What is the Islamic law with regard to slave-women? Was it permissible to have relations with these slave-women without a formal marriage ceremony?

Firstly, it should be borne in mind that slavery was not something%0D%0Athat was introduced by Islam; on the contrary, it was something that had its%0D%0Aroots planted long before the advent of Islam. It would not be an%0D%0Aexaggeration to state that slavery is probably as old as war itself, because%0D%0Ait is one of the consequences of war. Thus, slavery apparently first reared%0D%0Aits head with the first wars that took place an the face of earth. War is a%0D%0Afactor that makes soft men stern, kind men harsh and delicate men rugged. A%0D%0Aman who cannot bear to see the sight of blood under normal circumstances%0D%0Abecomes capable of shedding the blood of hundreds under the pressure of war.%0D%0AThose who were not killed in warfare, used to be taken as prisoners of war.%0D%0AThe pages of history will show that many alternative, expedient methods were%0D%0Aused through the ages to deal with prisoners of war. Some used to be%0D%0Aexecuted while others would be set free, with or without a ransom. Then,%0D%0Athere were others who were neither executed nor set free. These were%0D%0Aenslaved.%0D%0A%0D%0AWhen Islam came and prospered, its power was challenged by the enemies of%0D%0AIslam and the need to go to war arose. By that time, slavery had virtually%0D%0Abecome an international custom. It was also rife among the Arabs from the%0D%0Adays of darkness and ignorance. Thus, abolishing it instantateously would%0D%0Ahave caused chaos and pandemonium among the Arab people. Hence, a process of%0D%0Agradual extirpation had to be implemented. Moreover, if the Muslims would%0D%0Aset all their enemy-prisoners free and tolerate their fellow Muslims being%0D%0Acaptured and enslaved by the enemies, it would have lead to a sharp decrease%0D%0Ain the Muslim military force and given a great advantage to the enemy forces%0D%0Awhich was something that the Muslims could not afford. Furthermore, it is a%0D%0Awell known fact that warfare tactics used by one side are often countered by%0D%0Athe opposing side in order to maintain a balance of power. Hence, wartime%0D%0Adiplomacy necessitated the enslaving of prisoners.%0D%0A%0D%0AIn the "Jihaads" (Islamic wars) that took place, women were also, at times,%0D%0Ataken as prisoners of war by the Muslim warriors. These women captives used%0D%0Ato be distributed as part of the booty among the soldiers, after their%0D%0Areturn to Islamic territory. Each soldier was then entitled to have%0D%0Arelations ONLY with the slave girl over which he was given the RIGHT OF%0D%0AOWNERSHIP and NOT with those slave girls that were not in his possession.%0D%0AThis RIGHT OF OWNERSHIP was given to him by the "Ameerul-Mu'mineen" (Head of%0D%0Athe Islamic state.) Due to this right of ownership, It became lawful for the%0D%0Aowner of a slave girl to have intercourse with her.%0D%0A%0D%0AIt may, superficially, appear distasteful to copulate with a woman who is%0D%0Anot a man's legal wife, but once Shariat makes something lawful, we have to%0D%0Aaccept it as lawful, whether it appeals to our taste, or not; and whether we%0D%0Aknow its underlying wisdom or not. It is necessary for a Muslim to be%0D%0Aacquainted with the laws of Shariat, but it is not necessary for him to%0D%0Adelve into each law in order to find the underlying wisdom of these laws%0D%0Abecause knowledge of the wisdom of some of the laws may be beyond his puny%0D%0Acomprehension. Allah Ta'ala has said in the Holy Quran: "Wa maa ooteetum min%0D%0Aal-ilm illaa qaleelan" which means, more or less, that, "You have been given%0D%0Aa very small portion of knowledge". Hence, if a person fails to comprehend%0D%0Athe underlying wisdom of any law of Shariat, he cannot regard it as a fault%0D%0Aof Shariat (Allah forbid), on the contrary, it is the fault of his own%0D%0Aperception and lack of understanding, because no law of Shariat is%0D%0Acontradictory to wisdom.