Fath al-Rabbani

Narrated by Sayyiduna Imran bin Husain (may Allah be pleased with him): A man came to the service of the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: My grandson has passed away, what will I receive from his inheritance? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: For you is one-sixth. When he turned to leave, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) called him back and said: You will also get one-sixth. Then when he was about to leave, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) called him back and said: This one-sixth is extra for you, (it is not given as a share).

It is also narrated from Sayyiduna Imran bin Husain (may Allah be pleased with him) that Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I beseech by Allah the person who has heard any hadith from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding the inheritance of the grandfather, to tell me. A man stood up and said: Yes, I was present with the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and he (peace be upon him) gave him (the grandfather) one third share. He (Umar) asked: With which heirs? He replied: That I do not know. He (Umar) said: Then you have not understood.

It is narrated from Amr bin Maymoon that he was present with Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him). He (may Allah be pleased with him) gathered the companions during his life and in a state of health, and asked them by invoking Allah, "Has anyone heard any hadith from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding the inheritance of the grandfather?" Sayyiduna Ma'qil bin Yasar (may Allah be pleased with him) stood up and said: "I heard from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that a case was brought to him in which there was a grandfather, so he (peace and blessings be upon him) gave the grandfather one-sixth or one-third share." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) asked: "What was that case, i.e., who were the individuals involved in that case?" He said: "That I do not know." He (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "What prevented you from knowing that?"

It is narrated from Hasan Basri (may Allah have mercy on him) that Sayyiduna Umar bin Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) inquired from the people about the prescribed share of the grandfather in inheritance. Sayyiduna Ma'qil bin Yasar Muzani (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Regarding this, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) had given a ruling. He asked: What was it? He replied: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) had given one-sixth. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) asked: With which individuals? He replied: That I do not know. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Then you have not understood the issue; how will this suffice you?

It is narrated from Saeed bin Jubair, he says: I was sitting with Abdullah bin Utbah bin Masood, whom Sayyiduna Ibn Zubair (may Allah be pleased with them both) had entrusted with the office of judge. He received this letter from Sayyiduna Ibn Zubair (may Allah be pleased with them both): Peace be upon you. To proceed! You have written to me regarding the inheritance of the grandfather, so I submit that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said that if I were to take anyone from this Ummah as a close friend (Khalil), I would have chosen Ibn Abi Quhafah, but he is my religious brother and companion of the cave. And Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) considered the grandfather as standing in place of the father, and the statement of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) is more deserving that we act upon it.

(Second chain) Sayyiduna Ibn Zubair (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: Indeed, the person about whom the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: If I were to take anyone as a close friend besides Allah Almighty, I would have taken Abu Bakr. That person made the grandfather stand in place of the father.