Sunan an-Nasa'i 4050

[eternal forum]

Do someone have an explanation about this hadith ? I find no information about it's explanation. Does it mean that it's meant to be understood literally ?
https://sunnah.com/nasai:4050

[jolly briar]

I won't get into the details of the Hadith, as I am not qualified. But we need to understand that slavery in the Islamic perspective is completely different from the horrible slave trade that has scarred the US and other lands. We really need to understand the context and the time in which this Hadith is said.

For more on Islam and slavery, I recommend Dr. Jonathan Brown's videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHSjfuPVels&ab_channel=YasirQadhi

[eternal forum]

I know it isn't the same, i do understand how slavery work in Islam. im just asking if the hadith mean what it literally mean, or if something is missing in order to understand it. Like you said: the context etc.. but i find nothing about it.

[mental latch]

While I definitely encourage the pursuit of Islamic knowledge, the general consensus around here should be that we can't really explain what a hadith means and just because you can't find more information about a hadith, it doesn't mean that it's meant to be taken literally. The best thing you can do is speak to an imam in an area local to you about this hadith and keep trying to learn by yourself as well. I'm not knowledgeable about this hadith. Maybe someone here is. Maybe no one here is. But if you know an imam who's knowledgeable about hadith and is someone that you trust, I would ask them first before a discord server, especially in regards to topics like this

[eternal forum]

thank you for your answear. I'm asking cause some of my friend have shubuhat because of this. I used reason to prove him that it could mean something else than what is literally written and he accepted it. That's why i'm trying to find information about this hadith but i find none, i guess you too :/
I don't find any commentary or explaination of the context around it. I'll try with an Imam but i dont think mine will know about this

[austere fog]

I would recommend reading the hadiths ahead of it by clicking "next," as the next several narrations speak specifically about a slave that runs away to a land of shirk, and some say to the enemy as well.

I do not know of this hadith or any context behind it, just read it and read ahead. However, a single hadith can have many chains, and those chains can also have subtle differences between them which add or remove context and meaning. So as for the true strength of this narration, I cannot comment on it, however it certainly seems as if other companions heard it differently/had different context when they heard this saying of the Prophet (S)

Of course, apostasy back in that time was punishable by death, especially during the time of war with the Qureysh. It was equivalent of treason, which still carries the death penalty in the modernized world. So I'd be curious how those other narrations would fit with this one + what the commentaries would say, if any exist

[eternal forum]

As usual, you're spot on. Didn't see that other narrations talked about fleeing to ennemies/kufr land, now it become clearer. I'll keep trying to find if any sheikh talk about this specifique hadith but you gave me enough to let them understand as far as we can for now. Thank you for that.