What is the ruling if the slave women are manumitted before the husband converts, and then all convert simultaneously while they are free?
Chapter on Marriage of Polytheists
Al-Mughni
Book of Marriage
Primary text
If the slave women are manumitted before the husband converts, and then they all convert simultaneously while they are free, if the total number of wives is four or fewer, their marriages are confirmed. If the total exceeds four, he must choose four, and the marriage bond to the fifth and subsequent women is voided. This is because they became free women at the time the choice became operative—the moment of their simultaneous conversion with him—and their ruling became that of originally free women, analogous to if they had been freed before his conversion or had converted before him and then been freed. The ruling in this case is the same as when a man is married to five or more free women upon his conversion.