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http://www.quran-errors.com/response-to-converted2islam--raping-slave-girls-in-islam.htmlTHE IMPERMISSIBILITY OF RAPING FEMALE CAPTIVES IN ISLAM
Islam views rape (Ightisaab) as being from among the Al-Kaba'ir (major sins) especially the raping of those under ones authority such as female captives. It is an abhorrent crime that the Shariah forbids and punishes severely.
I will provide evidences from the Quran, the Sunnah, the Companions, the Tabieen (students of the companions) and from the Salaf As Salih (righteous three early generations of Islam) to demonstrate the impermissibility of raping female captives in Islam.
Imam Bukhari in his book Al-Jaami' As-Saheeh, commonly known as Saheeh Bukhari, in the Section of Al-Ikraah (coercion) entitles one of his chapters:
Chapter: If a women is compelled to commit illegal sexual intercourse against her will, then no legal punishment is inflicted upon her, as is indicated in the statement of Allah:
"...But if anyone compels them, then after such compulsion, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful." [Quran 24:33] [7]
In this chapter he brings two Hadeeth. The first is the following:
Safiyya bint 'Ubaid said:
"A governmental male-slave tried to seduce a slave-girl from the Khumus of the war booty till he deflowered her by force against her will; therefore 'Umar flogged him according to the law, and exiled him, but he did not flog the female slave because the male-slave had committed illegal sexual intercourse by force, against her will." [8]
In this narration we see that in the time of Umar (the second Khalif of Islam) a man raped a female slave and Umar ordered for him to be lashed according to the Islamic law and for him to be exiled. He did not punish the female captive as she was raped by the man. This narration provides us clear evidence that rape of female captives is prohibited and is punished severely in the Shariah. Another benefit from this narration is that a women who is raped receives no punishment, as she was forced and abused, contrary to anti-Islamic websites that claim otherwise.
After this narration Imam Al Bukhari brings the statement of Imam Az Zuhri. Imam Az Zuhri is one of the greatest scholars of Islam, a student of 10 Companions of the Prophet ﷺ and numerous scholars from the Tabieen [explain]. He was born in 51H [9]. Dr. Mustafa as-Siba'ee writes:
"He travelled far and wide, learning from any Companion he could meet, and he met with ten in total - among whom were Anas, Ibn Umar, Jabir, and Sahl ibn Sa'd. He then sat with the most distinguished Tabi'oon that were alive at the time: Sa'eed ibn al-Musayib, 'Urwah ibn az-Zubayr, 'Ubaydulah ibn 'Abdullah ibn 'Utbah ibn Mas'ood, and Abu Bakr ibn 'Abdur-Rahman ibn al-Harith ibn Hisham al-Makhzoomi, to mention a few. Of the above-mentioned scholars, he spent the most time with Sa'eed ibn al-Musayib." [10]
Many scholars have praised Imam Az Zuhri's knowledge of Islam, Fiqh and the Sunnah.
Adh-Dhahabi related in his Tadhkirah and Al-Hafidh ibn 'Asakir related in his Tareekh that Al-Layth ibn Sa'd said, "I have never met with a scholar who had as much extensive knowledge as did Az-Zuhri..."
Imam Malik related that when Ibn Shihab (Az-Zuhri) once came to Madinah, he took Rabee'ah by the hand and entered a house. When the time for 'Asr drew near, Ibn Shihab came out, saying, "I did not think that I would find a man in Madinah who is like ar-Rabee'ah." Rabee'ah came out, saying "I did not imagine that anyone had reached the level of knowledge that Ibn Shihab has reached." [11]
"Sufyan said, "There was no one among the people who was more knowledgeable about the Sunnah than Az-Zuhri." [12]
Ibn Sa'd, the author of at-Tabaqat, said, "Az-Zuhri was trustworthy, with a great amount of knowledge, hadith, and narration. He was a faqeeh (expert in jurisprudence) and a gather of hadith."
An-Nasa'i said, "The best chains related from the Messenger of Allah are four: Az-Zuhri from 'Ali ibn al-Hasan from his father, from his grandfather; Az-Zuhri from 'Ubaydullah from Ibn Abbas..." He then mentioned two other chains.
Imam Ahmad said, "Az-Zuhri is the best of people with regard to his hadith and isnad (chain of narration)."
