Tafseer of The Women · An-Nisaa · 4:24
And [also prohibited to you are all] married women except those your right hands possess. [This is] the decree of Allah upon you. And lawful to you are [all others] beyond these, [provided] that you seek them [in marriage] with [gifts from] your property, desiring chastity, not unlawful sexual intercourse. So for whatever you enjoy [of marriage] from them, give them their due compensation as an obligation. And there is no blame upon you for what you mutually agree to beyond the obligation. Indeed, Allah is ever Knowing and Wise.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
And the married women (al-muḥṣanāt) among the women, except what your right hands possess (mā malakat aymānukum)
The statement concerning the interpretation of His word, exalted is He: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess . He, mighty is His praise, means thereby: forbidden to you are the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess. The exegetes differed concerning the muḥṣanāt that Allah intends in this verse. Some of them said: they are the women who have a husband, with the exception of the captives among them (al-masbiyyāt). And "what the right hand possesses" (mulk al-yamīn): these are the captive women (al-sabāyā) who, by their capture, have been separated from their husbands, so that they become licit for those to whom they fell by the right of the right hand (mulk al-yamīn), without there having taken place any divorce (ṭalāq) by their hostile (belligerent) husband.
Mention of who said that: 7124 - Muḥammad ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān related to us, saying: Isrāʾīl related to us, on the authority of Abū Ḥaṣīn, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Jubayr, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: Every woman who has a husband — having intercourse with her is fornication (zinā), except what has been taken as captive. * - Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: Ibn ʿAṭiyya related to us, saying: Isrāʾīl related to us, on the authority of Abū Ḥaṣīn, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Jubayr, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, the same. 7125 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya related to me, on the authority of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭalḥa, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he says: Every woman who has a husband is forbidden to you, except a female slave (ama) whom you possess and who has a husband in the land of war (arḍ al-ḥarb); she is licit for you after you have ascertained her womb (after the istibrāʾ). 7126 - And al-Muthannā related to me, saying: ʿAmr ibn ʿAwn related to us, saying: Hushaym informed us, on the authority of Khālid, on the authority of Abī Qilāba, concerning His word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: These are the women whom you have taken as captives; when a woman has been taken captive and she has a husband among her people, then there is no objection to your having intercourse with her. 7127 - Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: Every married woman who has a husband is forbidden, except what your right hand possesses of the captives, even though she is married and has a husband; thereby she is not forbidden to you. He said: My father used to say that. 7128 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: ʿUtba ibn Saʿīd al-Ḥimṣī related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Makḥūl, concerning His word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: The captives (al-sabāyā).
Those who held this view relied upon the narrations that have been transmitted that this verse was revealed concerning the captives who were taken from Awṭās.
Mention of the narration concerning that: 7129 - Bishr ibn Muʿādh related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, on the authority of Abī al-Khalīl, on the authority of Abī ʿAlqama al-Hāshimī, on the authority of Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī: that the Prophet of Allah ﷺ on the day of Ḥunayn sent an army to Awṭās; they encountered an enemy and took captive women who had husbands among the polytheists (mushrikīn). The Muslims felt uneasy about having intercourse with them, whereupon Allah, blessed and exalted is He, revealed this verse: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , that is to say: they are licit for you once their waiting period (ʿiddah) has elapsed. * - Muḥammad ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, on the authority of Ṣāliḥ Abī al-Khalīl: that Abū ʿAlqama al-Hāshimī transmitted, that Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī transmitted: that the Prophet of Allah ﷺ on the day of Ḥunayn sent out a force; they encountered one of the tribes of the Arabs on the day of Awṭās, defeated them, and took from them captive women. Some people among the companions of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ felt uneasy about having intercourse with them on account of their husbands, whereupon Allah, blessed and exalted is He, revealed: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess among them, and that is therefore licit for you. * - ʿAlī ibn Saʿīd al-Kinānī related to me, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥīm ibn Sulaymān related to us, on the authority of Ashʿath ibn Sawwār, on the authority of ʿUthmān al-Battī, on the authority of Abī al-Khalīl, on the authority of Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī, who said: When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ marched against the people of Awṭās, we said: O Messenger of Allah, how can we have intercourse with women whose lineage and husbands we know? He said: Then this verse was revealed: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess . * - Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Al-Thawrī informed us, on the authority of ʿUthmān al-Battī, [ on the authority of Abī al-Khalīl ] on the authority of Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī, who said: We took women from the captives of Awṭās who had husbands, and we found it reprehensible to have intercourse with them while they had husbands. We asked the Prophet ﷺ about it, whereupon was revealed: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , and so we deemed their private parts licit for us. * - Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of Qatāda, on the authority of Abī al-Khalīl, on the authority of Abū Saʿīd, who said: It was revealed on the day of Awṭās; the Muslims took captive women who had husbands in polytheism (shirk), whereupon He said: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he says: except what Allah has allotted to you as spoils of war (fayʾ). He said: and so we thereby deemed their private parts licit.
And others of those who said "the muḥṣanāt in this place are the married women" said previously: they are every woman who has a husband, and she is forbidden to anyone other than her husband, except when she is a female slave (mamlūka) whom a buyer buys from her master — then she becomes licit for her buyer, and the sale by her master annuls the marriage between her and her husband.
