The Meaning of the Freedom of the Mother of a Child upon the Death of Her Master from All of His Wealth

The questioner:
He says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, what is the meaning of the author’s (may Allah have mercy on him) statement, “and she is freed by his death from all of his wealth”?

The Shaykh:
What is it from the bequest? Unlike the *mudabbar* (one whose freedom is deferred until the master’s death) who said, “If I die, you are free,” this comes out of the bequest, because it is a bequest, and a bequest only comes out of one-third. As for the mother of a child, she is freed from the entire wealth, and it does not come out of just the one-third. So if the mother of a child is worth more than one-third, she is freed.

The questioner:
So does she become free by that, such that it is obligatory for him to separate from one of his four wives?

The Shaykh:
Why would he separate from one of his four wives? This is the mother of his child, a slave woman with whom he may have a concubine relationship, even if he has four wives. It is permissible for him to have a concubine relationship even if he has four wives, a concubine from and she is from what his right hand possesses.