Musnad Ahmad

Masruq (may Allah have mercy on him) says that once a case was presented before Hazrat Abdullah bin Masood (may Allah be pleased with him): A man married a woman, but before he could fix her dowry and before he had any private meeting with her, the man passed away. What is the ruling in this case? This question was asked of him for a month, but he did not give any answer regarding it. Finally, he said: I will answer this according to my opinion; if the answer is wrong, then it is the imagination of my own self and the whispering of Satan, and if the answer is correct, then it will be by the grace of Allah. This woman (the widow) should be given the dowry that is customary for women like her, she will also receive her husband's inheritance, and she will be required to observe the waiting period (‘iddah). Upon hearing this decision, a man from the tribe of Ashja’ stood up and said: I bear witness that you have given the same verdict regarding this issue as the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) gave concerning Barwa’ bint Washiq. The previous hadith is also narrated through this second chain.