Ibn Hibban said, "The Kunya of Muhammad ibn Muslim ibn Shihab ibn az-Zuhri al-Qurashee is Abu Bakr; he saw ten Companions. He had the best memory during his era and he was the best in relating texts of narrations. He was as much a faqeeq as he was a superior man, and many people related from him."
In Tahdheeb at-Tahdheeb, Ibn Hajr said, "He is Al-Faqeeh, Abu Bakr, Al-Hafidh, Al-Madanee (ascribed to Madinah), one of the noble and distinguished Imams. He is the scholar of the Hijaz and Syria."
Adh-Dhahabi said, "... He is the Imam, the Hafidh, and the Hujjah (proof;i.e., the narrations he related are trusted and thus become a proof for all who hear them)." [13]
Imam Al Bukhari relates:
Az-Zuhri said regarding a virgin slave-girl raped by a free man: The judge has to fine the adulterer as much money as is equal to the price of the female slave and the adulterer has to be flogged (according to the Islamic Law); but if the slave woman is a matron, then, according to the verdict of the Imam, the adulterer is not fined but he has to receive the legal punishment (according to the Islamic Law). [14]
Here Imam Al Bukhari brings the statement of Imam Az Zuhri in which is specifcally speaks about the issue of a free man raping a female captive. He says that if the female captive is a virgin then the man should be punished with lashing but if she was previously married he should be executed (Hadd). This is clear evidence, from a scholar that studied under many Companions, that raping of female captives is prohibited in Islam. We also understand that this is the understanding of Imam Al Bukhari, that raping of female captives is impermissable, due to him bringing this narration and the statement of Imam Az Zuhri.
The next Hadeeth Imam Al Bukhari brings in this chapter is the following:
Narrated Abu Huraira:
Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "(The Prophet) Abraham migrated with his wife Sarah till he reached a town where there was a king or a tyrant who sent a message, to Abraham, ordering him to send Sarah to him. So when Abraham had sent Sarah, the tyrant got up, intending to do evil with her, but she got up and performed ablution and prayed and said, 'O Allah ! If I have believed in You and in Your Apostle, then do not empower this oppressor over me.' So he (the king) had an epileptic fit (or fell in the state of unconsciousness) and started moving his legs violently. " [15]
In this Hadeeth the Prophet ﷺ tells us the story of Abraham and Sarah when a King tried to overpower Sarah and rape her. In another longer narration of the story that Imam Al Bukhari narrates [16] the king tried this a number of times. The benefit we take away from this narration are two that the Prophet calls what the king intended (rape) as 'evil' and Sarah calls the king an 'oppressor'. We learn from this that Islam states that Islam is evil and those that rape women are oppressors. This is further evidence that it is impermissable to rape women, whether free or captive.
The next piece of evidence is from Imam Abi Dawud. He narrates the following Hadeeth in his Sunan:
Narrated Wa'il ibn Hujr:
When a woman went out in the time of the Prophet (ﷺ) for prayer, a man attacked her and overpowered (raped) her.
She shouted and he went off, and when a man came by, she said: That (man) did such and such to me. And when a company of the Emigrants came by, she said: That man did such and such to me. They went and seized the man whom they thought had had intercourse with her and brought him to her.
She said: Yes, this is he. Then they brought him to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).
When he (the Prophet) was about to pass sentence, the man who (actually) had assaulted her stood up and said: Messenger of Allah, I am the man who did it to her.
He (the Prophet) said to her: Go away, for Allah has forgiven you. But he told the man some good words (AbuDawud said: meaning the man who was seized), and of the man who had had intercourse with her, he said: Stone him to death.
He also said: He has repented to such an extent that if the people of Medina had repented similarly, it would have been accepted from them. [17]
In this Hadeeth a women, in the time of the Prophet ﷺ, was raped. The man who raped her was found guilty and the Prophet ﷺ ordered the man to receive the death penalty. The women was not punished as she had been forced. We learn from this Hadeeth that if a man rapes a women it is a capital offence worthy of the death penalty. This is clear evidence that rape is impermissable in Islam. Another benefit we take, again, is that a women is not punished for being raped as many non Muslims have claimed. We also learn this is the understanding of Imam Abi Dawud.