%0D%0A%0D%0ANevertheless, the wisdom underlying the permission granted by Shariat to%0D%0Acopulate with a slave woman is as follows: The LEGAL possession that a%0D%0AMuslim receives over a slave woman from the "Ameerul-Mu'mineen" (the Islamic%0D%0AHead of State) gives him legal credence to have coition with the slave woman%0D%0Ain his possession, just as the marriage ceremony gives him legal credence to%0D%0Ahave coition with his wife. In other words, this LEGAL POSSESSION is, in%0D%0Aeffect, a SUBSTITUTE of the MARRIAGE CEREMONY. A free woman cannot be%0D%0A'possessed', bought or sold like other possessions; therefore Shariat%0D%0Ainstituted a 'marriage ceremony' in which affirmation and consent takes%0D%0Aplace, which gives a man the right to copulate with her. On the other hand,%0D%0Aa slave girl can be possessed and even bought and sold, thus, this right of%0D%0Apossession, substituting as a marriage ceremony, entitles the owner to%0D%0Acopulate with her. A similar example can be found in the slaughtering of%0D%0Aanimals; that after a formal slaughtering process, in which the words,%0D%0A"Bismillahi Allahu Akbar" are recited, goats, cows, etc.; become "Halaal"%0D%0Aand lawful for consumption, whereas fish becomes "Halaal" merely through%0D%0A'possession' which substitutes for the slaughtering.%0D%0A%0D%0AIn other words, just as legal possession of a fish that has been fished out%0D%0Aof the water, makes it Halaal for human consumption without the initiation%0D%0Aof a formal slaughtering process; similarly legal possession of a slave%0D%0Awoman made her Halaal for the purpose of coition with her owner without the%0D%0Ainitiation of a formal marriage ceremony.%0D%0A%0D%0AIn short, permission to have intercourse with a slave woman was not%0D%0Asomething barbaric or uncivilised; on the contrary, it was almost as good as%0D%0Aa marriage ceremony. In fact, possession of a slave woman resembles a%0D%0Amarriage ceremony in many ways and both have a lot in common with each%0D%0Aother. One similarity is this that just as a free woman cannot have two%0D%0Ahusbands simultaneously, a slave woman cannot be used for intercourse by two%0D%0Aowners. Another similarity is that a free woman whose marriage is on the%0D%0Arocks, cannot marry another man until her previous marriage is nullified%0D%0Athrough divorce, etc. Due to the discrepancies between husband and wife, the%0D%0Amarriage sometimes reaches a stage where it becomes virtually impossible for%0D%0Athe couple to live as man and wife with the result that divorce is brought%0D%0Ainto force to nullify marriage ties. Similarly, if a slave woman was married%0D%0Apreviously in enemy territory to a non-Muslim, and is then captured alone,%0D%0Ai.e. without her husband, it is not permissible for any Muslim to have%0D%0Arelations with her until her previous marriage is nullified, and that is%0D%0Adone by bringing her to an Islamic country and making her the legal%0D%0Apossession of a Muslim. Bringing her into Islamic territory necessitates the%0D%0Arendering of her previous marriage as null and void by Islamic law because%0D%0Awith her husband in enemy territory and she in Islamic territory, it becomes%0D%0Avirtually impossible for them to meet and live as man and wife. That is why%0D%0Ait is not permissible to have intercourse with a woman whose husband is also%0D%0Ataken into captivity and put into slavery with her. Another resemblance%0D%0Abetween the two is that, just as a divorcee has to spend a period called%0D%0A"Iddat" before another man is allowed to marry her, similarly, a slave woman%0D%0Ahas to spend a period called "Istibraa" before her owner can have coition%0D%0Awith her.%0D%0A%0D%0AAnother similarity between marriage and possession of a slave woman is that%0D%0Ajust as the wife becomes a dependant of the husband and he has to provide a%0D%0Ahome, food and clothing for her, a slave woman also becomes a dependant of%0D%0Aher owner and he has to provide a home, food and clothing for her. Yet%0D%0Aanother similarity is this that just as marriage makes the close relatives%0D%0Aof the wife Haraam upon the husband; i.e. he cannot get married to his%0D%0Awife's mother, grandmother, sister, etc., similarly if a man has copulated%0D%0Awith a slave woman the slave woman's close relatives also become Haraam upon%0D%0Athe owner. With all these similarities it does not make sense to regard%0D%0Acopulation with a slave woman distasteful whilst copulation with one's wife%0D%0Ais not regarded as distasteful.%0D%0A%0D%0AA question that may still arise is that why does the owner of a slave woman%0D%0Anot marry her before having relations with her? Well, this is impracticable%0D%0Abecause of a few intricate technicalities. Firstly, we know that a man has%0D%0Ato give "Mahr" (dower-money) to his bride. The Holy Quran says:-%0D%0A%0D%0A[ A r a b i c ]%0D%0ATrans: "And allowed unto you is whatsoever is beyond that, so that ye may%0D%0Aseek them with your substance (i.e. with your dower-money). " - (4:24).%0D%0A%0D%0AThus, "Mahr" is a conditional prerequisite of Nikah. If a man has to marry%0D%0Ahis slave woman, it would not be possible for him to abide by this condition%0D%0Aof 'Mahr' because by Islamic law, a slave does not have rights over any%0D%0Aproperty, i.e. she cannot own anything. In fact, whatever she has with her%0D%0Atoo, i.e. her clothing, etc., is all regarded as the property of her owner.