And whoever of you have not the means wherewith to wed free, believing women, they may wed believing girls from among those (slaves) whom your right hands possess, and Allâh has full knowledge about your Faith; you are one from another. Wed them with the permission of their own folk (guardians, Auliyâ’ or masters) and give them their Mahr according to what is reasonable; they (the above said captive and slave-girls) should be chaste, not committing illegal sex, nor taking boy-friends. And after they have been taken in wedlock, if they commit illegal sexual intercourse, their punishment is half that for free (unmarried) women.1 This is for him among you who is afraid of being harmed in his religion or in his body; but it is better for you that you practise self-restraint, and Allâh is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.