Imam At-Tirmidhi entitles on his chapters in his Jami':
Chapter: What Has Been Relates About A Woman Who Is Forced To Commit Adultery
In this chapter he brings two Hadeeth the first is the following:
Narrated 'Abdul-Jabbar bin Wa'il bin Hujr:
That his father said: "A woman was forced to commit illegal sexual relations during the time of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) did not enforce the legal punishment upon her, but he enforced it upon the one who had done it to her." And the narrator did not mention him assigning a dowry to her. [18]
This is a clear hadith from the Prophet ﷺ that narrates an incident in which a women was forced to have sex by a man. The Prophet ﷺ ruled for the legal punishment upon the man but did not punish the women. Imam at-Tirmidhi writes after this narration:
This hadith is acted upon according to the people of knowledge among the Companions of the Prophet and others, in that the legal punishment is not implemented upon the woman who is coerced into committing adultery. [19]
Thus we learn that it was the way of the Companions to punish rapists and not to punish anyone forced into sexual intercourse. The next Hadeeth Imam At-Tirmidhi brings is:
Narrated 'Alqamah bin Wa'il Al-Kindi:
From his father: "A women went out during the time of the Prophet (ﷺ) to 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.'" [20]
This is the same Hadeeth Imam Abi Dawud brought previously and we have explained it above. These Ahadeeth show us that rape is serious crime in Islam and also informs us that this is the understanding of Imam At-Tirmdhi.
Imam Ibn Majah narrates the following Hadeeth in his Sunan:
It was narrated from 'Abdul Jabbar bin Wa'il that his father said:
“A Woman was coerced (i.e., raped) during the time of Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) He waived the legal punishment for her and carried it out on the one who had attacked her, but he (the narrator) did not say that he rules that she should be given a bridal-money.” [21]
This is the same Hadeeth Imam At-Tirmidhi mentioned and has been explained previously. We again see that this is the same understanding that Imam Ibn Majah had with regards to rape - that it is prohibited.
Imam Malik in his Muwatta narrated to us an incident that happened in the time of Umar ibn Al Khattab:
Malik related to me from Nafi that a slave was in charge of the slaves in the khumus and he forced a slave-girl among those slaves against her will and had intercourse with her. Umar ibn al-Khattab had him flogged and banished him, and he did not flog the slave-girl because the slave had forced her. [22]
This narration is similar to the one that Imam al Bukhari narrated [23] and was discussed previously, that a female captive was raped by a man and that Umar ordered for the man to be punished.
Imam Malik was born in the year 93H or 95H [24] and is one the greatest scholars in Islamic History. He studied under many of the Tabieen, including Nafi' the freed slave of the Companion Ibn Umar, and is the founder of the Maliki Madhab (School of Law). Dr. Mustafa as-Siba'ee writes:
"He gained knowledge from Rabee'ah, from many of the great jurists among the tabi'een, and so extensive was his study under the instruction of Az-Zuhri, that he is considered to be one of his most famous students. He also heard much from Nafay', the freed slave of Ibn 'Umar; those narrations that he related from Nafay' became well known..." [25]
In his Muwatta Imam Malik discusses the crime of rape and its punishment. He writes:
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." [26]
We see here in the statement of Imam Malik that if a man rapes a women, regardless if she is a free women or a female captive, the capital punishment is applied to the rapist and their is no punishment upon the raped women. This is again clear evidence that the raping of a female captive is a major crime and serious offence.
Imam Al Bayhaqi narrates in his Sunan Al Kubra:
Harun ibn Al-Asim reported: Umar ibn Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, sent Khalid ibn Al-Waleed with the army and Khalid sent Dirar ibn Al-Azwar along with a company and they invaded a district belonging to the tribe of Asad. They captured a beautiful girl and Dirar was impressed with her. He asked his companions to give her to him and they did, then he had intercourse with her. When he completed his mission, he felt guilty for what he had done and he want to Khalid and told him about it. Khalid said, “Indeed, I have made it permissible and wholesome for you.” Dirar said, “No, not until you write to Umar.” Umar replied that he should be stoned but by the time the letter had arrived, Dirar had passed away from natural causes. Khalid said, “Allah did not want to disgrace Dirar.” [27]
We see in this narration that a man had intercourse with a female captive when he did not have permission to do so. Umar ordered for him to receive capital punishment for this.
