Stories from Early Islam — Page 55
Slaves Get their Freedom Long ago, people used to buy and sell men and women. Even children were bought and sold in the open market. They were called slaves and they used to work for their masters through- out their lives. Islam was the first religion to denounce slavery. The Holy Prophet of Islam and his Companions always tried to buy slaves and free them. Here is the story of one such slave whose name was Zaid. Zaid belonged to a noble family and was an intelligent young man. He was captured while in his teens in a tribal raid, and was sold from one person to another, until finally he was pur- chased by Khadijah, a rich lady of Makkah. When Muhammad married Khadijah, she offered all her belongings including her slaves to him. He set all the slaves free, but Zaid begged him to let him continue to live with him. So Zaid remained with Muhammad and with time his attachment to him grew. It so happened that the father and an uncle of Zaid traced him to Makkah. They came to Muhammad and asked that he should be allowed to return with them. They offered to pay as much ransom as might be demanded. Muhammad told them that Zaid was free and that he could go wherever he liked. He sent for Zaid and showed him his father and uncle. Zaid was much pleased to see them after such a long time. He was told that his mother had remained grief-stricken all through the period of separation and was waiting eagerly for his return. They