Surah An-Nisaa (4) — Ayah 12

(Ayah 12) ➊ {وَ لَكُمْ نِصْفُ مَا تَرَكَ اَزْوَاجُكُمْ … :} Allah Almighty addressed the husbands and said that if your wives die leaving behind wealth and have no children, then you will receive half of the wealth, and if they have children—one or more sons or daughters, or grandsons or great-grandsons, whether from you or from another husband—then you will receive one-fourth. And if you have no children, then your wives will receive one-fourth, and in the event of your death, if there are inheriting children or descendants, whether from these wives or from others, in any case, the wives will receive one-eighth, after the payment of debts and bequests. Then, whether there is one wife or more, all will share in the one-fourth or one-eighth portion. There is consensus on this.

➋ {يُوْرَثُ كَلٰلَةً:} If a man or woman dies and has neither a father nor inheriting children, then such a person is called "kalalah." Sometimes, the heirs of such a deceased person are called "kalalah." In any case, this term is used for both.

➌ {وَ لَهٗۤ اَخٌ اَوْ اُخْتٌ:} There are three types of brothers and sisters: (1) Full siblings, i.e., those who share both parents. (2) Consanguine siblings, i.e., those who share the same father but have different mothers. (3) Uterine siblings, i.e., those who share the same mother but have different fathers. Here, by consensus, uterine brothers and sisters are meant, as is also indicated in one recitation.

➍ Uterine brothers differ from other heirs in four rulings: (1) They inherit only through the mother. (2) Both male and female receive equal shares. (3) They receive a share only if the deceased is kalalah. (4) No matter how many they are, their share does not exceed one-third. For example, if a deceased person leaves a husband, mother, two uterine brothers, and two full brothers, then according to the majority of scholars, the husband will receive half (1/2), the mother will receive one-sixth (1/6), and the remaining one-third will be shared by the uterine brothers along with the full brothers. Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) gave this ruling in a case. Among the Companions, Uthman, Ibn Mas'ud, Ibn Abbas, and Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with them), and among the Imams, Imam Malik and Imam Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on them) held this view. However, Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) considered the uterine brothers as holders of fixed shares and deprived the full brothers due to their status as residuaries. Imam Shawkani (may Allah have mercy on him) preferred this second view. (Ibn Kathir, Fath al-Qadeer)

➎ {فَهُمْ شُرَكَآءُ فِي الثُّلُثِ:} If there are more than one uterine brothers or sisters, whether male or female, or both together, the one-third share will be divided equally among all, i.e., here the male will not have superiority over the female, as is understood from the verse «شُرَكَآءُ فِي الثُّلُثِ». Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) ruled accordingly, and it is clear that such a ruling cannot be made merely by personal reasoning. (Ibn Kathir)

➏ {غَيْرَ مُضَآرٍّ:} This is accusative due to its state, and it relates to both bequest and debt. Causing harm in bequest is, firstly, to make a bequest of more than one-third of the wealth; in this case, the bequest beyond one-third will not be executed unless the heirs permit it. The second case is to make a bequest in favor of an heir; this too will not be considered unless all heirs willingly accept it. Causing harm in debt is when the deceased falsely acknowledges a debt merely to deprive the heirs of their rights. Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them) said: "Causing harm in bequest is a major sin." [ السنن الکبرٰی للنسائی : 60/10، ح : ۱۱۰۲۶، و سندہ صحیح ]