Bukhari

Hadith Commentary:
This is about Zubair ibn al-Awwam radi Allahu anhu, whose kunyah was Abu Abdullah al-Qurashi.
His mother was Safiyyah radi Allahu anha, the daughter of Abdul Muttalib and the paternal aunt of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam.
He and his mother both embraced Islam at the very beginning.
At that time, he was sixteen years old.
He participated in all the battles alongside the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam.
He was among the ten who were given glad tidings of Paradise (asharah mubashsharah).
He was martyred in the Battle of Jamal, which took place between Aisha radi Allahu anha and Ali radi Allahu anhu in the month of Jumada al-Awwal, 36 AH, at Bab al-Basrah.
Aisha radi Allahu anha was mounted on a camel, hence the battle was named the Battle of the Camel (Jamal).
The reason for the battle was the unjust killing of Uthman radi Allahu anhu.
Aisha radi Allahu anha was seeking retribution (qisas) from the killers of Uthman radi Allahu anhu.
This battle occurred on that basis.
Regarding this hadith, the late Maulana Waheeduz-Zaman states:
The Battle of Jamal took place in 36 AH, which is the worst example of civil war among the Muslims. On one side, the leader was Ali radi Allahu anhu, and on the other side, Aisha radi Allahu anha.
Zubair radi Allahu anhu was with Aisha radi Allahu anha.
What happened was that the killers of Uthman radi Allahu anhu had joined the army of Ali radi Allahu anhu. Aisha radi Allahu anha and her companions wanted those killers to be handed over to them immediately so that retribution (qisas) could be taken from them.
Ali radi Allahu anhu said that until proper inquiry and investigation were conducted, how could he hand anyone over to them, lest they be killed unjustly.
This was the dispute, which could not be resolved through understanding or explanation.
Both sides were passionate.
Eventually, matters reached the point of battle; there was no dispute regarding the caliphate.
All the Companions radi Allahu anhum who were with Aisha radi Allahu anha had already accepted the caliphate of Ali radi Allahu anhu.
When the fighting began, Ali radi Allahu anhu called Zubair radi Allahu anhu and reminded him of the hadith of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam: "Zubair, a day will come when you will fight Ali radi Allahu anhu, and you will be in the wrong."
As soon as Zubair radi Allahu anhu heard this hadith, he withdrew from the battlefield.
On the way, he stopped at a place and fell asleep.
Amr ibn Jurmuz, the accursed, killed him while he was sleeping in Wadi al-Siba‘ and brought his head to Ali radi Allahu anhu.
Ali radi Allahu anhu said: "I heard from the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam that the killer of Zubair radi Allahu anhu is destined for Hellfire."

Hadith Commentary:
1.
The Battle of Jamal took place between Ali (radi Allahu anhu) and Aisha (radi Allahu anha) in the year 36 Hijri.
Since Sayyida Aisha (radi Allahu anha) was mounted on a camel, the battle was named "Jamal" (Camel).
The reason for the conflict was the unjust killing of Uthman (radi Allahu anhu).
Aisha (radi Allahu anha) was demanding retribution (qisas) from the killers of Uthman (radi Allahu anhu), who were present in the camp of Ali (radi Allahu anhu), while Ali (radi Allahu anhu) was postponing the matter until the circumstances became favorable.
This was the dispute that could not be resolved through mutual understanding, and eventually, it led to war.
Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) wants to establish from this hadith that for a warrior of Islam, there is blessing in his wealth both in life and after death. Thus, Zubair (radi Allahu anhu) was not appointed to any official position; he only participated in jihad, and whatever he received from the spoils of war (mal al-ghanima), Allah, due to the blessing of jihad, increased it so much that after paying off debts and fulfilling bequests, each of his four wives received twelve hundred thousand (1,200,000).
Imam Bukhari’s (rahimahullah) intent is only this much, but there is some ambiguity regarding the value of this estate, which we will explain:
The issue is that when we take the share received by one wife as the basis, then after paying off debts and executing the bequest, the value of the inheritance comes to fifty-nine million eight hundred thousand, whereas Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) at the end of the hadith has stated the total value of the estate as fifty million two hundred thousand, i.e., ninety-six hundred thousand less than the actual calculation.
