What is the prescribed minimum amount a master must give to a contracted slave (Mukatib) for assistance?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Mukātaba (Contractual Manumission)
Primary text
The established amount that must be given is one-fourth (al-rub'u) of the agreed-upon price of freedom (Kitabah). This opinion is held by Al-Kharaqi, Abu Bakr, and others among our companions (Hanbali school). This ruling is narrated from Ali, may Allah be pleased with him. The evidence cited is the Hadith narrated by Abu Bakr, tracing back to Ali, stating that concerning the verse {And give them of the wealth of Allah which He has given you} [An-Nur: 33], the Prophet, peace be upon him, clarified it as: 'a quarter of the contract price.' Furthermore, since the slave is not freed until the entire contract price is paid, requiring the quarter is justified because requiring payment of the full amount implies the quarter has been paid. Also, requiring him to pay an amount that must be returned to him is not obligatory. The wisdom behind this ruling is to show kindness (rifq) to the contracted slave and assist him in attaining his freedom, which is not achieved by the bare minimum upon which a name can be placed.
Supporting text
Qatadah holds that the required amount is one-tenth (al-'ashr). Al-Shafi'i and Ibn al-Mundhir state that whatever amount can be named (i.e., any discernible amount) suffices. This is also the opinion of Malik, though he considers it merely desirable (mustahabb), basing this on the verse {And give them of the wealth of Allah which He has given you} [An-Nur: 33], interpreting 'min' (of) as being for partiality (tab'id), and the small amount is a portion, thus being sufficient. Ibn Abbas stated that a portion should be remitted from their contract payment.