Al-Sharḥ al-Mumtiʿ - Ibn al-'Uthaymin - (12/85)

Al-Sharḥ al-MumtiʿIbn al-'Uthaymin

Then the manumitter; then his nearest agnatic relative through lineage, then through the bond of manumission; then the ruler.

His statement, “Then the manumitter”: this is agnatic kinship by cause—that is, the one who bestowed manumission. He said this based on Allah’s saying:

“And [remember] when you said to the one whom Allah had blessed and you had blessed, ‘Keep your wife to yourself.’” [al-Ahzab 33:37]

This was Zayd ibn Harithah, may Allah be pleased with him.

His statement, “Then his nearest agnatic relative through lineage”: that is, the agnatic relatives of the manumitter, according to the order of inheritance. The apparent meaning of the author’s words, may Allah have mercy on him, is that the manumitter’s agnatic relatives are ordered according to the order of inheritance: thus, the manumitter’s son takes precedence over his father; and if he is absent, then the manumitter’s agnatic relatives through lineage take precedence.

His statement, “Then through the bond of manumission”: this is coordinated with his statement, “through lineage.” That is, first his nearest agnatic relative through lineage, then his nearest agnatic relative through the bond of manumission. Agnatic relatives through the bond of manumission means that, if the manumitter himself had been emancipated by someone else and had no agnatic relatives by lineage, then we turn to his agnatic relatives through the bond of manumission—namely, those who emancipated him.

His statement, “Then the ruler”: this refers to the imam or his deputy. Previously, in such matters, the imam’s deputies were the judges. Today, however, his deputy is the Minister of Justice, and the deputy of the Minister of Justice is the authorized marriage officiant. Imam Ahmad said, “In this matter, the judge is preferable to the governor.” This was based on the convention of their time, in which all of them were deputies of the ruler. Today, however, the governorship has no role whatsoever—nor do the judges. Rather, it has become restricted to specific individuals. In most cases, matters do not reach this stage; that is, if you examined people’s marriages, you would find that the matter does not go beyond agnatic relatives by lineage.

Which of the two takes precedence: the authorized marriage officiant or the maternal half-brother? The authorized marriage officiant

ثُمَّ الْمَوْلَى المُنْعِمُ، ثُمَّ أَقْرَبُ عَصَبَتِهِ نَسَباً، ثُمَّ وَلَاءً، ثُمَّ السُّلْطَانُ، قوله: «ثم المولى المنعِمُ» هذا عصبة السبب؛ أي: ثم المولى المنعِم بالعتق، قال ذلك؛ أخذاً من قوله تعالى: ﴿وَإِذْ تَقُولُ لِلَّذِي أَنْعَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَأَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِ أَمْسِكْ عَلَيْكَ زَوْجَكَ﴾ [الأحزاب: ٣٧]، وهو زيد بن حارثة ﵁. قوله: «ثم أقرب عصبته نسباً» أي: عصبة المولى المنعم، على ترتيب الميراث، وظاهر كلام المؤلف ﵀ أن عصبة المولى يرتبون ترتيب الميراث، فيقدم ابن المولى على أبيه، ثم إن عُدم فعصبة المولى نسباً. قوله: «ثم ولاءً» هذا عطف على قوله «نسباً» يعني ثم أقرب عصبته نسباً، ثم أقرب عصبته ولاءً، وعصبته ولاء، يعني لو كان المعتِق قد أعتقه غيرُه، وليس له عصبة من النسب، فإننا نرجع إلى عصبته ولاء وهم الذين أعتقوه. قوله: «ثم السلطان» وهو الإمام أو نائبه، وكان نواب الإمام فيما سبق في هذه المسائل القضاة، أما الآن فنائبه وزير العدل، ونائب وزير العدل المأذون في الأنكحة، قال الإمام أحمد: والقاضي أحب إليَّ من الأمير في هذا، وهذا بناء على ما سبق في عُرفهم أنهم كلهم نواب للسلطان، أما الآن فليس للإمارة دخل إطلاقاً، بل ولا للقضاة، فأصبحت مقيدة بناس مخصوصين، فالغالب أنها لا تصل إلى هذه الدرجة، يعني لو أنك تأمَّلت زواجات الناس لوجدت أن المسألة ما تعدو عصبة النسب. وأيهما يقدم مأذون الأنكحة، أو الأخ لأم؟ مأذون الأنكحة