Imam Ibn Abi Shaybah in his Mussanaf brings us some narrations from the Companions and the Tabieen with regards to the crime of raping women, they are:
Ibn Umar reported:
Umar ibn Al-Khattab was given a servant girl among the girls who served the leadership. She was forced upon by one of the young men, so Umar flogged the man and he did not flog the woman. [28]
Nafi' reported:
A man was invited as a guest of the family of a household, then he forced himself upon a woman among them. It was referred to Abu Bakr, so he flogged him and expelled him, and he did not flog the woman. [29]
Hajjaj reported:
An Abyssinian forced himself upon a woman among them. It was referred to Umar Ibn Abdul Aziz and he applied legal punishment on him. [30]
These narrations from Abu Bakr, Umar Ibn Al Khattab and Umar Ibn Abdul Aziz show us that it was the way of the righteous predecessors to punish rapists severely.
Imam An Nasa' in his Sunan and Imam Abi Dawud in his Sunan narrate the following Hadeeth:
It was narrated that Salamah bin Al-Muhabbaq said:
"The Prophet passed judgement concerning a man who had intercourse with his wife's slave woman: 'If he forced her, then she is free..." [31]
We learn from this Hadeeth that if a man forcefully had intercourse with a female captive that his wife owned, then this is prohibited, and the female captive is automatically made free because of this.
Imam Ash Shaafi'ee said:
"If a man acquires a slave girl by force and then he rapes her, and he is not an ignorant person, then the slave girl is taken from him. He must pay the fine and the legal punishment for adultery will be applied to him." [32]
Imam Ash Shaafi'ee here states that a man is to be punished if he requires a slave girl by force and rapes her.
Imam Abdul Barr writes:
The scholars agreed that the rapist must be given legal punishment if there is clear evidence against him that he deserves punishment or if he confesses to it. If the evidence is not as clear, then he is given a discretionary punishment. There is no punishment for the victim if it is true that she was forced and overpowered, as would be evident by her screams and cries for help. [33]
The Kuwaiti encyclopedia of Islamic law states:
"If a woman were to be raped, meaning without consent, then the rapist must be given legal punishment..." [34]
Sheikh Muhammad Saalih al-Munajjid said:
This is an abhorrent crime that is forbidden in all religions and in the minds of all wise people and those who are possessed of sound human nature. All earthly systems and laws regard this action as abhorrent and impose the strictest penalties on it, except a few states which waive the punishment if the rapist marries his victim! This is indicative of a distorted mind let alone a lack of religious commitment on the part of those who challenge Allaah in making laws. We do not know of any love or compassion that could exist between the aggressor and his victim, especially since the pain of rape cannot be erased with the passage of time – as it is said. Hence many victims of rape have attempted to commit suicide and many of them have succeeded, The failure of these marriages is proven and they are accompanied by nothing but humiliation and suffering for the woman.
Islam has a clear stance which states that this repugnant action is haraam and imposes a deterrent punishment on the one who commits it. [35]
What has been presented previously is evidence and statements of scholars that specifically mention rape. The prohibition of rape of female captives can be derived from many other verses in the Quran and Ahadeeth that mention the importance of treating ones female captives with goodness and not harming them. Allah says in the Quran:
Worship Allah and associate nothing with Him, and do good (Ihsaan) to parents, and to relatives, orphans, the needy, the near neighbor, the neighbor farther away, the companion at your side, the traveler, and those whom your right hands possess. Indeed, Allah does not like those who are self-deluding and boastful. [36]
In this verse of the Quran it orders to do good (Ihsaan) to a list of various people including parents, relatives and female captives. This means one must treat ones female captives with goodness (Ihsaan). Ihsaan is to treat them in the most highest manner one can. Raping a women is in direct opposition to this Quranic order of treating ones female captives with goodness. We also see that in this verse it joins do good to female captives with doing good to parents, relatives and others. Just as it is prohibited to treat ones parents or relatives badly, let alone raping them, the same also applies to female captives. This is a clear Quranic injunction prohibiting the rape of female captives.
