Slavery in islam

Slavery was practiced in pre-Islamic Arabia, as in the rest of the ancient and early medieval world. The vast majority of slaves in Western Arabia were sold in Mecca. Slaves were mainly of Ethiopian origin (habash). Among the slaves there were also a few representatives of the white race, which were brought by Arab caravaners or Bedouin invaders. In Arabic literature, the story of the poet warrior son of the Bedouin and the Ethiopian slave of Cantara is known, who must perform several feats before his father agrees to legitimize him and give him the right to inherit ^[4] .

In accordance with the Middle Eastern tradition, in pre-Islamic times, slaves engaged in prostitution for the benefit of their masters, which is clearly prohibited in the Qur'an: “ Let those who find chastity not be able to marry until Allah enrich them from His mercy. If the slaves that your right hands possessed want to receive a letter about the amount of the ransom, then give them such a letter, if you find good qualities in them, and present them from the property of Allah that He gave you. Do not force your slaves to fornication for the sake of gaining perishable blessings of worldly life, if they wish to observe chastity. If anyone compels them to this, then Allah after compelling them will be Forgiving, Merciful ” ^{[4] [5]} .

In the Qur'an, slaves are called 'abd or ama (slave), as well as abd mamluk (slave-prisoner of war). Unlike a slave by birth ( kin ), a slave-prisoner of war can be redeemed. The Qur'an also states that a Muslim slave is better than a free polytheist, it is better to marry a Muslim slave than a free polytheist ^[6] . Compared to free Muslims, Muslim slaves are twice as bad and just as less responsible for their actions ^{[7] [8]} .

According to the Qur'an, the liberation of slaves is considered a meritorious act. The liberation of the slave and the help "to those with hearts drawn to redeem slaves" ^[9] is considered a charitable deed ^[10] . It can be used as an atonement for the commission of serious crimes such as unintentional murder (the Koran says “a believing slave”) ^[11] and perjury ^{[12] [13]} . The owner should easily give his slave a "letter of release on freedom" ^[5] . A slave is mentioned among those who should be given “good” ( ikhsanan ) ^{[14] [15]} .

Legal marriage is permitted for both slaves and slaves. The moral duty of the owner is to embrace his “virtuous” slaves of both sexes ^[16] . If necessary, free Muslims are allowed to marry slaves ^{[6] [7]} . A slave who has received consent from the owner to marry a free man has the right to a “reasonable dowry” from her husband. A married slave is obliged to remain faithful to her husband, but if she commits adultery, then, having the status of a slave, she will bear half the punishment intended for a free married woman ^{[15] [7]} . Finally, the Qur'an protects the life of a slave according to the law of retaliation ( kisas ), but according to the formula “free for free, slave for slave”, which shows that the principle of inequality in criminal cases is maintained ^{[15] [17]} .

According to Islamic law, all Muslims are initially free ( al-asl huva al-khurriya ). It is impossible to convert a Muslim into slavery in Muslim possessions, including for debts. According to Hanafi law, a baby of unknown origin (foundling), found in an area inhabited by Muslims, is considered Muslim and free. Moreover, the adoption of Islam does not automatically make a slave free ^[8] .

The jurists of all schools recognized the inadmissibility of the conversion of Muslims to slavery. In practice, this situation was often violated, since any rebel could not be considered a true Muslim. In some countries, slavery for debt was also practiced. It was also allowed to slave representatives of other branches of Islam. For example, in 1611, the Sunni clergy in Herat issued a fatwa, which permitted the slavery of the Shiites , who were equated with kafirs ^[18] .

From the point of view of the Fakihs, the slave was an analogue of a pet ^[8] . The slave trader and the cattle trader were called nahhas , and the slave’s child was sometimes called galla (offspring, income) ^[19] .

The owner had no right to exhaust the slave with overwork, to dispose of his life, and had to feed him well. Punishment for the poor maintenance of the slave was not provided. A free man who kills someone else’s slave pays the master a virus and is not punished by deprivation of life ( kiyas ) ^[19] .

A slave in full and unconditional ownership does not have the right to property and freedom of movement. He is not responsible for his debts. The legal capacity of a slave (or slave) who has received permission from the owner to trade or engage in craft ( ma'zun ) is limited to the extent permitted by the owner. The heir to the property acquired by such a slave was the owner ^[19] . Religiously, a Muslim slave was recognized as equal to a free Muslim and was superior to a non-Muslim ( zimmi ) ^{[20] [21]} . A Muslim slave was exempted from paying zakat and the obligation to attend Friday prayers. A slave could be an imam in prayer in the absence of free Muslims who could lead her. A slave could not hold a religious position requiring independence ( judge , mukhtasib , imam of a mosque, etc.) ^[19] .

The real situation of the slaves differed from the theoretical picture drawn by the Fakihs for the worse. In some cases, the position of the slaves was so difficult that it led to revolts, such as the Zinj uprisings ^[21] . Moreover, many slaves reached a high position in society in accordance with the position of the owner. Most slaves were employed in the household ^[19] .

The voluntary liberation of the slave ( i'thak ) in Islam is considered a godly deed. The reward for such an act is equivalent to feeding an orphan or poor person during a famine ^{[8] [22]} .

The release of a slave can be a kind of fine, which is imposed on the owner for the unintentional murder of a Muslim or for violation of his oath ^{[12] [11] [13]} . Release must be recorded by written evidence ^[12] . From the life of the Prophet Muhammad it is known that he had a total of up to two dozen slaves known by name, freed by him at different times; his two wives were slaves. ^[8] Among the first Muslims there were many slaves (for example, Sumaya , Zeid , Bilyal , etc.) ^{[23] [24]} .

The most common form of liberation was not self-repayment, but liberation at the behest of the owner. The owner could release the slave by will before his death ( tadbir ), while the law did not allow the release of more than 1/3 of the number of slaves by will, protecting the interests of the heirs. The freedman ( maula ) continued to maintain a special relationship with the former owner or his heir ^[19] .

Ownership of the slave was also realized by cohabitation with her. In the event that a slave ( umm valad ) gives birth to a child from the owner, she acquires some advantages. If the owner did not have a free wife, then he could marry a slave who acquired half the rights compared to a free one. Children umm valad were free. Many Abbasid caliphs were children of slaves ^[19] .

A slave could have his own family. In the Malikite madhhab , a male slave might not ask for the owner’s consent, and the slave must obtain permission, since when she was married, the master lost the right to cohabit with her. The owner did not have the right to divorce his slaves. Also, the slaves did not need the permission of the owner for a divorce. A slave could belong to several owners, but co-owners with one slave were not allowed to cohabit ^[19] .

Main article: History of slavery in the Muslim world

Slavery persisted in the Islamic world until the middle of the 20th century. It was canceled in Algeria in 1848, in Central Asia after joining Russia , in Iran , Iraq and Afghanistan in 1923-1929, in Saudi Arabia in the 70s of the XX century ^[19] . In Mauritania, slavery was abolished in 1905, 1981 and in August 2007 ^[25] . Currently, slavery is allowed in Islamic countries such as Chad , Niger , Mali and Sudan ^[26] .

• Vasilievsky M.G. , Lipovsky A.L. , Turaev B.A. Slavery // Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron : 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.