Your share in the property the wives leave behind is half if they die without an issue, but in case they have left children, then your share is one-fourth after the payment of legacies and debts; and your wife shall inherit one-fourth of what you leave at death if you die childless, if not, she will get one-eighth of what you leave behind after payment of legacies and debts. If a man or a woman should die without leaving either children or parents behind but have brother and sister, they shall each inherit one-sixth. In case there are more, they will share one-third of the estate after payment of legacies and debts without prejudice to others. This is the decree of God who knows all and is kind.
And from what your wives leave, half is for you if they do not have any child; or if they have a child for you is a fourth of what they leave, after any will they may have made or debt to be paid; and to the women is a fourth of what you leave behind, if you do not have any child; or if you have a child then an eighth of what you leave behind, after any will you may have made, or debt to be paid; and if a deceased does not leave behind a mother, father or children but has a brother or a sister through a common mother, then to each of them a sixth; and if they (brothers and sisters) are more than two, then they shall all share in a third, after any will that may have been made or debt to be paid, in which the deceased has not caused a loss (to the heirs); this is the decree of Allah; and Allah is All Knowing, Most Forbearing.
And for you a half of what your wives leave, if they have no children; but if they have children, then for you of what they leave a fourth, after any bequest they may bequeath, or any debt. And for them a fourth of what you leave, if you have no children; but if you have children, then for them of what you leave an eighth, after any bequest you may bequeath, or any debt. If a man or a woman have no heir direct, but have a brother or a sister, to each of the two a sixth; but if they are more numerous than that, they share equally a third, after any bequest he may bequeath, or any debt not prejudicial; a charge from God. God is All-knowing, All-clement.
And you shall inherit one-half of what your wives leave behind, provided they have left no child; but if they have left a child, then you shall have one-quarter of what they leave behind, after [the deduction of] any bequest they may have made, or any debt [they may have incurred]. And your widows shall have one-quarter of what you leave behind, provided you have left no child; but if you have left a child, then they shall have one-eighth of what you leave behind, after [the deduction of] any bequest you may have made, or any debt [you may have incurred]. And if a man or a woman has no heir in the direct line, but has a brother or a sister, then each of these two shall inherit one-sixth; but if there are more than two, then they shall share in one-third [of the inheritance], after [the deduction of] any bequest that may have been made, or any debt [that may have been incurred], neither of which having been intended to harm [the heirs]. [This is] an injunction from God: and God is all-knowing, forbearing.
And ye will have half of that which your wives may leave, if they have no Child, but if they have a child then ye shall have one- fourth of that which they may leave, after paying a bequest they may have bequeathed or a debt. And they shall have one-fourth of that which ye may leaves if ye have no child; but if ye have a child then they will have one-eighth of that which ye may leave, after paying a bequest ye may have bequeathed or a debt. And if a man or a woman who leaveth the heritage hath no direct heirs but hath a brother or a sister, each of the twain will have a sixth; and if more than one, then they will have equal shares in one third after paying a bequest they may have bequeathed or a debt without prejudice: an ordinance this from Allah; and Allah Is Knowing, Forbearing.
In that which your wives leave, your share is a half if they have no child; but if they leave a child, you get a fourth of that which they leave after payment of legacies that they may have bequeathed or debts. In that which you leave, their (your wives) share is a fourth if you leave no child; but if you leave a child, they get an eighth of that which you leave after payment of legacies that you may have bequeathed or debts. If the man or woman whose inheritance is in question has left neither ascendants nor descendants, but has left a brother or a sister, each one of the two gets a sixth; but if more than two, they share in a third; after payment of lagacies he (or she) may have bequeathed or debts, so that no loss is caused (to anyone). This is a Commandment from Allah; and Allah is Ever All-Knowing, Most-Forbearing.
You get one-half of what your wives leave behind, if they had no children. If they had children, you get one-fourth of what they leave. After fulfilling any bequest and paying off debts. They get one-fourth of what you leave behind, if you have no children. If you have children, they get one-eighth of what you leave. After fulfilling any bequest and paying off debts. If a man or woman leaves neither parents nor children, but has a brother or sister, each of them gets one-sixth. If there are more siblings, they share one-third. After fulfilling any bequest and paying off debts, without any prejudice. This is a will from God. God is Knowing and Clement.
And to you belongs half of whatever has been left behind by your wives if they die childless; but if they have any children then to you belongs a fourth of what they have left behind, after payment of the bequest they might have made or any debts outstanding against them. And to them belongs a fourth of what you leave behind, if you die childless; and if you have any child then to them belongs one-eighth of what you have left behind, after the payment of the bequest you might have made or any debts outstanding against you. And if the man or woman has no heir in the direct line, but has a brother or sister, then each of these shall inherit one-sixth; but if they are more than two, then they shall inherit one-third of the inheritance, after the payment of the bequest that might have been made or any debts outstanding against the deceased, providing that the bequest causes no injury. This is a commandment from Allah; Allah is All-Knowing, All-Forbearing.
In that which your wives leave, your share is half if they have no child; but if they leave a child, you get a fourth of that which they leave after payment of legacies that they may have bequeathed or debts. In that which you leave, their (your wives) share is a fourth if you leave no child; but if you leave a child, they get an eighth of that which you leave after payment of legacies that you may have bequeathed or debts. If the man or woman whose inheritance is in Kalalah has left neither ascendants nor descendants, but has left a brother or a sister, each one of the two gets a sixth; but if more than two, they share in a third; after payment of legacies he (or she) may have bequeathed or debts, so that no loss is caused (to anyone). This is a Commandment from Allah; and Allah is Ever All-Knowing, Most Forbearing.
And unto you belongeth a half of that which your wives leave, if they have no child; but if they have a child then unto you the fourth of that which they leave, after any legacy they may have bequeathed, or debt (they may have contracted, hath been paid). And unto them belongeth the fourth of that which ye leave if ye have no child, but if ye have a child then the eighth of that which ye leave, after any legacy ye may have bequeathed, or debt (ye may have contracted, hath been paid). And if a man or a woman have a distant heir (having left neither parent nor child), and he (or she) have a brother or a sister (only on the mother's side) then to each of them twain (the brother and the sister) the sixth, and if they be more than two, then they shall be sharers in the third, after any legacy that may have been bequeathed or debt (contracted) not injuring (the heirs by willing away more than a third of the heritage) hath been paid. A commandment from Allah. Allah is Knower, Indulgent.
