A free woman
cannot be 'possessed', bought or sold
like other possessions; therefore Shariah
instituted a 'marriage ceremony' in which
affirmation and consent takes place,
which gives a man the right to copulate
with her. On the other hand, a slave girl
can be possessed and even bought and
sold, thus, this right of possession,
substituting as a marriage ceremony,
entitles the owner to copulate with her. A
similar example can be found in the
slaughtering of animals; that after a
formal slaughtering process, in which
the words, "Bismillahi Allahu Akbar" are
recited, goats, cows, etc.; become
"Halaal" and lawful for consumption,
whereas fish becomes "Halaal" merely
through 'possession' which substitutes
for the slaughtering.

In other words, just as legal possession

of a fish that has been fished out of the
water, makes it Halaal for human
consumption without the initiation of a
formal slaughtering process; similarly
legal possession of a slave woman
made her Halaal for the purpose of
coition with her owner without the
initiation of a formal marriage ceremony.
"Recently I saw a question on the status of
women taken as prisoners during Jihad"
(archived from the original )
Mufti Ebrahim Desai, Ask-Imam.com, Fatwa No.
10896, http://www.webcitation.org/query?
url=http%3A%2F%2Fweb.archive.org%2Fweb%2
F20071213134624%2Fhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.isl
am.tc%2Fask-
imam%2Fview.php%3Fq%3D10896&date=2015-
02-20 .

"Save those whom your right hands own"

signifies "such married women as shall
come in your possession as prisoners of
war". Such women, when not taken back
on payment of ransom or through
negotiation, are lawful as wives, even
though their previous marriage has not
been formally dissolved, provided the
infidel woman becomes a Muslim.
Qur'an 4:24
Pooya/M.A. Ali

One question that still remains is

whether slavery still legally prevails
anywhere in the Islamic world and
whether it can be successfully
implemented in this age…. Firstly, the
prisoners have to be captured in 'Jihaad'
in the true sense of the word.…..
According to Islamic Law, captive female
prisoners are also part and parcel of the
booty. One fifth of the booty has to be
first distributed to the needy, orphans,
etc. The remaining four-fifths should
then be distributed among the soldiers
who participated in the war. The
distribution can only take effect after the
booty is brought into Islamic territory.
The Ameerul-Mu'mineen (Head of the
Islamic State) remains the guardian of
the female prisoners until he allocates
them to the soldiers. Only after a soldier
has been allotted a slave girl, and made
the owner of her, will she become his
lawful possession. After she spends a
period called 'Istibraa', which is the
elapse of one menstrual period, it
becomes permissible for her owner to
have relations with her.
"What is a slave girls in islam?" (archived from
the original )
Mufti Ebrahim Desai, Ask-Imam.com, Fatwa No.
14421, http://www.webcitation.org/query?
url=https%3A%2F%2Fweb.archive.org%2Fweb%
2F20101027002420%2Fhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.i
slam.tc%2Fcgi-
bin%2Faskimam%2Fask.pl%3Fq%3D14421%26a
ct%3Dview&date=2015-02-20 .

That is, those women who become

prisoners of war, while their unbelieving
husbands are left behind in the War
Zone, are not unlawful because their
marriage ties are broken by the fact that
they have come from the War Zone into
the Islamic Zone. It is lawful to marry
such women, and it is also lawful for
those, in whose possession they are, to
have sexual relations with them. There
is, however, a difference of opinion as to
whether such a woman is lawful, if her
husband is also taken a prisoner along
with her. Imam Abu Hanifah and those of
his way of thinking are of the opinion
that the marriage tie of such a pair would
remain intact but Imam Malik and Shafi
'i, are of the opinion that it would also
break.
Qur'an 4:24
Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, Tafhim al-Qur'an

Question: A 14 yr old girl has accused

her father of sexually abuse since the
age of 9 and also of rape. The mother of
the girl says the father has admitted the
abuse but not the rape. The father is now
flatly denying that anything happened
and says the mother has misunderstood
what he said. The girl is still adamant
that it all took place and by the way the
man is on bail. How would this be dealt
with according to Islamic law?

Answer: All perfect praise be to Allaah,

The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that
there is none worthy of worship except
Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave
and Messenger.

It is an abominable sin that a father

sexually abuses his daughter and it is
even more abominable if he rapes her. If
he does so with any girl, it is strictly
forbidden, let alone him doing so with his
own daughter.
However, it is not permissible to accuse
the father of rape without evidence.
Indeed, the Sharee’ah put some special
conditions for proving Zina (fornication
or adultery) that are not required in case
of other crimes. The crime of Zina is not
confirmed except if the fornicator admits
it, or with the testimony of four
trustworthy men, while the testimony of
women is not accepted.

Hence, the statement of this girl or the

statement of her mother in itself does
not Islamically prove anything against
the father, especially that the latter
denies it.

Therefore, if this daughter has no

evidence to prove that her accusations
are true, she should not have claimed
that she was raped by her father and she
should not have taken him to the court.
But if what she says is true, then she has
the right to ask for protection from him
even by taking him to the court so that
he would not continue committing this
evil or practice more sinful acts with her.
In this case, she would claim his
dissoluteness and her fear of his evil so
that she will be kept apart from him.

Allaah Knows best.

A daughter accusing her father of sexual abuse
Islamweb, Fatwa No. 156817, May 18, 2011

See Also
Rape - A hub page that leads to other
articles related to Rape
Violence Against Women (Primary
Sources) - A hub page that leads to
other articles related to Violence
Against Women (Primary Sources)
References
1. No, it is unIslamic to stop husbands:
Aamir - Daily Times, August 26, 2006.
Copy available at [1]
2. Row erupts in Malaysia over marital
rape - Agence France-Presse, August 23,
2004

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