In the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.
May Allah bless Muhammad and his family.

Book of Offenses

The rulings on offenses committed by free persons against one another, involving loss of life or lesser injuries, have already been discussed. Sahnūn entitled this book “The Book of Offenses Committed by Slaves.” Slaves are subject to divine commands and bear legal responsibility. Liability for their offenses attaches to their own persons, not to their masters. The basis for this is the saying of Allah, exalted is He:

“No bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another.” [al-An‘ām: 164]

There is also the report that “a man brought his son to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, this is my son. What rights do I have over him?’ He replied, ‘Your offenses do not make him liable, nor do his offenses make you liable.’”

The same applies to a slave. Accordingly, liability for offenses committed by slaves must attach to their own persons. Their masters are under no obligation beyond surrendering them for the offenses they have committed, whether those offenses entail retaliation or not. If their masters prefer to redeem them against the liability arising from their offenses rather than surrender them, they may do so. The exception is where bodily retaliation is due: in such cases, they may redeem them only with the consent of those against whom the offenses were committed.

Section

Knowing when retaliation may or may not be exacted from slaves is the foundation of this book, upon which its individual rulings are built. This must therefore be set out and clarified. As for retaliation between slaves themselves, the scholars differed, holding four opinions:

The first is the view of Mālik, may Allah have mercy on him, and those who followed him: retaliation applies between them both for loss of life and for