For you shall be a half of what your wives leave, if they have no children; but if they have children, then for you shall be a fourth of what they leave, after [paying off] any bequest they may have made or any debt [they may have incurred]. And for them [it shall be] a fourth of what you leave, if you have no children; but if you have children, then for them shall be an eighth of what you leave, after [paying off] any bequest you may have made or any debt [you may have incurred]. If a man or woman is inherited by siblings and has a brother or a sister, then each of them shall receive a sixth; but if they are more than that, then they shall share in one third, after [paying off] any bequest he may have made or any debt [he may have incurred] without prejudice. [This is] an enjoinment from Allah, and Allah is all-knowing, all-forbearing.
For you half of what your wives leave if they have no child. If they have a child, a quarter of what they leave shall be yours after any bequest she had bequeathed, or any debt. And for them (the females) they shall inherit one quarter of what you leave if you have no child. If you have a child, they shall inherit one eighth, after any bequest you had bequeathed, or any debt. If a man or a woman have no direct heirs, but have a brother or a sister, to each of the two a sixth. If they are more than that, they shall equally share the third, after any bequest that he had bequeathed or any debt without harm. This is an obligation from Allah. He is the Knower, the Clement.
And for you is half of what your wives leave if they have no child. But if they have a child, for you is one fourth of what they leave, after any bequest they [may have] made or debt. And for the wives is one fourth if you leave no child. But if you leave a child, then for them is an eighth of what you leave, after any bequest you [may have] made or debt. And if a man or woman leaves neither ascendants nor descendants but has a brother or a sister, then for each one of them is a sixth. But if they are more than two, they share a third, after any bequest which was made or debt, as long as there is no detriment [caused]. [This is] an ordinance from Allah, and Allah is Knowing and Forbearing.
If your wives die without any surviving children, you will inherit half of their legacy. If they have children, you will inherit one-fourth of their legacy after the debts and things bequeathed have been excluded from the legacy. After the payment of debts and things bequeathed have been excluded from the legacy, your wives will inherit one-fourth of your legacy if you have no surviving children. If you leave a child, they will inherit one eighth of your legacy. If the deceased, either male or female, has no surviving heirs such as parents or children but has a brother or a sister, the brother or sister will each inherit one-sixth of the legacy. If there are more than just a brother or a sister, they will share one-third of the legacy. This is after the payment of any debts and things bequeathed have been excluded from the legacy, so that no one will be caused to suffer any loss. It is a guide from God, the All-knowing and Forbearing.
And you shall have half of what your wives leave if they have no child, but if they have a child, then you shall have a fourth of what they leave after (payment of) any bequest they may have bequeathed or a debt; and they shall have the fourth of what you leave if you have no child, but if you have a child then they shall have the eighth of what you leave after (payment of) a bequest you may have bequeathed or a debt; and if a man or a woman leaves property to be inherited by neither parents nor offspring, and he (or she) has a brother or a sister, then each of them two shall have the sixth, but if they are more than that, they shall be sharers in the third after (payment of) any bequest that may have been bequeathed or a debt that does not harm (others); this is an ordinance from Allah: and Allah is Knowing, Forbearing.
Walakum ni<u>s</u>fu m<u>a</u> taraka azw<u>a</u>jukum in lam yakun lahunna waladun fain k<u>a</u>na lahunna waladun falakumu a<b>l</b>rrubuAAu mimm<u>a</u> tarakna min baAAdi wa<u>s</u>iyyatin yoo<u>s</u>eena bih<u>a</u> aw daynin walahunna a<b>l</b>rrubuAAu mimm<u>a</u> taraktum in lam yakun lakum waladun fain k<u>a</u>na lakum waladun falahunna a<b>l</b>ththumunu mimm<u>a</u> taraktum min baAAdi wa<u>s</u>iyyatin too<u>s</u>oona bih<u>a</u> aw daynin wain k<u>a</u>na rajulun yoorathu kal<u>a</u>latan awi imraatun walahu akhun aw okhtun falikulli w<u>ah</u>idin minhum<u>a</u> a<b>l</b>ssudusu fain k<u>a</u>noo akthara min <u>tha</u>lika fahum shurak<u>a</u>o fee a<b>l</b>ththuluthi min baAAdi wa<u>s</u>iyyatin yoo<u>sa</u> bih<u>a</u> aw daynin ghayra mu<u>da</u>rrin wa<u>s</u>iyyatan mina All<u>a</u>hi wa<b>A</b>ll<u>a</u>hu AAaleemun <u>h</u>aleem<b>un</b>
You will inherit half of what your wives leave, provided they have left no children. But if they leave children then you inherit a quarter of what they leave, after payment of any bequests they may have made or any debts they may have incurred. Your wives shall inherit one quarter of what you leave if you are childless. But if you leave children, your wives shall inherit one eighth, after payment of any bequest or debts. If a man or woman has no direct heirs [neither children or parents] but has left a brother or a sister, they shall each inherit one sixth, but if they are more than two, they share one third between them, after payment of any bequests or debts, so that no harm is done to anyone. That is a commandment from God: God is all knowing and forbearing.
In what your wives leave, your share is a half, if they leave no child; but if they leave a child, ye get a fourth; after payment of legacies and debts. In what ye leave, their share is a fourth, if ye leave no child; but if ye leave a child, they get an eighth; after payment of legacies and debts. If the man or woman whose inheritance is in question, has left neither ascendants nor descendants, but has left a brother or a sister, each one of the two gets a sixth; but if more than two, they share in a third; after payment of legacies and debts; so that no loss is caused (to any one). Thus is it ordained by Allah; and Allah is All-knowing, Most Forbearing.
