Surah An-Nisaa (4) — Ayah 175

(Ayah 176,175)➊ {يَسْتَفْتُوْنَكَ:} The surah began with the command of taqwa and then the rulings regarding wealth, and now at the end, the surah concludes with these same rulings. In the middle of the surah, there is debate with the opponents and their refutation. (Razi) The discussion on kalalah has already passed in verse (11) of this surah. Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) came to me when I was sick and unconscious. He performed ablution, then sprinkled the leftover water from his ablution on me, or he said: "Sprinkle it on him." By this, I regained consciousness. I said, "I am kalalah; how will my inheritance be distributed?" Upon this, this verse was revealed. [ بخاری، المرض، باب وضوء العائد للمریض : ۵۶۷۶۔ مسلم : ۱۶۱۶ ]

➋ {لَيْسَ لَهٗ وَلَدٌ وَّ لَهٗۤ اُخْتٌ …… :} Some have deduced from this that whoever has no children, even if his father is alive, he will be called kalalah. However, this is not correct; the correct meaning is the one mentioned earlier, that kalalah is the deceased who has neither a father nor a grandfather, nor any children, because in the presence of the father, the sister does not inherit at all; the father becomes a barrier for her. But here Allah Almighty is saying that if he has a sister, she will inherit half of his wealth, which clearly shows that kalalah is the one who, along with having no children, also has no father or grandfather. Thus, the negation of children is clearly established by the words, and the negation of the father is established by indication.

➌ By children is meant son, daughter, and the offspring of the son. Similarly, by sister here is meant the full sister or the paternal (sharing the same father) sister, because the maternal sister, who is only from the mother's side, her ruling has already passed in Surah An-Nisa (12). (Ibn Kathir)

➍ The word {”وَلَدٌ“} is used for both son and daughter, on this basis some have said that in the case of a daughter, the sister will be deprived. However, in Sahih Bukhari (6741), there is the ruling of Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) that if a person dies and among his heirs there is only a daughter and a sister, then the daughter will get half and the rest will be given to the sister (because she is 'asabah). And also in Bukhari, Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) has narrated from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that he gave a ruling regarding a deceased who had a sister, a daughter, and a granddaughter: the daughter gets half, the granddaughter gets one-sixth so that two-thirds are completed, and whatever remains is for the sister. [ بخاری، الفرائض، باب میراث ابنۃ ابن مع ابنۃ : ۶۷۳۶ ]

➎ {فَاِنْ كَانَتَا اثْنَتَيْنِ فَلَهُمَا ……:} And this is also the ruling for two or more sisters; they will also get two-thirds, and if the heirs of the kalalah are both brothers and sisters, then a male will get the share of two females.

➏ {يُبَيِّنُ اللّٰهُ لَكُمْ اَنْ تَضِلُّوْا …… :} That is, Allah Almighty Himself has clarified these shares of inheritance because if they were left to you, you would never be able to decide correctly, since you do not have knowledge of everything, whereas Allah has complete knowledge of everything, so there can never be any mistake in His decision.

There is no difference of opinion regarding this surah being Madinan. Umm al-Mu'minin Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said: "This surah was revealed last of all, so consider its lawful as lawful and its unlawful as unlawful." [ أحمد : 188/6، ح : ۲۵۶۰۲۔ ترمذی : ۳۰۶۳، عن عبد اﷲ بن عمرو رضی اللہ عنہما و حسنہ الہلالی فی الاستیعاب ] Some of its virtues have already been mentioned at the beginning of Surah Al-Baqarah.