He said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: "Any slave woman who gives birth by her master is free after his death." Ibn Abbas said: The Mother of Ibrahim (may Allah be pleased with her) was mentioned in the presence of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), and he said: "Her child has set her free." Both are narrated by Ibn Majah (19). al-Sharif Abu Ja'far mentioned in his "Masa'il" (Issues), on the authority of Ibn Umar, from the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), that he forbade the sale of the mothers of children, stating: "They shall not be sold, nor pledged, nor shall they inherit, and her master may enjoy her as he pleases; but if he dies, she is free (20)." This, in my opinion, is from Umar, and it is not authentically attributed to the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). This is because it is the consensus of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), evidenced by the statement of Ali (may Allah honor his face): "It was my view and the view of Umar that the mothers of children should not be sold." And his saying: "Umar decreed this during his lifetime, as did Uthman during his lifetime." And the statement of 'Abida: "The view of Ali and Umar in a group is more beloved to us than his view alone." Ikrama narrated from Ibn Abbas that he said: Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "There is no man who acknowledged that he had intercourse with his slave woman, then died, but that her child has freed her upon her giving birth, even if it were a miscarriage (22)."

If it is said: How can the claim of consensus be valid given the opposition of Ali, Ibn Abbas, and Ibn al-Zubayr (may Allah be pleased with them)? We respond: It has been reported that they retracted their opposition. 'Abida narrated, saying: Ali sent word to me and to Shurayh, saying: "Judge as you used to judge, for I despise disagreement (24)." As for Ibn Abbas, he said: "The child of an umm al-walad is in the same status as she is." And he is the narrator of the hadith concerning their manumission from the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and from Umar, which indicates his agreement with them. Furthermore, the consensus was established by their agreement prior to the disagreement, and their agreement is infallible against error, for the Ummah will not unite upon error, and it is not permissible for an era to be devoid of someone standing with Allah's proof, for if that were permissible