وَلَكُمْ نِصْفُ مَا تَرَكَ أَزْوَٰجُكُمْ إِن لَّمْ يَكُن لَّهُنَّ وَلَدٌ فَإِن كَانَ لَهُنَّ وَلَدٌ فَلَكُمُ ٱلرُّبُعُ مِمَّا تَرَكْنَ مِنۢ بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ يُوصِينَ بِهَآ أَوْ دَيْنٍ وَلَهُنَّ ٱلرُّبُعُ مِمَّا تَرَكْتُمْ إِن لَّمْ يَكُن لَّكُمْ وَلَدٌ فَإِن كَانَ لَكُمْ وَلَدٌ فَلَهُنَّ ٱلثُّمُنُ مِمَّا تَرَكْتُم مِّنۢ بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ تُوصُونَ بِهَآ أَوْ دَيْنٍ وَإِن كَانَ رَجُلٌ يُورَثُ كَلَٰلَةً أَوِ ٱمْرَأَةٌ وَلَهُۥٓ أَخٌ أَوْ أُخْتٌ فَلِكُلِّ وَٰحِدٍ مِّنْهُمَا ٱلسُّدُسُ فَإِن كَانُوٓا۟ أَكْثَرَ مِن ذَٰلِكَ فَهُمْ شُرَكَآءُ فِى ٱلثُّلُثِ مِنۢ بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ يُوصَىٰ بِهَآ أَوْ دَيْنٍ غَيْرَ مُضَآرٍّ وَصِيَّةً مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ وَٱللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَلِيمٌ
You have half of what your wives leave, if they have no child. If they have a child, whether it is your child or not, then you get a fourth of the wealth they leave, after any bequest they have made and the repayment of any debts they had. Wives get a quarter of what you leave, if you have no child, whether it is their child or not. If you have a child, then they get an eighth of what you leave, after any bequest you have made and the repayment of any debts you had. If someone dies without any parents or children to inherit from them, but they have a brother or sister from the same mother as them, then each of them gets a sixth. If they have more than one brother or sister from the same mother as them, then they share a third, with brothers and sisters receiving the same share – this is after any bequest that they leave and the repayment of any debts they had, with the condition that the bequest does not cause harm to any of the inheritors, such as it being more than a third of the total of the wealth. The rulings contained in the verses about inheritance law are an obligation on you, and Allah knows what is in the interests of His servants in this world and the Afterlife. He is forbearing, and not quick to punish.
You have half of what your wives leave, if they have no child. If they have a child, whether it is your child or not, then you get a fourth of the wealth they leave, after any bequest they have made and the repayment of any debts they had. Wives get a quarter of what you leave, if you have no child, whether it is their child or not. If you have a child, then they get an eighth of what you leave, after any bequest you have made and the repayment of any debts you had. If someone dies without any parents or children to inherit from them, but they have a brother or sister from the same mother as them, then each of them gets a sixth. If they have more than one brother or sister from the same mother as them, then they share a third, with brothers and sisters receiving the same share – this is after any bequest that they leave and the repayment of any debts they had, with the condition that the bequest does not cause harm to any of the inheritors, such as it being more than a third of the total of the wealth. The rulings contained in the verses about inheritance law are an obligation on you, and Allah knows what is in the interests of His servants in this world and the Afterlife. He is forbearing, and not quick to punish.
<p>Upto this point, the text has described the shares of those competent to inherit, those who had the affinity of lineage and birth with the deceased. The present verse talks about some others who do have the competence but are not related by lineage. Instead, they are related by marriage. Details appear in the Commentary.</p><p>Commentary</p><p>The share of the husband and the wife</p><p>In this part of verse 12, the shares of the husband and the wife have been determined. The share of the husband has been mentioned first, perhaps to show its importance because after the death of the wife, the husband becomes part of some other family. If the wife dies at the home of her parents with her assets too being there, her people may avoid giving the share due to the husband. By describing the right of the husband first, the Holy Qur'an has possibly condemned this practice. To explain in details, it means that in case the deceased wife has left no child behind, the husband will get, after the payment of debt and execution of will, one-half of the total property left by the deceased. Out of the remaining half, other heirs, such as the parents of the deceased, her brothers and sisters, will get their shares according to rules set for them.</p><p>If the deceased wife has left children - one or two or more, whether male or female, either from the same husband, or from some previous husband, then, the present husband will get, after the payment of debt and execution of will, one-fourth of the total property left by the deceased woman. Shares from the remaining three-fourth will go to other heirs.</p><p>If it is the husband who dies leaving his wife behind and leaves no children, the wife will get, after the payment of debt and the execution of will, one-fourth of the total property left by the deceased. And if he has left a child - either from the present wife or from some other wife - she will get, after the settlement of debt and will, a one-eight share. And if the deceased husband had more than one wife, all alive at the time of his death, the attending details shall remain the same, however, the share prescribed for the 'wife' (i.e. 1/4 or 1/8) shall be divided equally between all the wives. In other words, every woman will not get a share of one-fourth and one-eighth. Instead, all wives will share the one-fourth or one-eight equally. Then, under both these conditions, the inheritance which remains after settling the share of the husband/ wife will be distributed among other heirs left by them.</p><p>Ruling</p><p>It must be ascertained before the' distribution of inheritance that the مہر mahr (dower) of the wife has been paid. If the deceased has not paid the mahr of his wife, this will be taken as debt, and will have to be paid first from the total property, like all other debts. The inheri-tance will be distributed only after that. It should be noted that the woman, after having received her mahr, shall go on to receive her fixed share in the inheritance as a competent inheritor. And in case, the property left by the deceased is not more than the value, of dower, and nothing remains after it is paid, the entire property will be given to the woman against her debt of mahr very much like other debts and, as a result, no heir will receive any share from the inheritance thus used up.</p><p>After having made a brief mention of rights of relations emerging from lineage and marriage, the text now introduces the injunction which covers the inheritance of a particular deceased who has left no children or parents, details of which appear below:</p><p>The inheritance of Kalalah</p><p>This latter part of verse 12 describes the injunction relating to the inheritance of Kalalah. There have been many definitions of Kalalah. Al-Qurtubi reports these in his Tafsir. According to the most well-known definition, 'A person who dies leaving no ascendants and descendants is Kalalah.'