The Quran

Preface

۞ وَالمُحصَناتُ مِنَ النِّساءِ إِلّا ما مَلَكَت أَيمانُكُم ۖ كِتابَ اللَّهِ عَلَيكُم ۚ وَأُحِلَّ لَكُم ما وَراءَ ذٰلِكُم أَن تَبتَغوا بِأَموالِكُم مُحصِنينَ غَيرَ مُسافِحينَ ۚ فَمَا استَمتَعتُم بِهِ مِنهُنَّ فَآتوهُنَّ أُجورَهُنَّ فَريضَةً ۚ وَلا جُناحَ عَلَيكُم فيما تَراضَيتُم بِهِ مِن بَعدِ الفَريضَةِ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كانَ عَليمًا حَكيمًا

Yusuf Ali

Also (prohibited are) women already married, except those whom your right hands possess:¹ Thus hath God ordained (Prohibitions) against you: Except for these, all others are lawful, provided ye seek (them in marriage) with gifts from your property,- desiring chastity, not lust,² seeing that ye derive benefit from them, give them their dowers (at least)³ as prescribed; but if, after a dower is prescribed, agree Mutually (to vary it), there is no blame on you, and God is All-knowing, All-wise.

Whom your right hands possess: i.e., captives in a Jihad. (R).
After defining the prohibited degrees, the verse proceeds to say that women other than those specified may be sought in marriage, but even so, not from motives of lust, but in order to promote chastity between the sexes. Marriage in the original Arabic is here described by a -word which suggests a fortress (hisn); maniage is, therefore, the fortress of chastity.
As the woman in marriage surrenders her person, so the man also must surrender (besides some part of his independence) at least some of his property according to his means. And this gives rise to the law of dower. A minimum dower is prescribed, but it is not necessary to stick to the minimum, and in the new relationship created, the parties are recommended to act towards each other with the greatest confidence and liberality.