Riyaah Al-Aswad, may Allah be pleased with him:
He worked as an attendant for the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), for sometime, and it is said that he was dark-skinned.
Safeenah, may Allah be pleased with him:
There is a big controversy surrounding his name among historians, as they said that his name might be Mahraan (Al-Imaam An-Nawawi may Allaah have mercy upon him was of the view that this is the most correct name), Ahmar, Roomaan, Bahraan, ‘Abas, Qays, Shanbah, or ‘Umayr, and his nickname is Abu ‘Abdur-Rahmaan or Abu Al-Bukhturi, yet the first is more predominant. The Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), named him 'Safeenah', which means 'ship' in Arabic. Safeenah, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated the story of his being given this name, "We were on a journey, and whenever a man felt tired, he gave me his garments to carry them. I was also asked to carry swords and shields, and they kept giving me their loads until I carried many things. The Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) said to me:'Carry, as indeed, you are a ship.'So, to this day, if I were asked to carry a load of a camel, two, three, four, five, six, or seven camels, it would not overburden me, and I would carry that with ease." [Ahmad]
It is said that the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), bought him and set him free, yet some historians said that it is Umm Salamah, may Allah be pleased with her, the wife of the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), who emancipated him. So he was known as the freed slave of the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), or the freed slave of Umm Salamah, may Allah be pleased with her. At-Tabari (a famous historian) said that he was a black man of mixed origin from the Arabs, and his origin goes back to the Persians. He, may Allah be pleased with him, died in the time of Al-Hajjaj (in 79 A.H.).
Salmaan Al-Faarisi, may Allah be pleased with him:
He was nicknamed Abu ‘Abdullaah, and he was the one whom the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), honored by saying: "Salmaan is a member of my household."The reason why he was considered one of the former slaves emancipated by the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), is that although he was somebody else's slave, the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), helped him financially so that he could redeem his price. The first battle in which he participated with the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), was the Battle of Al-Khandaq (the Trench), which was won based on the strategy of digging a trench around Madeenah, a suggestion made by Salmaan, may Allah be pleased with him. After this battle, Salmaan Al-Faarisi, may Allah be pleased with him, did not miss any battle and participated in every conquest during his lifetime. He died in Madeenah, in the reign of ‘Uthmaan, may Allah be pleased with them both, but his year of death is controversial.
Shuqraan Al-Habashi:
His name was Saalih ibn ‘Adei. He witnessed Badr and was freed after it. He was from those who washed the body of the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), at his death. He was the slave of ‘Abdir-Rahmaan ibn ‘Awf, who gave him to the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), and it is said that he, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), bought him.
Ma'boor Al-Qibti:
Al-Muqawqis, the ruler of Egypt gave him as a present to the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ). Ibn Al-Qayyim may Allaah have mercy upon him in his book Zaad Al-Ma'aad, said,
"The Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) used to choose the best of slaves from the men and women, and he liked to free the male slaves more than the females." It is related on the authority of Abu Umaamah that the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), said: "He who sets free a Muslim slave, Allah will deliver from the fire of Hell every limb of his body in return for every limb of the slave's body, and he who sets two Muslim women free, Allah will deliver from the fire of Hell every limb of his body in return for every two limbs of their bodies." [At-Tirmithi]
So the people emancipated the most by the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) were men. This is one of the five cases where the share of the woman is half of that of man; the other four cases are the ‘Aqeeqah (a banquet that is made for the newborn babies), as it is two ewes for the male and one for the female, the witness, the inheritance and the ransom.