</p><p>` Allamah al-Alusi, the author of Ruh al-Ma'ani says that Kalalah is really a verbal noun used in the sense of Kalal' meaning 'to become exhausted' which denotes 'weakness'. The name Kalalah has been applied to every relationship other than that of father and son because that relationship is weak as compared to the relationship of father and son.</p><p>Moreover, the word, Kalalah has also been applied to the deceased who left no son or father to inherit, as well as to the inheritor who is neither the son nor the father of the deceased. The lexical derivation requires that the word, ذو dhu, should be deemed as understood though not expressed explicitly. Thus Kalalah will be taken in the sense of ذو Dhu Kalalah, meaning 'one having weak relation'. Later on, the word also came to be applied to the property left as inheritance by a deceased having no son and father.</p><p>In gist, if a person, man or woman, dies and leaves behind neither father nor grandfather nor children, but does leave a brother or sister from the same mother and different father, the brother will get 1/6 and, if there is none, the sister will get 1/6. However, if they are more than one (for example, there may be one brother and one sister, or two brothers and two sisters) then, they all will share one-third of the entire property of the deceased. Here, the male will not get twice that of the female. ` Allamah al-Qurtubi says: ولیس فی الفرایٔض موضع یکون فیہ الذَّکرُ و الاُنثیٰ سوآً اِلَّا فی میراث الاخوَّۃِ لِلاُم ط</p><p>The share of the brother and sister</p><p>Let it be clear that this verse refers to the share of Akhyafi brothers and sisters (i.e. from the same mother and different fathers; also referred to as half-brothers and half-sisters). Though, this restriction has not been mentioned in the present verse, but consensus holds it as creditable. The Qira'ah or rendition of Sayyidna Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas ؓ in this verse is: وَلَهُ أَخٌ أَوْ أُخْتٌ من اُمِّہ (and he has a brother or sister from his mother) as has been reported by al-Qurtubi, al-Alusi, al-Jassas and others. Although this rendition has not come to us through تواتُر tawatur (a consistent narration of a very large number of persons in all ages) but because of the consensus of the entire Muslim ummah, it is worth practicing. Another clear proof is that Allah Almighty mentions the inheritance of Kalalah at the end of Surah Al-Nis-a' as well. If, it has been said there, there is one sister, she will get half. And if there is one brother, he will inherit the entire property of his sister. And if there are two sisters, they will get 2/3. And if there are several brothers and sisters, the male will be given twice that of the female. This injunction appearing at the end of the Surah refers to Aini (real and full) brothers and sisters, and to Allati (from the same father and different mothers) brothers and sisters. If ` Allati and ` Aini' brothers and sisters were to be included here, it will cause a contradiction in injunctions.</p><p>The issues regarding wi11 (Wasiyyah)</p><p>The shares of inheritance have been described thrice in this section and it has been said that this distribution of shares comes after the execution of will and the payment of debt. As it has been stated earlier, one-third of what remains of the property, after taking care of the cost of the funeral for the deceased, and payment of debts, shall be applied to the execution of the will. If the will exceeds the extent of one-third, it is not legally enforceable. According to the rule of Shari'ah, the payment of debt comes before the execution of will. If the entire property is used up in paying debts, there will be no will to execute and no property to distribute. At all the three places where 'will' has been mentioned, 'it' appears before 'debt'. As obvious, this gives the impression that the right of 'will' precedes 'debt'. Removing this misunderstanding, Sayyidna ؓ said:</p><p>انکم تقرأؤن ھذہ الایۃ مِن بعد وصیَّۃ ۔ مِّن بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ تُوصُونَ بِهَا أَوْ دَيْنٍ (مشکوٰۃ بحوالہ ترمذی ص 264)</p><p>(You recite the verse: مِن بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ يُوصِينَ بِهَا أَوْ دَيْنٍ settling the will they might have made, or debt' [ where 'will' comes first ] but [ practically ] the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، may peace be upon him, has settled, 'debt' before 'will' ).</p><p>Still, we have to know the point as to why will follows debt 'practically' while, in words, it has been mentioned earlier. In this connection, the author of Ruh al-Ma'ani has this to say: و تقدیم الوصیہ علی الدین ذکراً مع ان الدین مقدم علیھا حکما لاظھار کمال العنایہ بتنفیذھا لکونھا مظنۃ للتفریط فی ادایٔھا الخ۔</p><p>It means that the mention of will before debt in this verse is to emphasize upon the enforcement of the wills. Since the beneficiary of a will deserves it without any price paid by him, and often without having a kinship with the testator, it was likely that the inheritors ignore to enforce it or, at least, may cause unnecessary delay in its execution, because they may have not liked to see the property that was to be inherited by them, going to somebody else. So, it was to keep up the importance of will that it was mentioned before debt. Then, it is also not necessary that every person incurs a debt, and if a person incurs it during his lifetime, it is not necessary, that the said debt remains unpaid upto the time of his death. And even if the debt was due to be paid at the time of death, even then, since the claim of debt comes from the debtors to which the inheritors cannot say no, the likelihood of any shortcoming in this respect is slim. This is contrary to the case of will in which the deceased, when he bequeaths part of his property, earnestly desires that he should invest it in something good which serves as ongoing charity on his behalf. Since, there is no chance of a claim on this bequeathed property from any side, there was a possibility that the inheritors themselves might fall. into some sort of shortcoming, so, it was to offset this likelihood that the 'will' has been mentioned first everywhere as a special measure.</p><p>Rulings</p><p>1. If there is no debt and no will, the entire property, after taking care of the funeral expenses, will be distributed over the inheritors.</p><p>Making a will in favour of a heir is not lawful. If someone makes a will in favour of his son, daughter, husband or wife, or for someone else who is going to get a share in his inheritance, then, this will is not enforceable. The inheritors will get what is coming to them as their share in the inheritance. They are not entitled to more than that. The Holy Prophet ﷺ said in his famous address on the occasion of his last Hajj:</p><p>اِنَ اللہ قد اَعطٰی کُل ذِی حَقِّ حَقَّہ فلا وصیَّۃ لِوارث۔ ‘(مشکٰوۃ بحوالہ ابوداؤد ص 265)</p><p>(Surely, Allah has given every person his (or her) right. So,</p><p>there is no will for an inheritor.) (Mishkat with reference to Abu</p><p>Dawud, p. 265)</p><p>However, should other inheritors permit, the will made in favour of a particular inheritor, may be executed first and, then, the rest of the property. may be distributed in accordance with the method laid down by the Shari'ah, in which the particular inheritor will also get his fixed share from the inheritance. So Shari'ah me hadith narrations do carry the exception of اِلَّا ان یشآء الوَرَثۃ (unless inheritors wish). (as in al-Hidayah)</p><p>The words غَيْرَ‌ مُضَارٍّ‌ (causing no damage) appearing after the rules of inheritence of Kalalah have a special significance. They are to warn that even though the execution of the will and paying off the debts have precedence over the shares of the heirs, yet this rule should not be misused to cause harm to the genuine inheritors.</p><p>If anyone makes a will or makes a false admission of indebtedness so as to deprive inheritors, then, he is doing something strictly forbidden and is committing a major sin.</p><p>There are many ways damage can be done through debt and will. For example, one may deliberately lie that he is in debt, just to let that be given to a friend or somebody else. Or, he may show something special which he owns personally as something he holds in trust for somebody so that it can stay out of the total inheritable property. Or, one may make a will for property beyond the extent of one-third. Or, he lies about an unpaid loan he gave to somebody and says that the debt was paid off so that it does not pass on to the inheritors. Or, one may, during his illness culminating in death (مرضَ الموت ), make a gift of more than one-third in the name of somebody.</p><p>These are forms of causing damage. Every legator who is going to bid farewell to this mortal world should do his best to stay away from causing such damages during the last moments of his life.</p><p>It should be noticed that although the words 'causing no damage' have appeared only with the rules relating to Kalalah, however, the rule laid down by them is general and is also understood at two previous places where the precedence of will and debt has been mentioned in these verses. Therefore, it is not the Kalalah only who should refrain from causing harm to his inheritors, but the same rule applies to all persons who wish to make a will.</p><p>The emphasis on distribution according to fixed shares</p><p>Towards the end of the verse, after the shares of inheritance have been described, Allah Almighty has said: وَصِيَّةً مِّنَ اللَّـهِ (All this is prescribed by Allah). It means that it is imperative to act upon what-ever has been prescribed in relation to shares as fixed and the payment of debt and the execution of will as emphasized. Being a mandate and injunction of supreme significance, one should do nothing to contravene it. Then, as additional warning it was said: وَاللَّـهُ عَلِيمٌ حَلِيمٌ (And Allah is All-Knowing, Forbearing). It means that Allah knows everything and He has apportioned these shares knowing everybody's true state of being as in His knowledge. Whoever obeys and acts in accordance with these injunctions, this good deed of his shall not remain outside the reach of His knowledge. And whoever contravenes these injunctions, this evil conduct of his shall certainly appear as it is in the knowledge of Allah for which he shall be held accountable.</p><p>In addition to that, if a deceased person has caused damage to his heirs through debt or will, Allah knows that as well. So, one should never be fearless from Allah's punishment. However, it is quite possible that Allah Almighty may not punish a person right here in this mortal world, because He is Forbearing. But, the one who disobeys and acts in contravention should better not deceive himself by thinking that he really got away.</p>
Upto this point, the text has described the shares of those competent to inherit, those who had the affinity of lineage and birth with the deceased. The present verse talks about some others who do have the competence but are not related by lineage. Instead, they are related by marriage. Details appear in the Commentary.CommentaryThe share of the husband and the wifeIn this part of verse 12, the shares of the husband and the wife have been determined. The share of the husband has been mentioned first, perhaps to show its importance because after the death of the wife, the husband becomes part of some other family. If the wife dies at the home of her parents with her assets too being there, her people may avoid giving the share due to the husband. By describing the right of the husband first, the Holy Qur'an has possibly condemned this practice. To explain in details, it means that in case the deceased wife has left no child behind, the husband will get, after the payment of debt and execution of will, one-half of the total property left by the deceased. Out of the remaining half, other heirs, such as the parents of the deceased, her brothers and sisters, will get their shares according to rules set for them.If the deceased wife has left children - one or two or more, whether male or female, either from the same husband, or from some previous husband, then, the present husband will get, after the payment of debt and execution of will, one-fourth of the total property left by the deceased woman. Shares from the remaining three-fourth will go to other heirs.If it is the husband who dies leaving his wife behind and leaves no children, the wife will get, after the payment of debt and the execution of will, one-fourth of the total property left by the deceased. And if he has left a child - either from the present wife or from some other wife - she will get, after the settlement of debt and will, a one-eight share. And if the deceased husband had more than one wife, all alive at the time of his death, the attending details shall remain the same, however, the share prescribed for the 'wife' (i.e. 1/4 or 1/8) shall be divided equally between all the wives. In other words, every woman will not get a share of one-fourth and one-eighth. Instead, all wives will share the one-fourth or one-eight equally. Then, under both these conditions, the inheritance which remains after settling the share of the husband/ wife will be distributed among other heirs left by them.RulingIt must be ascertained before the' distribution of inheritance that the مہر mahr (dower) of the wife has been paid. If the deceased has not paid the mahr of his wife, this will be taken as debt, and will have to be paid first from the total