Written by: ʿImrān Ayyūb Lāhorī
1. Captives (Asīr):
In Arabic, a captive is called أَسِير, plural أَسْرَى, أُسَرَاء, أَسَارَى. The word سَبِي refers to a female captive. The verb سَبَى – يَسْبِي means “to capture.”
[Al-Muʿjam al-Wasīṭ: p.17, p.415]
Technical Definition:
Those men (and by extension, women and children) who are taken captive in war after the Muslims gain dominance.
[Al-Fiqh al-Islāmī wa Adillatuhu: 6/369]
2. Spies (Jāsūs):
A spy is a person who investigates and gathers information; plural جَوَاسِيس.
The verbs جَسَّ، تَجَسَّسَ، اجْتَسَّ mean “to investigate, to spy.”
[Al-Muʿjam al-Wasīṭ: p.122]
3. Peace (Ṣulḥ):
In Arabic, al-hudnah means “truce” or “peace.” Its plural is هُدَن.
[Al-Muʿjam al-Wasīṭ: p.978; Al-Miṣbāḥ: p.983]
Technical Definition:
A peace agreement between Muslims and their enemies (ahl al-ḥarb) to cease fighting for a specified time, possibly with compensation or mutual conditions.
Scholarly Views:
❖ Allah Almighty says:
Arabic:
فَشُدُّوا الْوَثَاقَ فَإِمَّا مَنًّا بَعْدُ وَإِمَّا فِدَاءً
(Muḥammad: 4)
Translation:
“Bind firmly the captives; then (after the war) you may either release them as an act of grace or demand ransom.”
❖ Incident of Hawāzin:
Marwān bin Ḥakam and Miswar bin Makhramah narrated:
When the tribe of Hawāzin sent a delegation to the Prophet ﷺ asking for the return of their property and captives, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
Arabic:
أحب الحديث إلى أصدقه فاختاروا بعدى الطائفتين إما السبى وإما المال
Translation:
“The most beloved speech to me is the truest. Therefore, choose one of the two: either (return of) your captives or your property.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 2307–2308; Abū Dāwūd: 2693; Aḥmad: 4/326)
These captives were Arab tribesmen, proving that even Arab captives were taken.
❖ Hadith of ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها:
Abū Hurayrah رضي الله عنه narrated:
ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها had a slave girl from Banū Tamīm. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“Set her free, for she is from the descendants of Ismāʿīl.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 2543, 4366; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 2525; Aḥmad: 2/390)
The Prophet ﷺ said this because ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها had vowed to free a slave from the progeny of Ismāʿīl.
(Majmaʿ al-Zawā’id: 10/50; Ṭabarānī al-Awsaṭ: 7967; Nayl al-Awṭār: 5/71; Ṭabarānī al-Kabīr: 4/231)
The tribe of Banū Tamīm was a well-known Arab tribe.
❖ Hadith of Juwairiyah رضي الله عنها:
ʿAbdullāh bin ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما narrated:
Juwairiyah bint al-Ḥārith was among the captives from Banū al-Muṣṭaliq. She had agreed with her owner to pay for her freedom (mukātabah). The Prophet ﷺ married her and paid her freedom on her behalf. Following the marriage, the Companions freed all the captives from her tribe, saying, “They are now the Prophet’s relatives by marriage.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 2541; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 1356; Abū Dāwūd: 3931; Bayhaqī: 9/24; Ḥākim: 4/26; Aḥmad: 6/277)
Preferred (Rājiḥ) Opinion:
It is permissible to enslave Arabs, because all four actions — killing, ransoming, releasing, and enslaving enemy captives — are established in Sharīʿah. Whoever excludes some disbelievers from this ruling must bring valid proof.
(Nayl al-Awṭār: 5/74; Al-Rawḍah al-Nadiyyah: 2/752)
The narration stating:
Arabic:
لو كان الاسترقاق جائزا على العرب لكان اليوم إنما هو أسرى
Translation:
“If enslaving Arabs were permissible, they would have been captives today.”
is weak (ḍaʿīf).
Its chain includes al-Wāqidī, who is weak and unreliable.
Linguistic and Technical Definitions
1. Captives (Asīr):
In Arabic, a captive is called أَسِير, plural أَسْرَى, أُسَرَاء, أَسَارَى. The word سَبِي refers to a female captive. The verb سَبَى – يَسْبِي means “to capture.”
[Al-Muʿjam al-Wasīṭ: p.17, p.415]Technical Definition:
Those men (and by extension, women and children) who are taken captive in war after the Muslims gain dominance.
[Al-Fiqh al-Islāmī wa Adillatuhu: 6/369]2. Spies (Jāsūs):
A spy is a person who investigates and gathers information; plural جَوَاسِيس.
The verbs جَسَّ، تَجَسَّسَ، اجْتَسَّ mean “to investigate, to spy.”
