Aina za utumwa katika mifumo ya kale iliyokuwepo duniani wakati Uislamu ulipokuja zilikuwa nyingi. Walikuwa wakihukumu utumwa kwa mdaiwa mfilisi; hivyo mkopeshaji, mdaiwa wake alipokuwa maskini na mfilisi, angeweza kumfanya mtumwa. Pia walikuwa wakihukumu utumwa wa binadamu kama adhabu ya uhalifu na makosa aliyoyafanya. Pia waliweka sheria kwamba mtu huru akubali utumwa juu ya nafsi yake ili auze nafsi yake kwa mwingine kwa sharti kwamba amwachishe huru baada ya kipindi walichokubaliana. Makabila yenye nguvu yaliruhusu yenyewe kuwafanya watumwa watu binafsi au makabila dhaifu. Vita na mapigano kwa ujumla vilikuwa vikiamua kuwafanya watumwa wafungwa wa vita, na kuruhusu kuwafanya watumwa watu wote wa nchi fulani ikiwa wameishinda. Baadhi yao walizuia utumwa kwa wale waliochukuliwa kama mateka katika vita vya wanaume, wanawake na watoto. Yeyote aliyechukuliwa kuwa mfungwa katika vita halali na akafanywa mtumwa humo alichukuliwa kuwa mtumwa na alitambuliwa kuwa mtumwa.

The categories of slavery in the ancient systems that were practiced in the world when Islam came were many. They would judge with slavery for the bankrupt debtor; so the creditor, when his debtor became indigent and bankrupt, could enslave him. They would also judge with slavery of the human being as punishment of what he committed of crimes and mistakes. They also ordained for the free person to accept slavery upon himself so he could sell himself to another upon condition that he frees him after a period they agreed upon. The strong tribes allowed themselves to enslave individuals or weak tribes. Wars and battles would determine, in a general way, the enslaving of captives and allow enslaving all the people of a country if they conquered them. Some of them would limit slavery to whom they took as captives in the war of men, women and children. Whoever was taken as a captive in a legal war and was enslaved therein was considered a slave and was acknowledged in his being a slave.

Islamu ulipokuja, uliweka kwa hali zilizokuwepo za utumwa kanuni za Shari'ah nyingine zaidi ya utumwa wenyewe, na ukaeleza kwa kina jambo hilo katika hali ya vita. Pia ukabainisha kuhusu mdaiwa mwenye kufilisika kwamba mdai amsubiri mpaka wakati wa wepesi. Allah (SWT) amesema:

When Islam came, it imposed for the situations where slavery occurred and existed Shari’ah rules other than slavery, and detailed the matter in the situation of war. It clarified in relation to the bankrupt debtor that the creditor should wait to a time of ease. Allah (swt) said:

Pia ilifafanua adhabu za madhambi kwa undani, hasa adhabu ya wizi ambayo zamani ilikuwa ni utumwa, jambo ambalo Allah (SWT) alilieleza katika Qur'ani:

It also clarified the punishments upon sins with details particularly the punishment of stealing whose punishment used to be slavery which Allah (swt) indicated in the Qur’an:

Kwa hiyo Uislamu ulibainisha adhabu yake, yaani kwa mwizi kukatwa mkono. Allah (SWT) amesema:

So Islam clarified its punishment i.e. for stealing the cutting of the hand. Allah (swt) said:

Ilifanya mkataba kati ya mtumwa na mmiliki wake uwe wa kuachiwa huru, si wa kufanywa mtumwa. Ilikataza kwa katazo kali kabisa kuwafanya watu huru kuwa watumwa. Mtume ﷺ alisema:

It made the contract between the slave and owner upon freedom, not upon slavery. It forbade the enslaving of free people with a decisive prohibition. He (saw) said:

Basi Allah (SWT) atagombana na mtu anayemuuza mtu huru. Kuhusu hali ya vita, Uislamu umeeleza hilo kwa undani na umezuia kabisa kuwafanya mateka kuwa watumwa. Katika mwaka wa pili wa Hijrah, ulifafanua hukumu ya mateka kwamba ama wafanyiwe wema kwa kuachiliwa bila malipo yoyote, au wakombolewe kwa fedha au kwa mateka wa aina yao kutoka miongoni mwa Waislamu au wasio Waislamu walio chini ya ulinzi (dhimmi), na hivyo kuzuia mateka kufanywa watumwa. Allah (SWT) amesema:

