it would become a bed through its permissibility, like a wife. Our evidence is that Sa'd disputed with 'Abd ibn Zam'a concerning the son of the bondwoman of Zam'a. He said: "He is my brother and the son of my father's bondwoman; he was born on his bed." The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "He is yours, O 'Abd ibn Zam'a. The child is for the bed, and for the adulterer is the stone." [This is] agreed upon. Ibn 'Umar narrated that 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "What is the matter with men who cohabit with their bondwomen, then practice 'azl (coitus interruptus) with them? No bondwoman shall be brought to me whose master acknowledges that he had intimacy with her, but that I will attribute her child to him; so practice 'azl after that, or leave it." Furthermore, because cohabitation entails the prohibition of marriage affinity (musahara), if it is legitimate, the woman becomes a bed by means of it, like a marriage. Also, the woman is only termed a "bed" metaphorically, either due to his lying with her on the bed, or because she is beneath him during intercourse, and both matters occur in coitus. Their analogy of cohabitation to ownership is invalid, because ownership is not connected to the prohibition of affinity, nor is a child produced from it without cohabitation. It differs from marriage, as marriage is sought only for cohabitation, entails the prohibition of affinity, and is not contracted in a venue where cohabitation is forbidden, such as with a Magian, an idolater, or those who are his mahram (unmarriageable kin). If this is established, and he wishes to negate the child of his bondwoman whom his child is attributed to, his path is to claim that he sought istibra' (confirmation of a non-pregnant state) from her with one menstrual cycle after his cohabitation with her, so it is negated thereby. If he claims that he was practicing 'azl with her, the child is not negated from him thereby, due to what Jabir narrated: A man from the Ansar came to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and said: "I have a slave girl whom I frequent, and I dislike that she should conceive." He said: "Practice 'azl with her if you wish, for there will come to her what is decreed for her." He said: The man stayed for a while, then came to him and said: "The slave girl has conceived." He said: "I already told you that there will come to her what is decreed for her." Narrated by Abu Dawud.