ITK (MANUMISSION) SECTION · 12 – THE MANUMISSION OF A CHILD BORN OF ZINA
3963 – It is narrated from Abū Hurayra (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “A child born of zina (zina: illicit sexual intercourse) is the most evil of the three (meaning the child and the two parents who committed zina).” Abū Hurayra (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “To use a whip in the way of Allah, or to give it to someone for their benefit, is more beloved to me than to manumit a person born of zina.”
EXPLANATION
A child born of zina (illicit sexual intercourse) comes into being from the union of a mother and father without a valid marriage, and thus is born from impure sources. For this reason, such a child is considered more evil in lineage than a child whose parentage is established. In reality, the guilty ones are the mother and father; the child does not bear their sin. Furthermore, since the parents of a child born illegitimately often do not show interest in the child, the child may grow up undisciplined within society. As a result, within society, the child may become more evil than the parents. However, if such a child is well-educated, pays attention to their faith and their duties within society, they will not be the most evil of the three. If the child does what the parents did, then they are considered the most evil of the three. As narrated in the Musnad of Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal from ʿĀʾisha (may Allah be pleased with her), it is stated that if a child born of zina does what the parents did, they are the most evil of the three. Some scholars have interpreted this hadith to mean that it is not general for every child born of zina, but that the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said it regarding a specific child born of zina. As for Abū Hurayra (may Allah be pleased with him), he said: “To set free a slave born of zina is less pleasing to me than to give a whip as a gift to someone in need.” Since zina is an evil act, its black stain cannot be erased from the child’s forehead.