%0D%0ATherefore, If he gets married to his slave girl and gives her the 'Mahr' she%0D%0Acannot become the owner of it because she has no right of ownership. The%0D%0A'Mahr' would bounce back to the owner of the slave girl and it would%0D%0Atantamount to giving the 'mahr' to himself. Hence, the owner would become%0D%0Athe payer as well as the PAYEE of the 'mahr' which would only result in the%0D%0Amockery of the whole system of 'mahr'. It would be absolutely superflous to%0D%0Ahave such a marriage ceremony performed that makes a mockery of the 'mahr'%0D%0Asystem. Hence, the owner cannot get married to her while she remains a slave%0D%0Agirl. However, if he sets her free, then he can get married to her on the%0D%0Abasis of her having become a liberated woman.%0D%0A%0D%0AAlthough the owner himself cannot get married to his slave woman, without%0D%0Agiving her freedom, he can get her married to someone else. If he gets her%0D%0Amarried to someone else, then only her husband can now have intercourse with%0D%0Aher and the owner's right of having intercourse with her comes to an end.%0D%0AAll these facts prove that the slave girl does not become an instrument of%0D%0Asex; on the contrary, her honour is upheld, in that only one man is allowed%0D%0Ato have intercourse with her JUST AS only one man (the husband) is allowed%0D%0Ato have intercourse with his lawfully wedded wife.%0D%0A%0D%0AIslam ensured that the slave girl's duties were not restricted merely to%0D%0Adomestic chores but also gave her master permission to copulate with her.%0D%0AThis concession created an atmosphere of love and harmony between the slave%0D%0Agirl and her master. Islam thereby raised the status of the war%0D%0Acaptive-maidens close to that of wives. It was a psychological cure to her%0D%0Agrief-stricken heart, being deprived of her family and thrown into the hands%0D%0Aof a strange society.%0D%0A%0D%0ARasulullah (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam) enjoined his followers to treat the%0D%0Aslaves kindly, gently, and, above all, to regard them as members of the%0D%0Afamily. In this way, they were made to feel wanted; which was far better%0D%0Athan treating them as outcasts and leaving them to wander the streets of a%0D%0Astrange society in a peniless, destitute condition. Such treatment would%0D%0Ahave ultimately forced them to take up evil occupations such as prostitution%0D%0Ain the case of slave woman in order to fill their hungry stomachs. The First%0D%0AWorld War in 1914 was a clear reflection of the evils involved in setting%0D%0Acaptive women free to roars about in a strange society with strange%0D%0Asurroundings. During that war, German and English women prisoners on either%0D%0Aside were set free to roam the streets with no-one to feed them. The result%0D%0Awas obvious that they resorted to other unrefined and uncivilised methods of%0D%0Aincome on the streets. Thus, it is evident that the Islamic treatment of%0D%0Awomen prisoners of war was conducive towards better social relations and led%0D%0Ato the refinement of their overall social lives.%0D%0A%0D%0AOver and above all this, History will show that Islam did not encourage%0D%0Aslavery but rather encouraged moves towards the extirpation of slavery.%0D%0ARasulullah Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam has said something to this effect in a%0D%0AHadith, that: "Whosoever freed a Muslim slave, the Lord would redeem all his%0D%0Alimbs - in compensation for each limb of the slave, so much so that the%0D%0Aprivate parts for the private parts - from the Fire of Hell.%0D%0A%0D%0A"If a slave woman becomes pregnant from her owner, and delivers his child,%0D%0Ashe automatically gets her freedom after the death of her master whose child%0D%0Ashe gave birth to.%0D%0A%0D%0AMoreover, there are many wrongs and sins for which the liberation of a slave%0D%0Aserves as a compensation and atonement. This was a further incentive for the%0D%0Aextirpation of slavery. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam also taught%0D%0Athat whosoever teaches good manners to his slave girl, adorns her with%0D%0Apoliteness and good education, then frees her and gets married to her, for%0D%0Ahim there is double recompense and reward. These encouraging teachings%0D%0Aserved as incentives towards the emancipation of slaves and slaves were%0D%0Aliberated by the thousands. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam himself%0D%0Afreed 63 slaves, Hazrat Abu Bakr Radhiallahu Anhu freed 63, Hazrat%0D%0AAbdur-Rahman bin Auf Radhiallahu Anhu 30,000; Hazrat Hakim bin Huzam%0D%0ARadhiallahu Anhu 100; Hazrat Abbas Radhiallahu Anhu 70; Hazrat Ayesha%0D%0ARadhiallahu Anha 69; Hazrat Abdullah bin Umar Radhiallahu Anhu 100; Hazrat%0D%0AUthman Radhiallahu Anhu used to free one slave every Friday and he would say%0D%0Athat he would tree any slave who performed his prayers with humility. Hazrat%0D%0AZul-Kilah Radhiallahu Anhu freed 8,000 slaves in a single day.%0D%0A%0D%0AHazrat Umar Radhiallahu Anhu passed certain laws during his Khilafat which%0D%0Aled to the emancipation of thousands of slaves, and to the prevention of%0D%0Acertain specific forms of slavery. Some of the edicts that he issued:%0D%0A1. All the apostate tribes that were enslaved during the Khilaafat of Hazrat%0D%0AAbu Bakr Radhiallahu Anhu were to be freed.%0D%0A2. A Zimmi (protected non-Muslim subject of an Islamic state) should not be%0D%0Aenslaved.%0D%0A3. Arabs will not be enslaved.%0D%0A4. Those who had been enslaved during the days of ignorance (prior to the%0D%0Aadvent of Islam) and had lived to witness the Islamic era, should redeem%0D%0Athemselves from slavery by paying their costs (their value) to their owners%0D%0Awhether they were willing or not.%0D%0A%0D%0AAs a result of all these laws, there came a time when slavery was totally%0D%0Aextirpated. But of course, this extirpation came about after a gradual%0D%0Aprocess because that was the only safe and expedient way of tackling the%0D%0Aproblem.%0D%0A%0D%0ABecause of the prevalence of slavery in the initial stages of Islam the%0D%0Anecessity of educating the people about the treatment of slaves also arose.%0D%0ARasulullah Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam taught his followers how the slaves%0D%0Ashould be treated with kindness, etc. In fact, Rasulullah Sallallahu Alayhi%0D%0AWasallam himself possessed slave girls. In this way, he was able to%0D%0Ademonstrate practically how kindly and politely the slave should be treated.%0D%0ABecause it is relevant to the topic, it would be appropriate to mention here%0D%0Athat Rasulullah Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam also had four slave girls. One%0D%0Awas Hazrat Maria Qibtiyya Radhiallahu Anha who was the mother of Rasulullah%0D%0ASallallahu Alayhi Wasallam's son, Ibrahim Alayhis Salaam who passed away in%0D%0Ainfanthood. The others were, Hazrat Rayhaan binte Samoon; Hazrat Nafisa and%0D%0Aa fourth, whose name has not been recorded in History.%0D%0A%0D%0AOne question that still remains is whether slavery still legally prevails%0D%0Aanywhere in the Islamic world and whether it can be successfully implemented%0D%0Ain this age. Well, there is no prevalence of lawful slavery in the Islamic%0D%0Aworld today and it would be difficult to implement it because of the%0D%0Astringent conditions attached to it. Firstly, the prisoners have to be%0D%0Acaptured in 'Jihaad' in the true sense of the word. Then again, If true%0D%0A'Jihaad' did break out somewhere, there are still a number of other laws and%0D%0Aconditions to abide by which are far too stringent for any Islamic country%0D%0Ain the world to abide by in this time and age when people's personal gains%0D%0Aand whims and desire are being given preference to over Islamic Law.%0D%0AAccording to Islamic Law, captive female prisoners are also part and parcel%0D%0Aof the booty. One fifth of the booty has to be first distributed to the%0D%0Aneedy, orphans, etc. The remaining four-fifths should then be distributed%0D%0Aamong the soldiers who participated in the war. The distribution can only%0D%0Atake effect after the booty is brought into Islamic territory. The%0D%0AAmeerul-Mu'mineen (Head of the Islamic State) remains the guardian of the%0D%0Afemale prisoners until he allocates them to the soldiers. Only after a%0D%0Asoldier has been allotted a slave girl, and made the owner of her, will she%0D%0Abecome his lawful possession. After she spends a period called 'Istibraa',%0D%0Awhich is the elapse of one menstrual period, It becomes permissible for her%0D%0Aowner to have relations with her. After possession of the slave too there%0D%0Aare a number of other laws that affect the master and slave. There is hardly%0D%0Aany Islamic country today that can abide to all these conditions, with the%0D%0Aresult that it is quite difficult to implement slavery in this time and age.%0D%0A%0D%0AThe subject of slavery in Islam is quite comprehensive and there are many%0D%0Alaws that pertain to slaves which the Jurisprudents of Islam have outlined.%0D%0AIt is, however, hoped that the above mentioned facts will be adequate enough%0D%0Ato answer your question.%0D%0A%0D%0A