Before solving this issue, we present a fundamental point that among the Arabs, there are basically three segments in counting:
The first segment consists of four parts:
Units (ahad)
Tens (asharat)
Hundreds (mi’at)
And thousands (uluf).
The second segment consists of three parts:
Ten thousand (asharat alaf)
One hundred thousand (mi’at alf)
And a thousand (alf = one million).
According to this segment, alf (two million),
thalathat alaf alf (three million), etc.
The third segment also consists of three parts:
Ten thousand (asharat alaf alf = ten million)
One hundred thousand (mi’at alf = one hundred million)
And alf, alf (one billion).
Thus, ishrun alf (twenty million),
thalathun alf (thirty million), etc.
The detailed calculation of the estate is as follows:
It should be noted that Zubair (radi Allahu anhu) had nine sons, nine daughters, and four wives as heirs.
His total assets were:
Some land in Ghabah and eleven houses.
And his total debt was twenty-two hundred thousand (2,200,000).
Zubair (radi Allahu anhu) made a bequest to his beloved son Abdullah that first the debts should be paid, then the remaining inheritance should be divided into three parts.
One part for my grandsons, the poor, and the needy, and the remaining two parts to be distributed among all the heirs.
Since he owed twenty-two hundred thousand, of which four hundred thousand were owed to Abdullah bin Ja’far (radi Allahu anhu),
He gave him some land in Ghabah in exchange for four hundred thousand, and the rest of the land was also sold.
The total land in Ghabah was sold for sixteen hundred thousand, which he had bought for one hundred and seventeen thousand.
Thus, he made a profit of one million four hundred and thirty thousand.
Abdullah bin Zubair (radi Allahu anhu) sold the remaining property to pay off the debts, and the entire debt was paid.
After that, one third of the remaining estate was set aside for the bequest.
When the remaining two thirds were distributed, each wife received twelve hundred thousand.
There were four wives.
In the presence of children, wives receive one eighth of the inheritance.
Multiplying twelve hundred thousand by four, the total one-eighth share becomes four million eight hundred thousand.
Multiplying this one-eighth share by eight, the distributable estate becomes thirty-eight million four hundred thousand.
These are two parts of the total inheritance, because one part had already been set aside for the bequest.
Now, to determine the total inheritance, add the one third for the bequest, which is half of the remaining estate, i.e., one million nine hundred and twenty thousand, to this amount, so the total becomes fifty-seven million six hundred thousand.
This inheritance is apart from the debt.
If you add the debt amount of two million two hundred thousand to this, the total inheritance becomes fifty-nine million eight hundred thousand.
The calculation is as follows:
(a)
One fourth of one eighth (thumn) is twelve hundred thousand, which each of the four wives received.
(b)
Multiplying this by four gives four million eight hundred thousand, which is the complete one-eighth share.
(c)
Multiplying the wives’ share by eight gives thirty-eight million four hundred thousand.
This is two parts of the total estate.
(d)
One third for the bequest is one million nine hundred and twenty thousand.
Adding this share, the total becomes fifty-seven million six hundred thousand.
(r)
The debt amount is two million two hundred thousand; adding this to the above amount, the total value becomes fifty-nine million eight hundred thousand, whereas Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) at the end of the hadith has shown the total estate, including inheritance, bequest, and debt, as only fifty million two hundred thousand.
There is a difference of ninety-six hundred thousand between Imam Bukhari’s calculation and our detailed calculation.
What is the solution to this difference? This is the nature of the issue.
To solve it, Hafiz Ibn Hajar (rahimahullah) has presented the following explanation, which seems plausible:
According to our inclination, the reasonable solution to this difference is as follows:
At the time of Zubair’s (radi Allahu anhu) death, the value of the estate was fifty million two hundred thousand, but Abdullah bin Zubair (radi Allahu anhu), out of caution, continued to announce the debts during the Hajj season for four years.
During this period, the value increased due to the income and yield from the land and houses, so that after four years, an increase of ninety-six hundred thousand occurred, and the total value of the estate became fifty-nine million eight hundred thousand.
In our view, this explanation is preferable and excellent, because it allows all the words of the hadith to remain in their apparent and real meanings, and it also perfectly matches the title established by Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah), that for a warrior of Islam, there is blessing in his wealth both in life and after death.
Wallahu al-musta’an.
(Fath al-Bari: 6/281)