property, like all other debts. The inheri-tance will be distributed only after that. It should be noted that the woman, after having received her mahr, shall go on to receive her fixed share in the inheritance as a competent inheritor. And in case, the property left by the deceased is not more than the value, of dower, and nothing remains after it is paid, the entire property will be given to the woman against her debt of mahr very much like other debts and, as a result, no heir will receive any share from the inheritance thus used up.After having made a brief mention of rights of relations emerging from lineage and marriage, the text now introduces the injunction which covers the inheritance of a particular deceased who has left no children or parents, details of which appear below:The inheritance of KalalahThis latter part of verse 12 describes the injunction relating to the inheritance of Kalalah. There have been many definitions of Kalalah. Al-Qurtubi reports these in his Tafsir. According to the most well-known definition, 'A person who dies leaving no ascendants and descendants is Kalalah.'` Allamah al-Alusi, the author of Ruh al-Ma'ani says that Kalalah is really a verbal noun used in the sense of Kalal' meaning 'to become exhausted' which denotes 'weakness'. The name Kalalah has been applied to every relationship other than that of father and son because that relationship is weak as compared to the relationship of father and son.Moreover, the word, Kalalah has also been applied to the deceased who left no son or father to inherit, as well as to the inheritor who is neither the son nor the father of the deceased. The lexical derivation requires that the word, ذو dhu, should be deemed as understood though not expressed explicitly. Thus Kalalah will be taken in the sense of ذو Dhu Kalalah, meaning 'one having weak relation'. Later on, the word also came to be applied to the property left as inheritance by a deceased having no son and father.In gist, if a person, man or woman, dies and leaves behind neither father nor grandfather nor children, but does leave a brother or sister from the same mother and different father, the brother will get 1/6 and, if there is none, the sister will get 1/6. However, if they are more than one (for example, there may be one brother and one sister, or two brothers and two sisters) then, they all will share one-third of the entire property of the deceased. Here, the male will not get twice that of the female. ` Allamah al-Qurtubi says: ولیس فی الفرایٔض موضع یکون فیہ الذَّکرُ و الاُنثیٰ سوآً اِلَّا فی میراث الاخوَّۃِ لِلاُم طThe share of the brother and sisterLet it be clear that this verse refers to the share of Akhyafi brothers and sisters (i.e. from the same mother and different fathers; also referred to as half-brothers and half-sisters). Though, this restriction has not been mentioned in the present verse, but consensus holds it as creditable. The Qira'ah or rendition of Sayyidna Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas ؓ in this verse is: وَلَهُ أَخٌ أَوْ أُخْتٌ من اُمِّہ (and he has a brother or sister from his mother) as has been reported by al-Qurtubi, al-Alusi, al-Jassas and others. Although this rendition has not come to us through تواتُر tawatur (a consistent narration of a very large number of persons in all ages) but because of the consensus of the entire Muslim ummah, it is worth practicing. Another clear proof is that Allah Almighty mentions the inheritance of Kalalah at the end of Surah Al-Nis-a' as well. If, it has been said there, there is one sister, she will get half. And if there is one brother, he will inherit the entire property of his sister. And if there are two sisters, they will get 2/3. And if there are several brothers and sisters, the male will be given twice that of the female. This injunction appearing at the end of the Surah refers to Aini (real and full) brothers and sisters, and to Allati (from the same father and different mothers) brothers and sisters. If ` Allati and ` Aini' brothers and sisters were to be included here, it will cause a contradiction in injunctions.The issues regarding wi11 (Wasiyyah)The shares of inheritance have been described thrice in this section and it has been said that this distribution of shares comes after the execution of will and the payment of debt. As it has been stated earlier, one-third of what remains of the property, after taking care of the cost of the funeral for the deceased, and payment of debts, shall be applied to the execution of the will. If the will exceeds the extent of one-third, it is not legally enforceable. According to the rule of Shari'ah, the payment of debt comes before the execution of will. If the entire property is used up in paying debts, there will be no will to execute and no property to distribute. At all the three places where 'will' has been mentioned, 'it' appears before 'debt'. As obvious, this gives the impression that the right of 'will' precedes 'debt'. Removing this misunderstanding, Sayyidna ؓ said:انکم تقرأؤن ھذہ الایۃ مِن بعد وصیَّۃ ۔ مِّن بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ تُوصُونَ بِهَا أَوْ دَيْنٍ (مشکوٰۃ بحوالہ ترمذی ص 264)(You recite the verse: مِن بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ يُوصِينَ بِهَا أَوْ دَيْنٍ settling the will they might have made, or debt' [ where 'will' comes first ] but [ practically ] the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، may peace be upon him, has settled, 'debt' before 'will' ).Still, we have to know the point as to why will follows debt 'practically' while, in words, it has been mentioned earlier. In this connection, the author of Ruh al-Ma'ani has this to say: و تقدیم الوصیہ علی الدین ذکراً مع ان الدین مقدم علیھا حکما لاظھار کمال العنایہ بتنفیذھا لکونھا مظنۃ للتفریط فی ادایٔھا الخ۔It means that the mention of will before debt in this verse is to emphasize upon the enforcement of the wills. Since the beneficiary of a will deserves it without any price paid by him, and often without having a kinship with the testator, it was likely that the inheritors ignore to enforce it or, at least, may cause unnecessary delay in its execution, because they may have not liked to see the property that was to be inherited by them, going to somebody else. So, it was to keep up the importance of will that it was mentioned before debt. Then, it is also not necessary that every person incurs a debt, and if a person incurs it during his lifetime, it is not necessary, that the said debt remains unpaid upto the time of his death. And even if the debt was due to be paid at the time of death, even then, since the claim of debt comes from the debtors to which the inheritors cannot say no, the likelihood of any shortcoming in this respect is slim. This is contrary to the case of will in which the deceased, when he bequeaths part of his property, earnestly desires that he should invest it in something good which serves as ongoing charity on his behalf. Since, there is no chance of a claim on this bequeathed property from any side, there was a possibility that the inheritors themselves might fall. into some sort of shortcoming, so, it was to offset this likelihood that the 'will' has been mentioned first everywhere as a special measure.Rulings1. If there is no debt and no will, the entire property, after taking care of the funeral expenses, will be distributed over the inheritors.Making a will in favour of a heir is not lawful. If someone makes a will in favour of his son, daughter, husband or wife, or for someone else who is going to get a share in his inheritance, then, this will is not enforceable. The inheritors will get what is coming to them as their share in the inheritance. They are not entitled to more than that. The Holy Prophet ﷺ said in his famous address on the occasion of his last Hajj:اِنَ اللہ قد اَعطٰی کُل ذِی حَقِّ حَقَّہ فلا وصیَّۃ لِوارث۔ ‘(مشکٰوۃ بحوالہ ابوداؤد ص 265)(Surely, Allah has given every person his (or her) right. So,there is no will for an inheritor.) (Mishkat with reference to AbuDawud, p. 265)However, should other inheritors permit, the will made in favour of a particular inheritor, may be executed first and, then, the rest of the property. may be distributed in accordance with the method laid down by the Shari'ah, in which the particular inheritor will also get his fixed share from the inheritance. So Shari'ah me hadith narrations do carry the exception of اِلَّا ان یشآء الوَرَثۃ (unless inheritors wish). (as in al-Hidayah)The words غَيْرَ‌ مُضَارٍّ‌ (causing no damage) appearing after the rules of inheritence of Kalalah have a special significance. They are to warn that even though the execution of the will and paying off the debts have precedence over the shares of the heirs, yet this rule should not be misused to cause harm to the genuine inheritors.If anyone makes a will or makes a false admission of indebtedness so as to deprive inheritors, then, he is doing something strictly forbidden and is committing a major sin.There are many ways damage can be done through debt and will. For example, one may deliberately lie that he is in debt, just to let that be given to a friend or somebody else. Or, he may show something special which he owns personally as something he holds in trust for somebody so that it can stay out of the total inheritable property. Or, one may make a will for property beyond the extent of one-third. Or, he lies about an unpaid loan he gave to somebody and says that the debt was paid off so that it does not pass on to the inheritors. Or, one may, during his illness culminating in death (مرضَ الموت ), make a gift of more than one-third in the name of somebody.These are forms of causing damage. Every legator who is going to bid farewell to this mortal world should do his best to stay away from causing such damages during the last moments of his life.It should be noticed that although the words 'causing no damage' have appeared only with the rules relating to Kalalah, however, the rule laid down by them is general and is also understood at two previous places where the precedence of will and debt has been mentioned in these verses. Therefore, it is not the Kalalah only who should refrain from causing harm to his inheritors, but the same rule applies to all persons who wish to make a will.The emphasis on distribution according to fixed sharesTowards the end of the verse, after the shares of inheritance have been described, Allah Almighty has said: وَصِيَّةً مِّنَ اللَّـهِ (All this is prescribed by Allah). It means that it is imperative to act upon what-ever has been prescribed in relation to shares as fixed and the payment of debt and the execution of will as emphasized. Being a mandate and injunction of supreme significance, one should do nothing to contravene it. Then, as additional warning it was said: وَاللَّـهُ عَلِيمٌ حَلِيمٌ (And Allah is All-Knowing, Forbearing). It means that Allah knows everything and He has apportioned these shares knowing everybody's true state of being as in His knowledge. Whoever obeys and acts in accordance with these injunctions, this good deed of his shall not remain outside the reach of His knowledge. And whoever contravenes these injunctions, this evil conduct of his shall certainly appear as it is in the knowledge of Allah for which he shall be held accountable.In addition to that, if a deceased person has caused damage to his heirs through debt or will, Allah knows that as well. So, one should never be fearless from Allah's punishment. However, it is quite possible that Allah Almighty may not punish a person right here in this mortal world, because He is Forbearing. But, the one who disobeys and acts in contravention should better not deceive himself by thinking that he really got away.
<h2 class="title">Share of the Spouses in the Inheritance</h2><p>Allah says to the husband, you get half of what your wife leaves behind if she dies and did not have a child. If she had a child, you get one-fourth of what she leaves behind, after payment of legacies that she may have bequeathed, or her debts. We mentioned before that payment of debts comes before fulfilling the will, and then comes the will, then the inheritance, and there is a consensus on this matter among the scholars. And the rule applies to the grandchildren as well as the children, even if they are great-grandchildren (or even further in generation) Allah then said,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">وَلَهُنَّ الرُّبُعُ مِمَّا تَرَكْتُمْ</div><p>(In that which you leave, their (your wives) share is a fourth) and if there is more than one wife, they all share in the fourth, or one-eighth that the wife gets. Earlier, we explained Allah's statement,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">مِن بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ</div><p>(After payment of legacies)</p><h2 class="title">The Meaning of Kalalah</h2><p>Allah said,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">وَإِن كَانَ رَجُلٌ يُورَثُ كَلَـلَةً</div><p>(If the man or woman whose inheritance is in question was left in Kalalah.) Kalalah is a derivative of Iklil; the crown that surrounds the head. The meaning of Kalalah in this Ayah is that the person's heirs come from other than the first degree of relative. Ash-Sha`bi reported that when Abu Bakr As-Siddiq was asked about the meaning of Kalalah, he said, "I will say my own opinion about it, and if it is correct, then this correctness is from Allah. However, if my opinion is wrong, it will be my error and because of the evil efforts of Shaytan, and Allah and His Messenger have nothing to do with it. Kalalah refers to the man who has neither descendants nor ascendants." When `Umar became the Khalifah, he said, "I hesitate to contradict an opinion of Abu Bakr." This was recorded by Ibn Jarir and others. In his Tafsir, Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Ibn `Abbas said, "I was among the last persons to see `Umar bin Al-Khattab, and he said to me, `What you said was the correct opinion.' I asked, `What did I say' He said, `That Kalalah refers to the person who has no child or parents."' This is also the opinion of `Ali bin Abi Talib, Ibn Mas`ud, Ibn `Abbas, Zayd bin Thabit, Ash-Sha`bi, An-Nakha`i, Al-Hasan Al-Basri, Qatadah, Jabir bin Zayd and Al-Hakam . This is also the view of the people of Al-Madinah, Kufah, Basrah, the Seven Fuqaha', the Four Imams and the majority of scholars of the past and present, causing some scholars to declare that there is a consensus on this opinion.