Malik related to me from Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abi Amra al-Ansari that his mother had wanted to make a bequest, but she delayed until morning and died. She had intended to set someone free, so Abd ar- Rahman said, 'I said to al-Qasim ibn Muhammad, 'Will it help her if I free a slave for her?' Al-Qasim replied, 'Sad ibn Ubada said to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, 'My mother died, will it help her if I set a slave free for her?' The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said "Yes." "'
Muwatta Malik Book 38, Hadith 14
← Previous Hadith Malik related to me that he had heard that Abdullah ibn Umar was asked whether a slave could be bought on the specific condition that it was to be used to fulfil the obligation of freeing a slave, and he said, "No."

Malik said, "That is the best of what I have heard on the obligation of freeing slaves. Someone who has to set a slave free because of an obligation on him, may not buy one on the condition that he sets it free because if he does that, whatever he buys is not completely a slave because he has reduced its price by the condition he has made of setting it free."

Malik added, "There is no harm, however, in someone buying a person expressly to set him free."

Malik said, "The best of what I have heard on the obligation of freeing slaves is that it is not permitted to free a christian or a jew to fulfil it, and one does not free a mukatab or a mudabbar or an umm walad or a slave to be freed after a certain number of years, or a blind person. There is no harm in freeing a christian, jew, or magian voluntarily, because Allah, the Blessed, the Exalted, said in His Book, 'either as a favour then or by ransom,' (Sura 47 ayat 4) The favour is setting free."

Malik said, "As for obligations of freeing slaves which Allah has mentioned in the Book, one only frees a mumin slave for them."

Malik said, "It is like that in feeding poor people for kaffara. One must only feed muslims and one does not feed anyone outside of the deen of Islam."

Muwatta Malik Book 38, Hadith 13 Next Hadith → Malik related to me that Yahya ibn Said said, ''Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr died in his sleep, and A'isha, the wife of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, set free many slaves for him." Malik said, "This is what I like best of what I have heard on the subject."

Muwatta Malik Book 38, Hadith 15