Mention of who said that: 7130 - Abū al-Sāʾib Salm ibn Junāda related to me, saying: Abū Muʿāwiya related to us, on the authority of al-Aʿmash, on the authority of Ibrāhīm, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh, concerning His word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: Every woman who has a husband is forbidden to you, except when you buy her, or what your right hand possesses. * - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar related to us, on the authority of Shuʿba, on the authority of Mughīra, on the authority of Ibrāhīm: that he was asked about the female slave who is sold while she has a husband. He said: ʿAbd Allāh used to say: Her sale is her divorce (ṭalāq), and he recited this verse: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess . * - Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Jarīr related to us, on the authority of Mughīra, on the authority of Ibrāhīm, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh, concerning His word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: Every woman who has a husband is forbidden to you, except what you have bought with your money; and he used to say: The sale of the female slave is her divorce. 7131 - Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of al-Zuhrī, on the authority of Ibn al-Musayyab, his word: And the married women among the women , he said: They are the women who have husbands; Allah has forbidden marriage with them, except what your right hand possesses, for her sale is her divorce. Maʿmar said: And al-Ḥasan said something similar. 7132 - Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, on the authority of al-Ḥasan, concerning His word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: When she has a husband, then her sale is her divorce. 7133 - Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, that Ubayy ibn Kaʿb, Jābir ibn ʿAbd Allāh, and Anas ibn Mālik said: Her sale is her divorce. 7134 - Muḥammad ibn al-Muthannā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, that Ubayy ibn Kaʿb, Jābir, and Ibn ʿAbbās said: Her sale is her divorce. * - Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: ʿUmar ibn ʿUbayd related to us, on the authority of Mughīra, on the authority of Ibrāhīm, he said: ʿAbd Allāh said: The sale of the female slave is her divorce. * - Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Manṣūr and Mughīra and al-Aʿmash, on the authority of Ibrāhīm, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh, he said: The sale of the female slave is her divorce. * - Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: Muʾammal related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Ḥammād, on the authority of Ibrāhīm, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh, the same. * - Ibn al-Muthannā related to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar related to us, saying: Shuʿba related to us, on the authority of Ḥammād, on the authority of Ibrāhīm, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh, the same. 7135 - Yaʿqūb ibn Ibrāhīm related to me, saying: Ibn ʿUlayya related to us, on the authority of Khālid, on the authority of ʿIkrima, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: The divorce of the female slave is sixfold: her sale is her divorce, her emancipation (ʿitq) is her divorce, her gifting away is her divorce, her manumission is her divorce, and the divorce by her husband is her divorce. 7136 - Aḥmad ibn al-Mughīra al-Ḥimṣī related to me, saying: ʿUthmān ibn Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of ʿĪsā ibn Abī Isḥāq, on the authority of Ashʿath, on the authority of al-Ḥasan, on the authority of Ubayy ibn Kaʿb: that he said: The sale of the female slave is her divorce. 7137 - Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, on the authority of ʿAwf, on the authority of al-Ḥasan, who said: The sale of the female slave is her divorce, and his sale is his divorce. 7138 - Ḥumayd ibn Masʿada related to us, saying: Bishr ibn al-Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Khālid related to us, on the authority of Abī Qilāba, he said: ʿAbd Allāh said: Her buyer has the most right to her private part. He means: the female slave who is sold while she has a husband. * - Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Al-Muʿtamir related to us, on the authority of his father, on the authority of al-Ḥasan, he said: The divorce of the female slave is her sale. * - Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Sufyān ibn Ḥabīb related to us, saying: Yūnus related to us, on the authority of al-Ḥasan, that Ubayy said: Her sale is her divorce. 7139 - Aḥmad related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Khālid, on the authority of Abī Qilāba, on the authority of Ibn Masʿūd, who said: When the female slave is sold while she has a husband, then her master has the most right to her private part. 7140 - Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Yazīd ibn Zurayʿ related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to me, on the authority of Qatāda, on the authority of Abī Maʿshar, on the authority of Ibrāhīm, he said: Her sale is her divorce. He said: Then Ibrāhīm was asked: And his sale (of a male slave)? He said: Concerning that we say nothing.
And others said: No, the meaning of al-muḥṣanāt in this place is: the chaste women (al-ʿafāʾif). They said: and the interpretation of the verse is: also the chaste women among the women are forbidden to you, except what your right hands possess of them by means of a marriage, a bride-gift (ṣadāq), the customary practice (sunna), and witnesses, from one to four.
