CONCUBINE. Arabic Surrīyah (سرية), pl. sarārī. The Muḥammadan religion appears to give almost unlimited license to concubinage, provided the woman be a slave, and not a free Muslim woman.
These female slaves must be either (1) taken captive in war, (2) or purchased by money, (3) or the descendants of slaves. Even married women, if taken in war, are, according to an injunction of the Qurʾān, [Sūrah iv. 28], entirely at the disposal of the Muslim conqueror. “(Unlawful) to you are married women, except such as your right hand possess (i.e. taken in war, or purchased slaves).” This institution of concubinage is founded upon the example of Muḥammad himself, who took Rīḥānah the Jewess as his concubine after the battle with the Banū Quraiz̤ah (A.H. 5), and also Maria the Copt, who was sent him as a slave by the Governor of Egypt.
Should a concubine bear her master a child, the Muḥammadan law rules that she and her offspring are ipso facto free. For a further treatment of this subject, see article on [SLAVES].
Amongst the Shīʿahs, the temporary marriage called Mutʿah exhibits the worst form of concubinage. [[MUTʿAH].]
It is interesting to compare the condition of the concubine under Muslim law and under the Mosaic. Under the law of Moses, a concubine would generally be either a Hebrew girl bought of her father, or a Gentile captive taken in war. So that whilst the Muḥammadan law forbids concubinage with a free woman, the Mosaic law permitted it and legislated for it. See [Exodus xxi].: “If a man sell his daughter to be a maid-servant, she shall not go out as men-servants do. If she please not her master who hath betrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed; to sell her unto a strange nation he shall have no power, seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her.”
With regard to female slaves taken in war, the Mosaic law ruled. [Deut. xxi. 10]: “When thou goest to war against thine enemies, and the Lord thy God hath delivered them into thine hands, and thou hast taken them captive, and seest a beautiful woman, and hast a desire unto her, that thou wouldst have her to thy wife; then thou shalt bring her to thine home, &c.… And it shall be, if thou have no delight in her, then thou shalt let her go whither she will; but thou shalt not sell her,” &c.
CONGREGATION. The Assembly of people in a mosque is called Jamʿah (جمعة), the term also being used in Afghanistan for the mosque itself.
There are special rewards for those Muḥammadans who assemble together for the stated prayers; for Muḥammad has said, “The prayers which are said in a congregation increase the rewards of the worshipper twenty-seven degrees.” “Say your prayers in a congregation, for a wolf does not eat the sheep except one has strayed from the flock.” (Mishkāt, book iv. ch. xxiv.)
The Sunnī style themselves Ahlu Sunnah wa Jamʿah, i.e. “the people of the traditions and of the congregation,” in contradistinction to the Shīʿahs, who do not worship in a congregation unless the Imām, or leader, be a man entirely free from sin. [[IMAM].]