Ibn Umar (Allah be pleased with them) reported Allah's
Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: It is the
duty of a Muslim who has something which is to be given as
a bequest not to have it for two nights without having his
will written down regarding it.
A hadith like this have been narrated on the authority
of Nifi', who based his narrations of the words of Ibn 'Umar
but with a slight variation of words.
Salim reported on the authority of his father
('Abdullah b. Umar) that he (his father) had heard Allah's
Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: It is not
proper for a Muslim who has got something to bequeathe to
spend even three nights without having his will written
down with him regarding it. 'Abdullah b. 'Umar (Allah be
pleased with them) said: Ever since I heard Allah's
Messenger (may peace be upon him) say this I have not
spent a night without having my will (written) along with
me. This hadith has been narrated on the authority of
Zuhri with the same chain of transmitters.
Amir b. Sa'd reported on the authority of his father (Sa'd
b. Abi Waqqas): Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him)
visited me in my illness which brought me near death in
the year of Hajjat-ul-Wada' (Farewell Pilgrimage). I said:
Allah's Messenger, you can well see the pain with which I
am afflicted and I am a man possessing wealth, and there
is none to inherit me except only one daughter. Should I
give two-thirds of my property as Sadaqa? He said: No. I
said: Should I give half (of my property) as Sadaqa? He
said: No. He (further) said: Give one-third (in charity)
and that is quite enough. To leave your heirs rich is
better than to leave them poor, begging from people; that
you would never incur an expense seeking therewith the
pleasure of Allah, but you would be rewarded therefor,
even for a morsel of food that you put in the mouth of
your wife. I said: Allah's Messenger. would I survive my
companions? He (the Holy Prophet) said: If you survive
them, then do such a deed by means of which you seek the
pleasure of Allah, but you would increase in your status
(in religion) and prestige; you may survive so that people
would benefit from you, and others would be harmed by you.
(The Holy Prophet) further said: Allah, complete for my
Companions their migration, and not cause them to turn
back upon their heels. Sa'd b. Khaula is, however,
unfortunate. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him)
felt grief for him as he had died in Mecca.
'Amir b. Sa'd reported from S'ad (b. Abu Waqqas):
Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) visited me to
inquire after my health, the rest of the hadith is the
same as transmitted on the authority of Zuhri, but lie did
not make mention of the words of Allah's Apostle (may
peace be upon him) in regard to Sa'd b. Khaula except this
that he said:" He (the Holy Prophet) did not like death in
the land from which lie had migrated."
Mus'ab b. Sa'd reported on the authority of his father.
I was ailing. I sent message to Allah's Apostle (may peace
be upon him) saying: Permit me to give away my property as
I like. He refused. I (again) said: (Permit me) to give
away half. He (again refused). I (again said): Then
one-third. He (the Holy Prophet) observed silence after (I
had asked permission to give away) one-third. He (the
narrater) said: It was then that endowment of one-third
became permissible.
This hadith has been narrated on the authority of Simak
with the same chain of transmitters. But he did not
mention:" It was then that one-third became permissible."
Ibn Sa'd reported his father as saying: Allah's Apostle
(may peace be upon him) visited me during my illness. I
said: I am willing away the whole of my property. He said:
No. I said: Then half? He said: No. I said: Should I will
away one-third? He said: Yes, and even one-third is
enough.
Humaid b. 'Abd al-Rahman al-Himyari reported from three
of the sons of Sa'd all of whom reported from their father
that Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) visited Sa'd
as he was ill in Mecca. He (Sa'd) wept. He (the Holy
Prophet) said: What makes you weep? He said: I am afraid I
may die in the land from where I migrated as Sa'd b.
Khaula had died. Thereupon Allah's Apostle (may peace be
upon him) said: O Allah, grant health to Sa'd. O Allah,
grant health to Sad. He repeated it three times. He (Sa'd)
said: Allah's Messenger, I own a large property and I have
only one daughter as my inheritor. Should I not will away
the whole of my property? He (the Holy Prophet) said: No.
