Islam and Slavery — Page 18
18. Thus the Quran says: "As for those of your slaves who desire to enter into a contract of freedom with you on payment of a specified sum, make such a contract with them, if you find any good in them, and give them out of the wealh which Allah has given you. " (1). In this verse, it was clearly laid down that if a slave desired to have freedom on payment of a certain sum, the master was bound to comply with his wishes and set him provisionally free, so that he might earn or procure the sum fixed, provided it was found that he was fit for freedom. . The master was further exhorted to return to the freed slave a part of the money which he paid for his ransom. . The above verse forms, as it were, the foundation stone for the mandatory emancipation of slaves. It is a short verse, but it has a far-reaching and weighty significance. . The law of Mukatabat, as enunciated in the verse quoted above, required that a contract should be made between the master and the slave to the effect that if the latter paid the former a certain sum of money, the latter was to be set at liberty. The process followed in this connection was that after the contract was made, the slave was practically set at liberty, and in this state of provisional freedom he took up some work or occupation, such as trade, industry, agricul ture or service and thus tried to earn the required sum of money. As soon as the required amount was paid to the master he was an absolutely free man. . This was a very happy and extremely wise arrangement. . It not only helped those of the slaves who were in a position (1) 24:34.