So Allah (swt) will dispute with the seller of the free person. As for the situation of war, Islam detailed therein and prevented the enslaving of captives absolutely. In the second year of the Hijrah, it clarified the rule of the captive in that either they are favoured by releasing them without any exchange or either they are ransomed for money or captives like them from Muslims of dhimmis, thereby preventing the enslaving of captives. Allah (swt) said:

Aya hii iko wazi kabisa juu ya maana hii: kuachiliwa huru au kukombolewa kwa fidia, na haina maana nyingine yoyote. Lugha ya Kiarabu inahitaji kuweka kikomo cha hukumu ya mateka katika moja kati ya mambo haya mawili, kuachiliwa huru au kukombolewa kwa fidia, kwa sababu neno "imma" hutumika kutoa uchaguzi kati ya mambo mawili na pia kuweka kikomo katika mambo hayo mawili. Hapa limekuja likitoa uchaguzi kati ya kuachiliwa huru na kukombolewa kwa fidia, na kuweka hukumu katika mambo haya mawili pekee, kwa kulieleza kwa neno "imma" ambalo linaleta maana ya kikomo katika kile kinachotajwa baada yake.

The ayah is explicit upon this meaning: Release or ransom, and it absolutely does not bear any other meaning. The Arabic language requires restricting the rule of the captive in one of these two matters, release or ransom because “imma” is for giving a choice between two matters and for restriction in the two things. Herein it came giving a choice between release and ransom, and restricting the rule to these two, when it came expressing that with “imma” which gives sense of the restriction in what is mentioned after it:

Swali hapa linaweza kuibuliwa, lililokuwa sababu ya mkanganyiko kwa baadhi ya mafaqihi, ambao walichukua kutoka kwake kwamba Khalifah anaweza kuwafanya mateka kuwa watumwa akiona inafaa. Swali lenyewe ni kwamba Mtume ﷺ aliwafanya watumwa baada ya aya hii. Aya hii ilishushwa mwaka wa pili baada ya Hijra, mwanzoni mwa vita kati ya Mtume ﷺ na makafiri wa Quraysh, na Mtume ﷺ aliwafanya watu kuwa watumwa huko Hunayn. Na kitendo cha Mtume ﷺ kinachukuliwa kuwa sheria, kwa kuwa ni ufafanuzi wa aya ya Allah (SWT). Basi aya hii ingewezaje kuzuia kuwafanya mateka kuwa watumwa, ilhali Mtume ﷺ aliwafanya watumwa baada ya kushushwa kwake huko Hunayn? Jibu ni kwamba kitendo cha Mtume ﷺ na kauli yake kuhusiana na aya za Qur'an ni mojawapo ya haya: kufafanua yaliyojumlishwa (mujmal), kuweka mipaka kwa yaliyo bila mipaka, au kubainisha ujumla wake. Kitendo cha Mtume ﷺ na kauli yake haviwezi kuwa kufuta (naskh) kwa Qur'an. Aya ya mateka wa vita haimo katika kundi la yaliyojumlishwa ili ifafanuliwe, wala maneno yake si ya ujumla ili yabainishwe, wala si yasiyo na mipaka ili yawekewe mipaka. Kwa hiyo, ikithibitika kwamba Mtume ﷺ aliwafanya watu kuwa watumwa baada ya kushushwa kwake, kitendo hicho kingekuwa kinaifuta aya hiyo, jambo ambalo haliruhusiwi. Zaidi ya hayo, kitendo cha Mtume ﷺ cha kuwafanya mateka kuwa watumwa ni khabari ahad, ambayo inapingana na aya hiyo.