Mention of who said that: 7141 - Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Abī Jaʿfar, on the authority of Abī al-ʿĀliya, he said: He says: Marry what pleases you of the women: two, three, or four; then He forbade what He forbade of consanguinity (nasab) and affinity (ṣihr); thereafter He said: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: Then He returned to the beginning of the sūra, to four, and said: they too are forbidden, except with a bride-gift, the customary practice, and witnesses. 7142 - Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of Ayyūb, on the authority of Ibn Sīrīn, on the authority of ʿAbīda, he said: Allah made four licit for you at the beginning of the sūra, and He forbade marriage with every married woman after the four, except what your right hand possesses. Maʿmar said: And Ibn Ṭāwūs informed me on the authority of his father: "except what your right hand possesses", he said: and your wife is among what your right hand possesses; he says: Allah has forbidden fornication (zinā); it is not licit for you to have intercourse with a woman, except what your right hand possesses. 7143 - ʿAlī ibn Masrūq al-Kindī related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥīm ibn Sulaymān related to us, on the authority of Hishām ibn Ḥassān, on the authority of Ibn Sīrīn, he said: I asked ʿAbīda about the word of Allah, exalted is He: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: Four. 7144 - ʿAlī ibn Saʿīd related to me, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥīm related to us, on the authority of Ashʿath ibn Sawwār, on the authority of Ibn Sīrīn, on the authority of ʿAbīda, on the authority of ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, the same. 7145 - Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: Ibn Yamān related to us, on the authority of Ashʿath, on the authority of Jaʿfar, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Jubayr, concerning His word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: The four; what comes after that is forbidden. 7146 - Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to us, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, he said: I asked ʿAṭāʾ about it, and he said: Allah forbade the women who are blood relatives, then He said: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he says: He forbade what exceeds four of them. 7147 - Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Aḥmad ibn al-Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī: And the married women among the women , he said: The fifth is forbidden, just as the mothers and the sisters are forbidden.
Mention of who said: by al-muḥṣanāt in this place are meant the chaste women among the Muslims and the People of the Book (ahl al-kitāb): 7148 - Isḥāq ibn Ibrāhīm ibn Ḥabīb ibn al-Shahīd related to me, saying: ʿAttāb ibn Bashīr related to us, on the authority of Khuṣayf, on the authority of Mujāhid, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His word: And the married women , he said: The chaste, sensible woman, whether a Muslim woman or of the People of the Book. 7149 - Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: Ibn Idrīs related to us, on the authority of some of his companions, on the authority of Mujāhid: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: The chaste women.
And others said: al-muḥṣanāt in this place are the married women, but what Allah forbade of them in this verse is the committing of fornication (zinā) with them, and He made them licit by His word: except what your right hands possess , by means of marriage or ownership.
Mention of who said that: 7150 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, on the authority of ʿĪsā, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning the word of Allah, exalted is He: And the married women , he said: He forbade fornication. * - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Abū Ḥudhayfa related to us, saying: Shibl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: And the married women among the women , he said: He forbade fornication, namely that a woman should be married to two husbands. 7151 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya ibn Ṣāliḥ related to me, on the authority of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭalḥa, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās: His word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: Every woman who has a husband is forbidden to you, except the four who are married with proof (al-bayyina) and the bride-gift (al-mahr). 7152 - Aḥmad ibn ʿUthmān related to us, saying: Wahb ibn Jarīr related to us, saying: My father related to us, saying: I heard al-Nuʿmān ibn Rāshid transmit on the authority of al-Zuhrī, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn al-Musayyab: that he was asked about the muḥṣanāt among the women, he said: They are the women who have husbands. 7153 - Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Ḥammād, on the authority of Ibrāhīm, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh, he said: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: The women who have husbands, among the Muslims and the polytheists (mushrikīn). And ʿAlī said: The women who have husbands among the polytheists. 7154 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Al-Ḥimmānī related to us, saying: Sharīk related to us, on the authority of Sālim, on the authority of Saʿīd, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His word: And the married women among the women , he said: Every woman who has a husband is forbidden to you. 7155 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Al-Ḥimmānī related to us, saying: Sharīk related to us, on the authority of ʿAbd al-Karīm, on the authority of Makḥūl, something similar. 7156 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Al-Ḥimmānī related to us, saying: Sharīk related to us, on the authority of al-Ṣalt ibn Bahrām, on the authority of Ibrāhīm, something similar. 7157 - Muḥammad ibn Saʿd, he said: My father related to me, saying: My uncle related to me, saying: My father related to me, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, his word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess ... up to And licit for you is what is beyond that , he means: the women who have husbands — it is not licit to marry them; he says: one does not deceive and does not promise, so that she rebels against her husband. And every woman who is not married except with proof and bride-gift belongs to the muḥṣanāt that Allah has forbidden, except what your right hands possess, that is to say: what Allah has made licit of the women, and that is what is made licit of the free women: two, three, and four.
And others said: No, they are the women of the People of the Book.
Mention of who said that: 7158 - Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Yaḥyā ibn Wāḍiḥ related to us, saying: ʿĪsā ibn ʿUbayd related to us, on the authority of Ayyūb ibn Abī al-ʿAwjāʾ, on the authority of Abī Mijlaz, concerning His word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , he said: The women of the People of the Book.
And others said: No, they are the free women (al-ḥarāʾir).
Mention of who said that: 7159 - Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: Ḥammād ibn Masʿada related to me, saying: Sulaymān ibn ʿArʿara related to us, concerning His word: And the married women among the women , he said: The free women.
And others said: al-muḥṣanāt are the chaste women and the married women, and both categories are forbidden except by a marriage or the right of the right hand (mulk al-yamīn).
Mention of who said that: 7160 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Al-Layth related to me, saying: ʿUqayl related to me, on the authority of Ibn Shihāb — he was asked about the word of Allah: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess ... the verse — he said: We hold that in this verse He has forbidden that the muḥṣanāt among the women who have husbands be married while they have their husbands — and the muḥṣanāt are the chaste women — and they do not become licit except by a marriage or the right of the right hand. And iḥṣān (chastity/inviolability) is of two kinds: the iḥṣān of marriage and the iḥṣān of chastity, among the free women and the female slaves; all of that Allah has forbidden, except by a marriage or the right of the right hand.