He said: (Should I not will away, ) two-thirds of the
property? he (the Holy Prophet) said: No. He (Sa'd)
(again) said: (Should I not will away) half (of my
property)? He said: No. He (Sa'd) said: Then one-third?
Thereupon he (the Holy Prophet) said: (Yes), one-third,
and one-third is quite substanial. And what you spend as
charity from your property is Sadaqa and flour spending on
your family is also Sadaqa, and what your wife eats from
your property is also Sadaqa, and that you leave your
heirs well off (or he said: prospreous) is better than to
leave them (poor and) begging from people. He (the Holy
Prophet) pointed this with his hands.
Humaid b. Abd al-Rahmin al-Himayri reported on the
authority of the three of the sons of Sa'd: They said:
Sa'd fell ill in Mecca. Allah's Messenger (may peace be
upon him) visited him to inquire after his health. The
rest of the hadith is the same.
Humaid b. Abd al-Rahman reported this hadith on the
authority of three of Sa'd's sons: Sa'd fell ill in Mecca
and Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) visited him.
The rest of the hadith is the same.
Ibn 'Abbas (Allah be pleased with them) said: (I wish)
if people would reduce from third to fourth (part for
making a will of their property), for Allah's Messenger
(may peace be upon him) said: So far as the third (part)
is concerned it is quite substantial. In the hadith
transmitted on the authority of Waki (the words are)"
large" or" much".
Chapter 3: THE DECEASED IS ENTITLED TO REWARD FOR
THE SADAQA GIVEN AFTER HIS DEATH
Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) reported that a
person said to Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him): My
father died and left behind property without making any
will regarding it. Would he be relieved of the burden of
his sing if I give sadaqa on his behalf? He (the Holy
Prophet) said: Yea.
A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that a man
said to Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him): My mother
died all of a sudden, and I think if she (could have the
opportunity) to speak she would have (made a will)
regarding Sadaqa'. Will I be entitled to reward if I give
charity on her behalf? He (the Holy Prophet) said: Yes.
A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that a man
came to Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) and said:
Allah's Messenger, my mother died all of a sudden without
making any will. I think if (she could have the
opportunity) to speak she would have made a Sadaqa. Would
there be any reward for her if I give charity on her
behalf? He (the Holy Prophet) said: Yes.
Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) reported
Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: When
a man dies, his acts come to an end, but three, recurring
charity, or knowledge (by which people) benefit, or a
pious son, who prays for him (for the deceased).
Ibn Umar reported: Umar acquired a land at Khaibar. He
came to Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) and sought
his advice in regard to it. He said: Allah's Messenger, I
have acquired land in Khaibar. I have never acquired
property more valuable for me than this, so what do you
command me to do with it? Thereupon he (Allah's Apostle)
said: If you like, you may keep the corpus intact and give
its produce as Sadaqa. So 'Umar gave it as Sadaqa
declaring that property must not be sold or inherited or
given away as gift. And Umar devoted it to the poor, to
the nearest kin, and to the emancipation of slaves, aired
in the way of Allah and guests. There is no sin for one,
who administers it if he eats something from it in a
reasonable manner, or if he feeds his friends and does not
hoard up goods (for himself). He (the narrator) said: I
narrated this hadith to Muhammad, but as I reached the
(words)" without hoarding (for himself) out of it." he
(Muhammad' said:" without storing the property with a view
to becoming rich." Ibn 'Aun said: He who read this book
(pertaining to Waqf) informed me that in it (the words
are)" without storing the property with a view to becoming
rich."
This hadith has been narrated on the authority of Ibn 'Aun
with the same chain of transmitters up to the words:" Or
he may feed the friend withoiut hoarding from it" and he
made no mention of what follows.