Here a question can be raised which was a position of confusion for some fuqaha from whom it was taken that the Khalifah can enslave captives if he so views. This question is that the Prophet (saw) did enslave after this ayah. This ayah was revealed in the second year after Hijrah at the beginning of the war between the Messenger (saw) and the Quraysh disbelievers, and the Messenger (saw) enslaved in Hunain. And the Messenger’s action is considered legislation as it considered explanation for the ayah of Allah (swt). So how could enslaving of captives be prevented by this ayah even though the Messenger (saw) enslaved after this revelation in Hunain? The response is that the action of the Messenger (saw) and his speech in relation to the Qur’anic ayat is either detailing its mujmal (aggregate), restricting its unrestricted or specifying its generality. The action of the Messenger (saw) and his speech cannot be an abrogation to the Qur’an. The ayah of prisoners of war is neither (mujmal) such that it be detailed, nor are its words the words of generality so that they be specified nor unrestricted so that they be restricted. So if it be authenticated that the Messenger (saw) enslaved after its revelation, his action would be an abrogator for it and this is not permitted. In addition, the Messenger’s enslaving captives is a khabr ahad which contradicts the ayah:

Na khabr ahad inapopingana na aya zilizo wazi na hadithi zilizo thabiti, basi elimu ya khabr ahad inakataliwa. Kwa hiyo, hakuna uzito wowote kwa yale yanayosimuliwa kwamba Mtume ﷺ aliwafanya watumwa baada ya kuteremshwa aya ya mateka. Kwa kweli, kilichotokea katika vita vya Hunain ni kwamba wanawake na watoto walifuatana na wapiganaji wa washirikina ili kuongeza idadi yao na kuwachochea wanaume wao. Waliposhindwa uwanjani, wanawake na watoto wakawa mateka, na Mtume ﷺ akawagawanya miongoni mwa wapiganaji wa Waislamu. Hukumu ya mateka ilipobadilishwa, Waislamu walitoa kwa hiari yao haki walizokuwa nazo juu ya mateka (sabaya), wakawarudisha mateka wao kwa watu wao. Hili lilionyesha kuwa inaruhusiwa kuwafanya watumwa (sabaya), ambao ni wanawake na watoto waliofuatana na wanaume uwanjani ili kuongeza idadi na kuwatia moyo. Pamoja na hayo, Mtume ﷺ hakuwafanya watumwa wanawake na watoto waliofuatana na wapiganaji huko Khaybar. Alipovamia Khaybar na kuiteka, aliwaacha kuwa watu huru, na akaacha ardhi mikononi mwao wailime kwa nusu ya mazao yake. Abu Ubaidah alisema kuhusu mateka (sabaya): "Imamu ana chaguo juu yao mradi hawajagawanywa. Mara wanapogawanywa, hakuna njia juu yao isipokuwa kwa zawadi na hiari ya wale ambao wamekuwa miliki yao, kama alivyotenda Mjumbe wa Allah ﷺ kwa watu wa Hunain. Hakuna mateka (sabaya) aliyerudishwa na mmoja wao isipokuwa kwa zawadi na hiari, kwa sababu alikuwa amewagawanya. Hakufanya hivi kwa watu wa Khaybar, bali aliwaacha kuwa watu huru, wala hawakuzawadiwa na mtu yeyote kwa kuwa mgawanyo haukuwa umefanyika juu yao."

And when the (khabr ahad) contradicts the definite ayat and ahadith the knowledge of the (khabr ahad) is rejected. Accordingly, there is no consideration to what is narrated about the Messenger (saw) enslaving after the revelation of the ayah of captives. Actually what happened in the battle of Hunain is that the women and children accompanied the fighters of the polytheists to increase their numbers and incite their men, so when they were routed in the battlefield the women and children became captives and the Messenger (saw) divided them between the fighters among the Muslims. When this was revised regarding the captives, the Muslims gifted what they had of the right in the captives (sabaya) voluntarily and returned their captives (sabaya) to their people. This indicated the permissibility of enslaving (sabaya) who are the women and children who accompany the men in the battlefield to increase the numbers and for encouragement. Despite that, the Messenger (saw) did not enslave the women and children who accompanied the fighters in Khayber. When he (saw) invaded Khayber and conquered it, he left them as free persons and left the land under their hands to farm it for half its produce. Abu Ubaidah said about the captives (sabaya): ‘The Imam is given a choice about them as long as they have not been divided. Once they are divided there is no way over them except by gift and free will of those for whom they become like the action of the Messenger of Allah (saw) with the people of Hunain. None of the captives (sabaya) were returned by anyone of them except by gift and free will since he had divided them. He did not do this with the people of Khayber but rather left them as free persons nor were they gifted by anyone as division had not occurred over them.