And others said: this verse was revealed concerning your wives who emigrated to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ while they had husbands, whereupon some Muslims married them, and afterwards their husbands arrived as emigrants; then the Muslims were forbidden to marry them.
Mention of who said that: 7161 - Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, he said: Ḥabīb ibn Abī Thābit related to me, on the authority of Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī, who said: The women came to us, then their husbands emigrated, whereupon we forbade them (the women to ourselves) — that is His word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess . And Ibn ʿAbbās and a group of others mentioned that the interpretation of it was unclear to them. 7162 - Muḥammad ibn al-Muthannā related to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar related to us, saying: Shuʿba related to us, on the authority of ʿAmr ibn Murra, he said: A man said to Saʿīd ibn Jubayr: Did you not see Ibn ʿAbbās, when he was asked about this verse: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess , that he said nothing about it? He said: Then he said: He did not know it. 7163 - Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Hushaym related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Yaḥyā informed us, on the authority of Mujāhid, who said: If I knew of anyone who could interpret this verse for me, I would travel to him upon the bellies of the camels (a long journey) — His word: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess ... up to His word: so what you have enjoyed of them ... to the end of the verse.
Abū Jaʿfar (al-Ṭabarī) said: As for al-muḥṣanāt, this is the plural of muḥṣana, and that is the woman whose private part has been shielded by a husband. One says of this: aḥṣana al-rajulu imraʾatahu (the man protected/made his wife inviolable), so that he yuḥṣinuhā iḥṣānan; and ḥaṣunat hiya fa-hiya taḥṣun ḥaṣānatan: when she is chaste, and she is ḥāṣin among the women: chaste, as al-ʿAjjāj said: "And a chaste one (ḥāṣin) among the chaste smooth (purely kept) women, far from defilement and from the touching of sin (al-waqs)." And one also says, when she is chaste and guards her private part against licentiousness: qad aḥṣanat farjahā fa-hiya muḥṣana, as He, mighty is His praise, said: And Maryam, the daughter of ʿImrān, who guarded her private part (66:12), in the meaning: she guarded it from suspicion and withheld it from licentiousness. And the fortifications of the cities and villages are called ḥuṣūn, because of their warding off of whoever threatens them and their inhabitants, and their protection of what lies behind them against enemies who intend harm; therefore it is also said of a coat of mail: an inviolable (ḥaṣīna) coat of mail.
When, then, the origin of iḥṣān is that which we have mentioned — warding off and protection — then it is clear that the meaning of His word: And the married women among the women is: and the shielded (al-mamnūʿāt) women among the women are forbidden to you except what your right hands possess . And since that is its meaning, and iḥṣān may at times be by freedom (ḥurriyya), as He, mighty is His praise, said: And the married (free) women of those to whom the Book was given before you (5:5); and it may be by Islam, as He, exalted is His mention, said: And when they (the female slaves) are protected by marriage (aḥṣanna) and then commit a shameful deed, then upon them is half the punishment that is upon the free women (4:25); and it may be by chastity, as He, mighty is His praise, said: And those who accuse the chaste women and then do not bring four witnesses (24:4); and it may be by the husband — and He, blessed and exalted is He, in His word: And the married women among the women did not distinguish a particular muḥṣana over another muḥṣana — therefore it is necessary that every muḥṣana, by whichever meaning of iḥṣān her inviolability has come about, is forbidden to us, whether by fornication (sifāḥ) or by marriage, except what our right hands possess of them by purchase — as the Book of Allah, mighty is His praise, has permitted us — or by marriage, in accordance with what the revelation of Allah has exempted for us.
For that which He, blessed and exalted is He, has permitted us by marriage of the free women is the four, in addition to those who are forbidden to us by consanguinity and affinity; and of the female slaves: what we have taken from the enemy as captives, in addition to those whose relation corresponds to the relation of those who are forbidden to us of the free women by consanguinity and affinity — for they and the free women are equal in that respect, as to what is licit and forbidden, in their relations — and in addition to those whom we have taken as captives from the people of the two Scriptures (the Jews and the Christians) while they have husbands, for the capture makes them licit for the one who has captured them, after the istibrāʾ (ascertaining of the womb) and after the right of Allah, blessed and exalted is He, that He has assigned for the people of the fifth (ahl al-khums) of them, has been set apart.
As for fornication (sifāḥ), Allah, blessed and exalted is He, has forbidden it with respect to all of them; He has not made it licit for any free woman, nor female slave, nor Muslim woman, nor unbelieving polytheist woman. And as for the female slave who has a husband, she does not become licit for her owner except after the divorce by her husband, or after his death and the elapsing of her waiting period (ʿiddah) after him. As for the sale by her master, it does not bring about a separation between her and her husband, nor does it make her licit for her buyer, on account of the soundness of the narration of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ: "that he gave Barīra the choice, when ʿĀʾisha had emancipated her, between remaining with her husband — to whom her owners had married her in the state of her slavery — and separating from him." The Prophet ﷺ did not regard ʿĀʾisha's emancipation of her as a divorce. For if her emancipation and the lapsing of ʿĀʾisha's ownership over her had been a divorce, then the choice that the Prophet ﷺ gave her between remaining with her husband and separating would have had no meaning, and then by the emancipation the separation would have become necessary, and by the lapsing of ʿĀʾisha's ownership over her the divorce. But since the Prophet ﷺ gave her the choice between what we have mentioned and remaining with her husband and separating, it is known that he gave her that choice only while the marriage bond was still established, as it was before the lapsing of ʿĀʾisha's ownership over her. Thus the emancipation, which is the lapsing of the owner's ownership over the female slave who has a husband, is comparable to the sale, which is the lapsing of her owner's ownership over her, since the one is a lapsing by sale and the other by emancipation, in the respect that by neither of them, nor by one of them, does a separation between her and her husband become necessary, nor a divorce — even though they differ in other respects, namely that upon emancipation she has the choice between remaining with her husband and separating, for a reason that differs from the meaning of the sale, whereas upon the sale she does not have that.
