The Book of the Mukatab (Contracted Slave)

Kitaba (Contracted Manumission) is the master's granting of freedom to his slave in exchange for wealth placed upon the slave's liability, to be paid in deferred installments. It is called Kitaba because the master writes between himself and the slave a document concerning that which they have agreed upon. It is also said that it is named Kitaba from the root 'katb', which means 'to join/gather', because the mukatab joins some of the nujum (installments) to others. From this, the act of sewing (kharz) is called kitab, because it joins one of the two ends to the other through stitching. Al-Hariri said:

'They are scribes, yet their fingertips have not traced a letter, nor have they read what was written in books.'

And Dhu al-Rummah said [concerning that meaning]:

'A spacious water-skin, tanned with gharf, its stitches are joined together (ath'a), leaking drop by drop, the threads (al-kutub) have failed it.'

He is describing a water-skin from which water leaks between its stitches. A katiba (battalion) is called a katiba due to the joining of its members together. The mukatab joins some of his nujum to others, and the nujum here refers to the various times; for the Arabs did not know calculation, and only knew times by the rising of the stars (nujum), as one of them said:

'When Suhayl rises at the beginning of the night, the ibn al-labun becomes a hiqq, and the hiqq becomes a jadha'.'

Thus, the times were called nujum. The basis for Kitaba is the Book (Quran), the Sunnah, and Ijma' (consensus). As for the Book, it is the saying of Allah, the Exalted: "And those who seek the contract (kitab) among those whom your right hands possess, then contract with them if you know there is goodness in them." As for the Sunnah, Sa'id narrated from Sufyan, from al-Zuhri, from Nabhan, the freedman of Umm Salama, from Umm Salama, that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "If one of you has a mukatab, and he possesses what he needs to fulfill [the contract], she must veil herself from him." And Sahl ibn Hunayf narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "Whoever assists a debtor, or a warrior, or a mukatab in his kitaba, Allah will shade him on a day when there is no shade but His shade," along with many other hadiths besides these. The Ummah has reached consensus on the legitimacy of Kitaba.

Section: If a slave asks his master for a kitaba, it is recommended for him to grant it if he knows there is goodness in him, but it is not obligatory according to the manifest [position of the] madhhab. This is the opinion of the generality of scholars, including al-Hasan, al-Sha'bi, Malik, al-Thawri, al-Shafi'i, and the Ashab al-Ra'y. It is narrated from Ahmad that it is obligatory if the industrious, truthful slave requests it from his master, in which case he must grant it. This is the opinion of 'Ata', al-Dahhak, 'Amr ibn Dinar, and Dawud. Ishaq said: "I fear he would be sinful if he did not do it, though he should not be compelled to do so." The basis for this is the saying of Allah, the Exalted: "Then contract with them if you know there is goodness in them," and the manifest meaning of the command is obligation. It is narrated that Sirin, the father of Muhammad ibn Sirin, was a slave to Anas ibn Malik and asked him to contract with him, but he refused, so he informed...