{ And women who are married, except what your right hands have possessed } Al-nisaa 24

Regarding His word { And women who are married } there are two points of view; one of them is that it means those of them who have husbands. Based on this reckoning, there are then two points of view regarding His word { except what your right hands have possessed } . The first is that a woman, if she has a husband, is forbidden to any man other than her husband, except if she becomes the possession of another man, in which case she is permissible to the owner. The second point of view is that the meaning here of “what the right hand possesses” is the possessing of marital relations [nikah]. The meaning is that women with husbands are forbidden to you, except if you have taken possession of them by new relations after separation has taken place between them and their husbands. The intent of this word is to curb adultery and prevent intercourse with them except through new marital relations, or by taking possession if the woman is a slave. This is expressed by “what the right hand possesses” [milk al-yamin], since possession by the right hand brings about marital relations and ownership.