Should someone say: And how can the exception in His word: And the married women among the women intend that which lies beyond the four, from the fifth to what exceeds it, by marriage, when the women married by marriage are not possessions (female slaves)? Then it is said to him: Allah, exalted is He, by His word: except what your right hands possess did not specifically designate the female slaves who are owned in bondage, to the exclusion of her over whom one possesses the right of disposal by the marriage bond; rather, He encompassed by His word: except what your right hands possess both meanings, namely the ownership of the person (bondage) and the ownership of enjoyment by marriage, for all of that our right hands possess: this one is an ownership of enjoyment, and that one is an ownership of service, enjoyment, and disposal over what is permitted to her owner of her.
And whoever claims that Allah, blessed and exalted is He, by His word: And the married women among the women intended a muḥṣana and a non-muḥṣana, besides those whom we mentioned first, and that by the exception in His word: except what your right hands possess He intended some of our possessions to the exclusion of others — contrary to what we have demonstrated is not intended thereby — that one is asked for the proof of his claim, whether from a fundamental principle or from an analogy, and he will not pronounce on it without one objecting to him the like of it concerning the other.
Should one of you rely upon the narration of Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī that this verse was revealed concerning the captives of Awṭās, then it is said to him: The captives of Awṭās did not become available (for intercourse) by ownership and capture alone, without Islam; for they were polytheist idolatresses, and it is established by proof that the women of the idolaters do not become licit by ownership without Islam, and that when they accept Islam, Islam brings about a separation between them and the husbands — whether they are captives or emigrant women — except that, when they are captives, they become licit as soon as they accept Islam, after the istibrāʾ.
There is therefore no proof for whoever argues that the muḥṣanāt that He intended by His word And the married women among the women are the married women among the captives to the exclusion of others, on the basis of the narration of Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī that this was revealed concerning the captives of Awṭās; for even though it was revealed concerning them, it was not revealed with respect to making intercourse with them licit by capture in particular, to the exclusion of the other meanings that we have mentioned — all the more so since a verse is revealed in a particular meaning and then encompasses both that concerning which it was revealed and what falls outside it, so that its ruling binds all that it encompasses, for what we have set forth in our book "Kitāb al-bayān ʿan uṣūl al-aḥkām" concerning the general (ʿumūm) and the particular (khuṣūṣ).
A prescription of Allah upon you (kitāb Allāh ʿalaykum)
The statement concerning the interpretation of His word, exalted is He: A prescription of Allah upon you . He, exalted is His mention, means: a prescription (kitāb) of Allah upon you. He brought forward the word "prescription" as a verbal noun (maṣdar) that is not derived from the same verb. That was permissible here, because His word: Forbidden to you are your mothers ... up to His word: A prescription of Allah upon you has the meaning: Allah has written for you as a prescription the prohibition of what is forbidden of that and the making licit of what is licit of that. And as we have said it, so too said the exegetes.
Mention of who said that: 7164 - Muḥammad ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: Abū Aḥmad related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Manṣūr, on the authority of Ibrāhīm, he said: A prescription of Allah upon you , he said: What is forbidden to you. 7165 - Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, he said: I asked ʿAṭāʾ about it, and he said: A prescription of Allah upon you , he said: It is that which He has prescribed for you: the four, that you take no more than that. 7166 - Yaʿqūb ibn Ibrāhīm related to me, saying: Ibn ʿUlayya related to us, on the authority of Ibn ʿAwn, on the authority of Muḥammad ibn Sīrīn, he said: I said to ʿAbīda: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess — a prescription of Allah upon you , and Ibn ʿAwn pointed with his four fingers. * - Yaʿqūb ibn Ibrāhīm related to me, saying: Hushaym related to us, saying: Hishām informed us, on the authority of Ibn Sīrīn, he said: I asked ʿAbīda about His word: A prescription of Allah upon you , he said: Four. 7167 - Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Aḥmad ibn al-Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī: A prescription of Allah upon you : the four. 7168 - Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His word: A prescription of Allah upon you , he said: This is Allah's command to you; he said: He means what He has forbidden them of these and what He has made licit for them. And he recited: And licit for you is what is beyond that, that you seek with your wealth ... to the end of the verse. He said: A prescription of Allah upon you, which He has prescribed, and His command that He has charged you with. A prescription of Allah upon you : the command of Allah.
