Surah Al-Baqara (2) — Ayah 180

(Ayah 180) ➊ "It has been prescribed" means it has been made obligatory. (Raghib) "Death approaches someone" means its causes and signs appear, because after death, not only is a will impossible, but nothing else can be done either.
➋ Since death can come at any time, if there is a risk of someone's right being lost by not making a will—for example, if someone's debt needs to be paid—then there should be no delay at all in making a will. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "It is not right for a Muslim who has something to will, to spend two nights without having his will written with him." [ بخاری، الوصایا، باب الوصایا : ۲۷۳۸، عن ابن عمر رضی اللہ عنھما] Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said that after hearing this statement of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), not even one night passed before I wrote my will and kept it with me. [ مسلم، الوصیۃ، باب وصیۃ الرجل مکتوبۃ عندہ : 1627/4]
➌ The entire Ummah agrees that a will cannot be made in favor of an heir. The reason is that Allah Himself has prescribed their share while making the will, as He said: «يُوْصِيْكُمُ اللّٰهُ فِيْۤ اَوْلَادِكُمْ…وَ لَهٗ عَذَابٌ مُّهِيْنٌ» [ النساء : ۱۱ تا ۱۴] Now, after Allah's will, what room is there for anyone else's will? And it is narrated from Amr bin Kharijah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said while delivering a sermon: [إِنَّ اللّٰہَ قَدْ أَعْطٰی کُلَّ ذِیْ حَقٍّ حَقَّہٗ فَلاَ وَصِیَّۃَ لِوَارِثٍ] "Allah has given every rightful person his right, so there is no will for an heir." [ نسائی، الوصایا، باب إبطال الوصیۃ للوارث : ۳۶۷۱۔ ترمذی : ۲۱۲۱۔ ابن ماجہ : ۲۷۱۳۔ وقال الترمذی حسن صحیح]
➍ When making a will for heirs is not permissible at all, then how was making a will for parents and close relatives made obligatory in this verse? Some scholars have answered this question by saying that this verse is abrogated by: «يُوْصِيْكُمُ اللّٰهُ فِيْۤ اَوْلَادِكُمْ» [ النساء : ۱۱] Therefore, now making a will for parents and close relatives is not only not obligatory, but not even permissible. But the reality is that indeed, Allah Himself has prescribed the shares of parents and close relatives, so there is no will for them. However, there are some parents and close relatives whose share Allah has not prescribed; for them, making a will has been made obligatory so that they are not deprived. For example, those parents who are disbelievers or slaves cannot inherit from a Muslim; making a will for them is obligatory. Or if a person's grandfather, grandmother, maternal grandfather, or maternal grandmother have no one to look after them, then as parents, making a will for them is also necessary, since in the presence of the father, they are not heirs. Similarly, in the presence of a person's sons, grandsons and granddaughters cannot be heirs (although in Pakistan's law, in rebellion against Allah's command, they have been made heirs); for such grandchildren, making a will is obligatory, so that along with the stigma of orphanhood, they are not completely deprived of their grandfather's inheritance.
➎ It is not permissible to make a will for more than one-third of the total wealth. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) allowed Sa'd bin Abi Waqqas (may Allah be pleased with him) to make a will for up to one-third of his wealth and considered even that to be a lot. [ بخاری، الفرائض، باب میراث البنات : ۶۷۳۳]

180. 1. This command regarding making a will was given before the revelation of the verses of inheritance; now it is abrogated. The Prophet ﷺ said that Allah has given every rightful person his due (i.e., the shares of inheritance have been fixed), so now it is not permissible to make a will in favor of any heir. However, a will can now be made for such relatives who are not heirs, or for spending in the way of goodness, and its maximum limit is one third of the wealth; a will cannot be made for more than this.

180. It is prescribed for you that when death approaches any of you and he leaves behind wealth, he should make a bequest in favor of his parents and relatives in a fair manner [226]. This is a duty upon the righteous.

[226]
The Command and Rulings of Bequest by the Deceased:

In the era of ignorance, it was customary that only the wife and children, especially male children, would inherit the estate (as is generally the custom among Muslims even today); parents and all other relatives would be deprived. According to this verse, it was made obligatory upon the dying person to make a just bequest for the parents and relatives. Later, Allah Almighty Himself specified the shares of parents and relatives in the verse of inheritance, so this verse was abrogated, and bequest remained only for up to one third of the estate or even less. This could either be made in favor of those heirs whose share Allah Almighty has not specified, or for other charitable works, up to one third of the wealth—a right that was given to the dying person. But today, Muslims are heedless even of this. Whereas, if they were to use this right, many social issues would be resolved automatically. For example, the issue of upbringing of such grandsons and granddaughters or maternal grandsons and granddaughters whose parents have passed away, or such needy relatives (those of the womb who are neither among the fixed-share heirs nor among the agnates).