Thus, the first condition is taken from His saying, Exalted is He:

“And whoever among you cannot afford...”

The second condition is taken from His saying:

“...believing slave women from among those whom your right hands possess.”

And the third condition is taken from His saying:

“This is for those of you who fear hardship.”

Consider the noble verse: does the author’s statement correspond to it? Yes, it does, except for his statement, “or the price of a slave woman.” This condition is not found in the Quran, but the jurists stipulated it. They said: if he is able to purchase a slave woman, this makes him independent of marrying a slave woman. Moreover, marrying a slave woman brings greater disgrace upon him than purchasing one and taking her as a concubine. Also, if he marries a slave woman, his children become slaves; whereas if he takes a slave woman as a concubine, his children are free. Hence Imam Ahmad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: “When a free man marries a slave woman, half of him becomes enslaved”—meaning that he becomes a slave, because his children by that slave woman become the property of her master.

What the author mentioned has strong grounds. Furthermore, sound reasoning likewise entails prohibition, because, as Imam Ahmad said, it results in his children becoming slaves—owned property, bought and sold—while he himself is free! It may be a source of shame for him to see his child led by a collar to the marketplace to be sold. This is a grave matter, not a trivial one. Therefore, it is not permissible except in a case of necessity, as Allah, Exalted is He, has mentioned.

It remains for us to ask: what is the ruling if he stipulates to the owner that his children are to be free? The scholars differed regarding this. Some of them said that it is permissible for him to marry the slave woman if he stipulates that his children be