The Prophet ﷺ encouraged to treat captives with good treatment and treat them well. This occurs in many Hadeeth of the Prophet ﷺ:
Sallam ibn 'Amr reported from one of the Companions of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Your slaves are your brothers, so treat him well. Ask for their help in what is too much for you and help them in what is too much for them." [37]
Jabir ibn 'Abdullah said, "The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, advised that slaves should be well-treated. He said, 'Feed them from what you eat and clothe them from what you wear. Do not punish what Allah has created.'" [38]
Abu Umama said, "The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, came with two slaves and gave one of them to 'Ali and said, 'Do not beat him. I have forbidden beating the people of the prayer and I saw him praying before we came.' He gave Abu Dharr a slave and said, "I recommend that you treat him well,' so Abu Dharr set him free. He said, 'What have you done?' He replied, 'You commanded me to treat him well, so I set him free.' [39]
From these Ahadeeth we can learn that the Prophet ﷺ encouraged treating captives well and with goodness - which is contrary to rape. The Prophet ﷺ also told us that every person is responsible for the well being of those under his authority and that we will be questioned regarding how we treated them. He ﷺ said:
"Each of you is a shepherd and each of you is responsible for his flock." [40]
The Prophet ﷺ encouraged treating well female captives, educating them, freeing them and marrying them. He ﷺ said:
"He who has a slave-girl and educates and treats her nicely and then manumits and marries her, will get a double reward." [41]
The Prophet ﷺ prohibited punishing and harming of female captives. He said:
Feed those of your slaves who please you from what you eat and clothe them with what you clothe yourselves, but sell those who do not please you and do not punish Allah's creatures. [42]
Jabir ibn 'Abdullah said, "The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, advised that slaves should be well-treated. He said, 'Feed them from what you eat and clothe them from what you wear. Do not punish what Allah has created.'" [43]
The Prophet ﷺ said that our captives are our brothers and should be treated as such.
Your slaves are your brothers and Allah has put them under your command. So whoever has a brother under his command should feed him of what he eats and dress him of what he wears. Do not ask them (slaves) to do things beyond their capacity (power) and if you do so, then help them.' " [44]
The Prophet ﷺ prohibited the hitting of captives in many Ahadeeth and ordered for them to be freed if they were abused. There is a principle in Islamic law that what is greater than what is prohibited is also prohibited. For example Allah says:
And your Lord has decreed that you not worship except Him, and to parents, good treatment. Whether one or both of them reach old age [while] with you, say not to them [so much as], "uff," and do not repel them but speak to them a noble word. [45]
This verse prohibits doing the smallest of thing against on parents - saying 'Uff'. It also means that everything greater than this is also prohibited. The Prophet ﷺ prohibited the hitting of captives - if he forbade this then what about something that is greater than hitting, that off rape. This is also then clearly prohibited.
Narrated Suwaid bin Muqarrin Al-Muzani:
"We were seven brothers without a servant except one, and one of us slapped her, so the Prophet (ﷺ) ordered us to free her." [46]
The Messenger of Allah said : He who slaps his slave or beats him, the expiation for it is that he should set him free. [47]
Abu Mas'ud al-Ansari reported:
When I was beating my servant, I heard a voice behind me (saying): Abu Mas'ud, bear in mind Allah has more dominance over you than you have upon him. I turned and (found him) to be Allah's Messenger (ﷺ). I said: Allah's Messenger, I set him free for the sake of Allah. Thereupon he said: Had you not done that, (the gates of) Hell would have opened for you, or the fire would have burnt you. [48]
There is also a principle in Islam that there should be no harming or nor reciprocating of harm, as the Prophet ﷺ said, and rape is one of the greatest forms of harming someone and is therefore prohibited.
“There should be neither harming nor reciprocating harm.” [49]
All the above evidence from the Quran, the Sunnah, the Companions, the Tabieen and the Salaf as Salih show that rape of a women, whether free or captive, is prohibited and the punishment is capital punishment. We can see this is the view in the Quran, the view of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, the Companions; including Abu Bakr & Umar ibn Al Khattab, the view of Umar ibn Abdul Aziz, Imam Az-Zuhri, Imam Malik, Imam Shafi'ee, Imam Al Bukhari, Imam Abi Dawud, Imam At-Tirmidhi, Imam Ibn Majah, Imam Abdul Barr and other than them. The bottom line is that in Islam mutual consent is must for sexual intercourse.
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