And some of the grammarians claimed that His word: A prescription of Allah upon you stands in the accusative (manṣūb) by way of exhortation (ighrāʾ), with the meaning: "the prescription of Allah is incumbent upon you — hold fast to the prescription of Allah". But what he said about that is not current in the language of the Arabs, for one scarcely places (anything) in the accusative by means of the particle with which one exhorts; one scarcely says: "your brother is incumbent upon you" or "your father is with you", even though it is permissible. And what is more fitting for the Book of Allah is that it be understood in accordance with what is known from the language of those in whose language this was revealed, together with what we have mentioned of the interpretation of the exegetes in the meaning that we have stated, and contrary to the direction that he gave it, namely the one who claimed that it stands in the accusative by way of exhortation.
And licit for you is what is beyond that, that you seek with your wealth
The statement concerning the interpretation of His word, exalted is He: And licit for you is what is beyond that, that you seek with your wealth . The exegetes differed concerning the interpretation of that. Some of them said: the meaning of that is: and licit for you is what is below the fifth, that you seek with your wealth by way of marriage.
Mention of who said that: 7169 - Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Aḥmad ibn al-Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī: And licit for you is what is beyond that : what is below the four, that you seek with your wealth. 7170 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: My father related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of Hishām, on the authority of Ibn Sīrīn, on the authority of ʿAbīda al-Salmānī: And licit for you is what is beyond that , he means: what is below the four.
And others said: No, the meaning of that is: and licit for you is what is beyond that of those whose prohibition for you has been mentioned among your blood relatives.
Mention of who said that: 7171 - Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to us, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, he said: I asked ʿAṭāʾ about it, and he said: And licit for you is what is beyond that , he said: what lies beyond the blood relatives, that you seek with your wealth ... the verse.
And others said: No, the meaning of that is: And licit for you is what is beyond that : the number of what has been made licit for you of the muḥṣanāt among the women, the free women and the female slaves.
Mention of who said that: 7172 - Muḥammad ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His word: And licit for you is what is beyond that , he said: what your right hands possess.
Abū Jaʿfar (al-Ṭabarī) said: And the most correct of the views concerning that is what we are about to set forth; and that is that Allah, mighty is His praise, made clear to His servants what is forbidden by consanguinity and affinity, then what is forbidden of the muḥṣanāt among the women, and thereafter informed them, mighty is His praise, that He has made licit for them all that falls outside these forbidden women clarified in these two verses, that we may seek it with our wealth, by marriage and by the right of the right hand, not by fornication (sifāḥ).
Should someone say: We know the licit women who lie beyond the women forbidden by consanguinity and affinity, but what then are the licit ones among the muḥṣanāt and the forbidden ones among them? Then it is said: that is what is below the fifth, from one to four — in accordance with what we have mentioned from ʿAbīda and al-Suddī — among the free women; as for the female slaves, other than those who have husbands, it is not a bounded number, by the right of the right hand. And we have only said that it is so, because His word: And licit for you is what is beyond that is general with respect to every woman who is licit for us, that we may seek her with our wealth; it is therefore no more fitting to direct its meaning at some of them than at others, unless there were a proof that it is so, to which one must submit — and there is no proof that it is so.
And the reciters differed concerning the recitation of His word: And licit for you is what is beyond that . Some of them recited it: "wa-aḥalla lakum" with a fatḥa on the alif of aḥalla, with the meaning: Allah has prescribed it for you and has made licit for you what is beyond that. And others recited it: wa-uḥilla lakum mā warāʾa dhālikum (passive), by analogy with His word: Forbidden to you are your mothers ... And licit for you is what is beyond that . Abū Jaʿfar (al-Ṭabarī) said: And what we say about that is that they are two well-known, current recitations in the recitation of Islam, which do not differ in meaning; with whichever of the two the reciter recites, he hits the mark.
And as for the meaning of His word: what is beyond that , He means: what is apart from these whom I have forbidden to you, that you may seek it with your wealth; He says: that you seek it and endeavor to acquire it with your wealth, whether by purchase therewith or by marriage with a known bride-gift (ṣadāq), as He, mighty is His praise, said: and they reject what is beyond that (2:91), He means: what is apart from that and what is besides that. And as for the position of "an" in His word: that you seek with your wealth , it stands in the nominative as an apposition (tarjama) to "mā" in His word: And licit for you is what is beyond that in the recitation of the one who recites: wa-uḥilla with a ḍamma on the alif; and it stands in the accusative in the recitation of the one who recites it: "wa-aḥalla" with a fatḥa on the alif. And the accusative is possible in both recitations in the meaning: and licit for you is what is beyond that, that you may seek (li-an tabtaghū); for when the prepositional lām was elided, it attached itself to the preceding verb and came into the accusative. And it is also possible that it stands in the genitive with this meaning, since in this place it is known that the sentence requires the lām.
Chaste, not fornicating (muḥṣinīna ghayra musāfiḥīn)
The statement concerning the interpretation of His word, exalted is He: Chaste, not fornicating . He means by His word, mighty is His praise: chaste (muḥṣinīn) : chaste by your seeking of what is beyond the women forbidden to you, with your wealth. not fornicating (ghayra musāfiḥīn) , he says: not fornicators (muzānīn). As: 7173 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, on the authority of ʿĪsā, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning His word: chaste , he said: being married; not fornicating , he said: fornicators with every fornicating woman. * - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Abū Ḥudhayfa related to us, saying: Shibl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, he said: chaste : being married; not fornicating : al-sifāḥ is fornication (zinā). 7174 - Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Aḥmad ibn Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī: chaste, not fornicating , he says: chaste, not fornicators (zunāt).