</p><h2 class="title">The Ruling Concerning Children of the Mother From Other Than the Deceased's Father</h2><p>Allah said,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">وَلَهُ أَخٌ أَوْ أُخْتٌ</div><p>(But has left a brother or a sister), meaning, from his mother's side, as some of the Salaf stated, including Sa`d bin Abi Waqqas. Qatadah reported that this is the view of Abu Bakr As-Siddiq.</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">فَلِكُلِّ وَحِدٍ مِّنْهُمَا السُّدُسُ فَإِن كَانُواْ أَكْثَرَ مِن ذلِكَ فَهُمْ شُرَكَآءُ فِى الثُّلُثِ</div><p>(Each one of the two gets a sixth; but if more than two, they share in a third.) There is a difference between the half brothers from the mother's side and the rest of the heirs. First, they get a share in the inheritance on account of their mother. Second, the males and females among them get the same share. Third, they only have a share in the inheritance when the deceased's estate is inherited in Kalalah, for they do not have a share if the deceased has a surviving father, grandfather, child or grandchild. Fourth, they do not have more than a third, no matter how numerous they were. aAllah's statement,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">مِن بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ يُوصَى بِهَآ أَوْ دَيْنٍ غَيْرَ مُضَآرٍّ</div><p>(After payment of legacies he (or she) may have bequeathed or debts, so that no loss is caused (to anyone).) means, let the will and testament be fair and free of any type of harm, without depriving some rightful heirs from all, or part of their share, or adding to the fixed portion that Allah or dained for some heirs. Indeed, whoever does this, will have disputed with Allah concerning His decision and division. An authentic Hadith states,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">«إِنَّ اللهَ قَدْ أَعْطَى كُلَّ ذِي حَقَ حَقَّهُ فَلَا وَصِيَّةَ لِوَارِث»</div><p>(Allah has given each his fixed due right. Therefore, there is no will for a rightful inheritor.)</p>
Share of the Spouses in the InheritanceAllah says to the husband, you get half of what your wife leaves behind if she dies and did not have a child. If she had a child, you get one-fourth of what she leaves behind, after payment of legacies that she may have bequeathed, or her debts. We mentioned before that payment of debts comes before fulfilling the will, and then comes the will, then the inheritance, and there is a consensus on this matter among the scholars. And the rule applies to the grandchildren as well as the children, even if they are great-grandchildren (or even further in generation) Allah then said,وَلَهُنَّ الرُّبُعُ مِمَّا تَرَكْتُمْ(In that which you leave, their (your wives) share is a fourth) and if there is more than one wife, they all share in the fourth, or one-eighth that the wife gets. Earlier, we explained Allah's statement,مِن بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ(After payment of legacies)The Meaning of KalalahAllah said,وَإِن كَانَ رَجُلٌ يُورَثُ كَلَـلَةً(If the man or woman whose inheritance is in question was left in Kalalah.) Kalalah is a derivative of Iklil; the crown that surrounds the head. The meaning of Kalalah in this Ayah is that the person's heirs come from other than the first degree of relative. Ash-Sha`bi reported that when Abu Bakr As-Siddiq was asked about the meaning of Kalalah, he said, "I will say my own opinion about it, and if it is correct, then this correctness is from Allah. However, if my opinion is wrong, it will be my error and because of the evil efforts of Shaytan, and Allah and His Messenger have nothing to do with it. Kalalah refers to the man who has neither descendants nor ascendants." When `Umar became the Khalifah, he said, "I hesitate to contradict an opinion of Abu Bakr." This was recorded by Ibn Jarir and others. In his Tafsir, Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Ibn `Abbas said, "I was among the last persons to see `Umar bin Al-Khattab, and he said to me, `What you said was the correct opinion.' I asked, `What did I say' He said, `That Kalalah refers to the person who has no child or parents."' This is also the opinion of `Ali bin Abi Talib, Ibn Mas`ud, Ibn `Abbas, Zayd bin Thabit, Ash-Sha`bi, An-Nakha`i, Al-Hasan Al-Basri, Qatadah, Jabir bin Zayd and Al-Hakam . This is also the view of the people of Al-Madinah, Kufah, Basrah, the Seven Fuqaha', the Four Imams and the majority of scholars of the past and present, causing some scholars to declare that there is a consensus on this opinion.The Ruling Concerning Children of the Mother From Other Than the Deceased's FatherAllah said,وَلَهُ أَخٌ أَوْ أُخْتٌ(But has left a brother or a sister), meaning, from his mother's side, as some of the Salaf stated, including Sa`d bin Abi Waqqas. Qatadah reported that this is the view of Abu Bakr As-Siddiq.فَلِكُلِّ وَحِدٍ مِّنْهُمَا السُّدُسُ فَإِن كَانُواْ أَكْثَرَ مِن ذلِكَ فَهُمْ شُرَكَآءُ فِى الثُّلُثِ(Each one of the two gets a sixth; but if more than two, they share in a third.) There is a difference between the half brothers from the mother's side and the rest of the heirs. First, they get a share in the inheritance on account of their mother. Second, the males and females among them get the same share. Third, they only have a share in the inheritance when the deceased's estate is inherited in Kalalah, for they do not have a share if the deceased has a surviving father, grandfather, child or grandchild. Fourth, they do not have more than a third, no matter how numerous they were. aAllah's statement,مِن بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ يُوصَى بِهَآ أَوْ دَيْنٍ غَيْرَ مُضَآرٍّ(After payment of legacies he (or she) may have bequeathed or debts, so that no loss is caused (to anyone).) means, let the will and testament be fair and free of any type of harm, without depriving some rightful heirs from all, or part of their share, or adding to the fixed portion that Allah or dained for some heirs. Indeed, whoever does this, will have disputed with Allah concerning His decision and division. An authentic Hadith states,«إِنَّ اللهَ قَدْ أَعْطَى كُلَّ ذِي حَقَ حَقَّهُ فَلَا وَصِيَّةَ لِوَارِث»(Allah has given each his fixed due right. Therefore, there is no will for a rightful inheritor.)