1184 - Issue: He said: "If he is emancipated before she chooses, or he has sexual intercourse with her, her option is voided, whether she knew that the option was hers or did not know."

In sum, the option of the emancipated woman is open-ended (tarakhi), as long as one of these two things has not occurred: the emancipation of her husband, or his sexual intercourse with her. The husband is not prevented from having intercourse with her. Among those who said it is open-ended are Malik and al-Awza'i. This has been narrated from Abdullah ibn Umar and his sister Hafsa. It is also the view of Sulayman ibn Yasar, Nafi', al-Zuhri, and Qatada. Some scholars attributed it to the Seven Jurists. Abu Hanifa and the rest of the Iraqis said: Her option is only for the duration of the session of knowledge (majlis al-'ilm). Ash-Shafi'i has three views: the most evident of them is like our view. The second is that it is immediate (fawran), like the option of preemption (shuf'a). The third is that it lasts for three days. Our evidence is what Imam Ahmad narrated in the "Musnad" with his chain of transmission from al-Hasan ibn Amr ibn Umayya, who said: I heard men talking about the Prophet - may Allah bless him and grant him peace - that he said: "When a slave woman is emancipated, she has the option as long as he does not have intercourse with her. If she wishes, she may separate from him, but if he has intercourse with her, she has no option." Al-Athram also recorded it. Abu Dawood recorded that Barira was emancipated while she was under Mughith, a slave of the family of Abu Ahmad, so the Prophet - may Allah bless him and grant him peace - gave her the option and said to her: "If he approaches you, then you have no option." Furthermore, it is the view of those whom we have named among the Companions, and there is no one among their generation who opposed them. Ibn Abd al-Barr said: I do not know of any Companion who opposed Ibn Umar and Hafsa in this. Moreover, there is an actual need for this, so it is established, just like the option of retaliation (qisas) or an option to avert a certain harm; thus, it is similar to what we have said. Once this is established, if he is emancipated before she chooses, her option lapses, because the option was for the purpose of averting the harm caused by slavery, and this is removed by his emancipation, so it lapses, just like the sold item when its defect is removed.