So what you have enjoyed of them, then give them their reward (recompense) as an obligation (fa-mā istamtaʿtum bihi minhunna fa-ātūhunna ujūrahunna farīḍa)
The statement concerning the interpretation of His word, exalted is He: So what you have enjoyed of them, then give them their reward as an obligation . The exegetes differed concerning the interpretation of His word: So what you have enjoyed of them . Some of them said: the meaning of that is: so whomever of them you marry and have intercourse with — namely of the women — then give them their reward as an obligation , He means: their bride-gifts (ṣadaqāt) as a known obligation.
Mention of who said that: 7175 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya ibn Ṣāliḥ related to me, on the authority of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭalḥa, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, his word: So what you have enjoyed of them, then give them their reward as an obligation , he says: When a man among you marries (a woman) and then has intercourse with her once, then her full bride-gift has become obligatory. And al-istimtāʿ (enjoyment) is marriage, and that is His word: And give the women their bride-gifts as a gift (4:4). 7176 - Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of al-Ḥasan, concerning His word: So what you have enjoyed of them , he said: That is marriage. 7177 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Abū Ḥudhayfa related to us, saying: Shibl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: So what you have enjoyed of them : marriage. * - Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, on the authority of Mujāhid, his word: So what you have enjoyed of them , he said: He meant marriage. 7178 - Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His word: So what you have enjoyed of them, then give them their reward as an obligation ... the verse, he said: This is marriage; and what in the Qurʾān means ankaḥa ("to give in marriage") is: when you take her and enjoy her, then give her her reward, the bride-gift; and if she remits to you anything of it, then it is permitted to you. Allah has prescribed for her the waiting period (ʿiddah) and has assigned to her the inheritance (mīrāth). He said: and al-istimtāʿ here is marriage, when he has had intercourse with her.
And others said: No, the meaning of that is: so of whomever of them you have enjoyed for a reward, the enjoyment of pleasure (tamattuʿ al-ladhdha), not by an unrestricted marriage by way of the marriage that takes place with a guardian (walī), witnesses, and bride-gift.
Mention of who said that: 7179 - Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Aḥmad ibn Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī: "So what you have enjoyed of them up to a fixed term, then give them their reward as an obligation, and there is no sin upon you in what you mutually agree upon after the obligation." This is the temporary marriage (al-mutʿa): the man marries the woman under a condition up to a fixed term, and he has two witnesses bear witness, and he marries with the permission of her guardian; and when the term has elapsed, he has no more authority over her, and she is free of him, and upon her is that she ascertain what is in her womb (istibrāʾ), and there is no inheritance between them — neither of the two inherits from the other. 7180 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, on the authority of ʿĪsā, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: So what you have enjoyed of them , he said: he means the temporary marriage (nikāḥ al-mutʿa). 7181 - Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: Yaḥyā ibn ʿĪsā related to us, saying: Nuṣayr ibn Abī al-Ashʿath related to us, saying: Ḥabīb ibn Abī Thābit related to me, on the authority of his father, he said: Ibn ʿAbbās gave me a muṣḥaf (copy of the Qurʾān) and said: This is according to the recitation of Ubayy. Abū Kurayb said: Yaḥyā said: Then I saw the muṣḥaf with Nuṣayr, in which it stood: "So what you have enjoyed of them up to a fixed term". 7182 - Ḥumayd ibn Masʿada related to us, saying: Bishr ibn al-Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Dāwūd related to us, on the authority of Abī Naḍra, he said: I asked Ibn ʿAbbās about the temporary marriage with women (mutʿat al-nisāʾ). He said: Do you not recite sūrat al-Nisāʾ? He said: I said: Yes indeed. He said: Do you not then recite in it: "So what you have enjoyed of them up to a fixed term"? I said: No, if I were to recite it thus, I would not have asked you about it! He said: It is indeed so. * - Ibn al-Muthannā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to me, saying: Dāwūd related to me, on the authority of Abī Naḍra, he said: I asked Ibn ʿAbbās about the mutʿa, and he mentioned something similar. * - Ibn al-Muthannā related to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar related to us, saying: Shuʿba related to us, on the authority of Abī Salama, on the authority of Abī Naḍra, he said: I recited this verse to Ibn ʿAbbās: So what you have enjoyed of them . Ibn ʿAbbās said: "up to a fixed term". I said: I do not recite it thus! He said: By Allah, thus did Allah send it down — three times. 7183 - Ibn al-Muthannā related to us, saying: Abū Dāwūd related to us, saying: Shuʿba related to us, on the authority of Abī Isḥāq, on the authority of ʿUmayr: that Ibn ʿAbbās recited: "So what you have enjoyed of them up to a fixed term". * - Ibn al-Muthannā related to us, saying: Ibn Abī ʿAdī related to us, on the authority of Shuʿba; and Khallād ibn Aslam related to us, saying: Al-Naḍr informed us, saying: Shuʿba informed us, on the authority of Abī Isḥāq, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, something similar. 7184 - Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, he said: In the recitation of Ubayy ibn Kaʿb it stands: "So what you have enjoyed of them up to a fixed term". 7185 - Muḥammad ibn al-Muthannā related to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar related to us, saying: Shuʿba related to us, on the authority of al-Ḥakam, he said: I asked him about this verse: And the married women among the women, except what your right hands possess up to this place: So what you have enjoyed of them : is it abrogated (mansūkha)? He said: No. Al-Ḥakam said: ʿAlī, may Allah be pleased with him, said: Had ʿUmar, may Allah be pleased with him, not forbidden the mutʿa, no one would have committed fornication except a wretch (shaqī). 7186 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Abū Nuʿaym related to us, saying: ʿĪsā ibn ʿUmar al-Qāriʾ al-Asadī related to us, on the authority of ʿAmr ibn Murra, that he heard Saʿīd ibn Jubayr recite: "So what you have enjoyed of them up to a fixed term, then give them their reward".