[Al-Muʿjam al-Wasīṭ: p.122]3. Peace (Ṣulḥ):
In Arabic, al-hudnah means “truce” or “peace.” Its plural is هُدَن.
[Al-Muʿjam al-Wasīṭ: p.978; Al-Miṣbāḥ: p.983]Technical Definition:
A peace agreement between Muslims and their enemies (ahl al-ḥarb) to cease fighting for a specified time, possibly with compensation or mutual conditions.
Scholarly Views:
- (Jumhūr – Majority): The ruler or his representative has the authority to make peace treaties.
- (Ḥanafīs): A group of Muslims may enter a peace agreement without official authorization if it benefits all Muslims, as peace itself constitutes a form of amān (security).
[Āthār al-Ḥarb: p.662; Badāʾiʿ al-Ṣanāʾiʿ: 7/108; Ḥāshiyat al-Dusūqī: 2/189; Maʿnā al-Muḥtāj: 4/260; Al-Mughnī: 8/462; Al-Furūq: 1/207]
Qur’ānic Evidence
❖ Allah Almighty says:
Arabic:
فَشُدُّوا الْوَثَاقَ فَإِمَّا مَنًّا بَعْدُ وَإِمَّا فِدَاءً
(Muḥammad: 4)Translation:
“Bind firmly the captives; then (after the war) you may either release them as an act of grace or demand ransom.”
Prophetic Evidence
❖ Incident of Hawāzin:
Marwān bin Ḥakam and Miswar bin Makhramah narrated:
When the tribe of Hawāzin sent a delegation to the Prophet ﷺ asking for the return of their property and captives, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
Arabic:
أحب الحديث إلى أصدقه فاختاروا بعدى الطائفتين إما السبى وإما المال
Translation:
“The most beloved speech to me is the truest. Therefore, choose one of the two: either (return of) your captives or your property.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 2307–2308; Abū Dāwūd: 2693; Aḥmad: 4/326)These captives were Arab tribesmen, proving that even Arab captives were taken.
❖ Hadith of ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها:
Abū Hurayrah رضي الله عنه narrated:
ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها had a slave girl from Banū Tamīm. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“Set her free, for she is from the descendants of Ismāʿīl.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 2543, 4366; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 2525; Aḥmad: 2/390)The Prophet ﷺ said this because ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها had vowed to free a slave from the progeny of Ismāʿīl.
(Majmaʿ al-Zawā’id: 10/50; Ṭabarānī al-Awsaṭ: 7967; Nayl al-Awṭār: 5/71; Ṭabarānī al-Kabīr: 4/231)The tribe of Banū Tamīm was a well-known Arab tribe.
❖ Hadith of Juwairiyah رضي الله عنها:
ʿAbdullāh bin ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما narrated:
Juwairiyah bint al-Ḥārith was among the captives from Banū al-Muṣṭaliq. She had agreed with her owner to pay for her freedom (mukātabah). The Prophet ﷺ married her and paid her freedom on her behalf. Following the marriage, the Companions freed all the captives from her tribe, saying, “They are now the Prophet’s relatives by marriage.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 2541; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 1356; Abū Dāwūd: 3931; Bayhaqī: 9/24; Ḥākim: 4/26; Aḥmad: 6/277)Scholarly Opinions
- (Jumhūr): It is permissible to enslave Arabs.
- (Ḥanafīs): Arab polytheists are not to be enslaved; only Islam or death is acceptable for them.
(Fatḥ al-Bārī: 5/479; Al-Umm: 5/467; Bayhaqī: 9/73; Nayl al-Awṭār: 5/73; Al-Rawḍah al-Nadiyyah: 2/751)
Preferred (Rājiḥ) Opinion:
It is permissible to enslave Arabs, because all four actions — killing, ransoming, releasing, and enslaving enemy captives — are established in Sharīʿah. Whoever excludes some disbelievers from this ruling must bring valid proof.
(Nayl al-Awṭār: 5/74; Al-Rawḍah al-Nadiyyah: 2/752)Weak Narration
The narration stating:
Arabic:
لو كان الاسترقاق جائزا على العرب لكان اليوم إنما هو أسرى
Translation:
“If enslaving Arabs were permissible, they would have been captives today.”
is weak (ḍaʿīf).
Its chain includes al-Wāqidī, who is weak and unreliable.
- Imām al-Bukhārī: “He is matrūk (abandoned).”
- Imām Abū Ḥātim: “Matrūk.”
- Imām Ibn Maʿīn: “Not trustworthy.”
- Imām al-Dāraqutnī: “Weak.”
- Imām al-Nasā’ī: “Abandoned; fabricates ḥadīths.”
(Bayhaqī: 9/74; Al-Majrūḥīn: 2/290; Al-Jarḥ wa al-Taʿdīl: 8/20; Mīzān al-Iʿtidāl: 3/662)