'Umar reported: I acquired land from the lands of
Khaibar. I came to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon
him) and said: I have acquired a piece of land. Never have
I acquired land more loved by me and more cherished by me
than this. The rest of the hadith is the same, but he made
no mention of this:" I narrated it to Muhammad" and what
follows.
Chapter 6: HE WHO HAS NOT ANYTHING WITH HIM TO
WILL AWAY SHOULD NOT DO IT
Talha b. Musarrif reported: I asked 'Abdullah b. Abu
Aufa whether Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) had
made any will (in regard to his property). He said: NO. I
said: Then why has making of will been made necessary for
the Muslims, or why were they commanded to make will?
Thereupon he said: He made the will according to the Book
of Allah, the Exalted and Majestic.
This hadith has been narrated on the authority of Malik
b. Mighwal with the same chain of transmitters but with a
slight variation of words. In the hadith related by Waki
(the words are)" I said: How the people have been ordered
about the will" ; and in the hadith of Ibn Numair (the
words are):" How the will has been prescribed for the
Muslims, '.
A'isha reported: Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon
him) left neither dinar nor dirham (wealth in the form of
cash), nor goats (and sheep), nor camels. And he made no
will about anything (in regard to his material
possessions, as he had none),
Aswad b. Yazid reported: It was mentioned before A'isha
that will had been made (by the Holy Prophet) in favour of
'Ali (as the Prophet's first caliph), whereupon she said:
When did he make will in his favour? I had been providing
support to him (to the Holy Prophet) with my chest (or
with my lap). He asked for a tray, when he fell in my lap
(relaxing his body), and I did not realise that he had
breathed his last. When did he make any will in his
('Ali's) favour?
Sa'id b. Jubair reported that Ibn 'Abbas said:
Thursday, (and then said): What is this Thursday? He then
wept so much that his tears moistened the pebbles. I said:
Ibn 'Abbas, what is (significant) about Thursday? He (Ibn
'Abbas) said: The illness of Allah's Messenger (may peace
be upon him) took a serious turn (on this day), and he
said: Come to me, so that I should write for you a
document that you may not go astray after me. They (the
Companions around him) disputed, and it is not meet to
dispute in the presence of the Apostle. They said: How is
lie (Allah's Apostle)? Has he lost his consciousness? Try
to learn from him (this point). He (the Holy Prophet)
said: Leave me. I am better in the state (than the one in
which you are engaged). I make a will about three things:
Turn out the polytheists from the territory of Arabia;
show hospitality to the (foreign) delegations as I used to
show them hospitality. He (the narrator) said: He (Ibn
Abbas) kept silent on the third point, or he (the
narrator) said: But I forgot that.
Sa'id b. Jubair reported from Ibn Abbas that he said:
Thursday, and what about Thursday? Then tears began to
flow until I saw them on his cheeks as it they were the
strings of pearls. He (the narrator) said that Allah's
Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Bring me a
shoulder blade and ink-pot (or tablet and inkpot), so that
I write for you a document (by following which) you would
never go astray. They said: Allah's Messenger (may peace
upon him) is in the state of unconsciousness.
Ibn Abbas reported: When Allah's Messenger (may peace
be upon him) was about to leave this world, there were
persons (around him) in his house, 'Umar b. al-Kbattab
being one of them. Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him)
said: Come, I may write for you a document; you would not
go astray after that. Thereupon Umar said: Verily Allah's
Messenger (may peace be upon him) is deeply afflicted with
pain. You have the Qur'an with you. The Book of Allah is
sufficient for us. Those who were present in the house
differed. Some of them said: Bring him (the writing
material) so that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon
him) may write a document for you and you would never go
astray after him And some among them said what 'Umar had
(already) said. When they indulged in nonsense and began
to dispute in the presence of Allah's Messenger (may peace
be upon him), he said: Get up (and go away) 'Ubaidullah
said: Ibn Abbas used to say: There was a heavy loss,
indeed a heavy loss, that, due to their dispute and noise.
Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) could not write
(or dictate) the document for them