Abū Jaʿfar (al-Ṭabarī) said: And the most correct of the two interpretations concerning that is the interpretation of the one who interpreted it thus: so of whomever of them you marry and have intercourse with, then give them their reward; on account of the proof that has been established for the prohibition by Allah of the temporary marriage with women, other than by means of a valid marriage or valid ownership, on the tongue of His Messenger ﷺ. 7187 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: My father related to us, on the authority of ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ibn ʿUmar ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz, he said: Al-Rabīʿ ibn Sabra al-Juhanī related to me, on the authority of his father: that the Prophet ﷺ said: "Enjoy these women" — and al-istimtāʿ meant among us at that time marriage. And we have demonstrated elsewhere than in this place in our books that the mutʿa, other than by a valid marriage, is forbidden, with that which exempts us from repeating it in this place. And as for the narration of Ubayy ibn Kaʿb and Ibn ʿAbbās, namely their recitation of both: "So what you have enjoyed of them up to a fixed term", that is a recitation that deviates from what the muṣḥafs of the Muslims have transmitted, and it is not permitted to anyone to add to the Book of Allah, exalted is He, anything that is not confirmed by a report that cuts off all excuse, coming from one whose contradiction is not permitted.
And there is no sin upon you in what you mutually agree upon after the obligation (wa-lā junāḥa ʿalaykum fī-mā tarāḍaytum bihi min baʿdi al-farīḍa)
The statement concerning the interpretation of His word, exalted is He: And there is no sin upon you in what you mutually agree upon after the obligation . The exegetes differed concerning the interpretation of that. Some of them said: the meaning of that is: there is no objection upon you, O husbands, when a setback befalls you after you have fixed for your wives their rewards as an obligation, in what you mutually agree upon, of remission and acquittal, after the obligation that you have fixed for them.
Mention of who said that: 7188 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Al-Muʿtamir ibn Sulaymān related to us, on the authority of his father, he said: Ḥaḍramī claimed that men used to fix the bride-gift (mahr), and then it could happen that one of them was struck by a setback (financial hardship), whereupon Allah said: And there is no sin upon you in what you mutually agree upon after the obligation .
And others said: the meaning of that is: and there is no sin upon you, O people, in what you and the women of whom you have enjoyed up to a fixed term mutually agree upon — when the term that you had fixed between you and them for the separation has elapsed — that they extend the term for you and you increase the reward and the obligation, before they ascertain their wombs.
Mention of who said that: 7189 - Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Aḥmad ibn Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī: And there is no sin upon you in what you mutually agree upon after the obligation : if he wishes to satisfy her after the first obligation — he means: the reward that he gave her for his enjoyment of her — before the term between them has elapsed, and he says: I also wish to enjoy you for such-and-such, and he increases (the reward) before she ascertains her womb, and thereafter the term elapses — that is His word: in what you mutually agree upon after the obligation .
And others said: the meaning of that is: and there is no sin upon you, O people, in what you and your wives mutually agree upon, after you have given them their rewards for your enjoyment of them, whether of remaining or of separating.
Mention of who said that: 7190 - Al-Muthannā related to us, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya ibn Ṣāliḥ related to us, on the authority of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭalḥa, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, his word: And there is no sin upon you in what you mutually agree upon after the obligation : and the mutual agreement is that he pays her her bride-gift in full and thereafter gives her the choice.
And others said: No, the meaning of that is: and there is no sin upon you in what your wives remit to you of their bride-gifts after the obligation.
Mention of who said that: 7191 - Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His word: And there is no sin upon you in what you mutually agree upon after the obligation , he said: if she remits to you anything of it, then it is permitted to you.
Abū Jaʿfar (al-Ṭabarī) said: And the most correct of these views is the view of the one who said: the meaning of that is: and there is no objection upon you, O people, in what you and your wives mutually agree upon, after you have given them their rewards for the marriage that has taken place between you and them — of remission of what was due to them from you, or acquittal, or postponement and remission. And that is comparable to His word, mighty is His praise: And give the women their bride-gifts as a gift; and if they remit to you anything of it of their own accord, then consume it with relish and pleasure (4:4). As for what al-Suddī said, that is a view without any meaning, on account of the invalidity of the view that it would be licit to have intercourse with a woman without marriage or the right of the right hand.
Indeed, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise (inna Allāha kāna ʿalīman ḥakīmā)
And as for His word: Indeed, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise , that means: indeed, Allah is the possessor of knowledge of what is good for you, O people, in your marriages and in your other affairs and the affairs of His other creatures, by means of the disposition that He ordains for you and for them, and in what He commands you and forbids you; into His wisdom no deficiency nor error creeps.
