this?” He replied, “No.” The Prophet then said, “Take it back.” After that he added, “Fear Allah and treat your children even-handedly.” Agreed upon.

This ḥadīth proves that justice among one’s children in the matter of gifts is obligatory, and that it is forbidden to act as a witness to the singling out or preferential treatment of some of them—whether when first receiving the testimony or when later giving it—if one is aware of the injustice.

Once a person has made a gift and the recipient has taken possession of it, it becomes unlawful for the donor to retract it or reclaim it. Ibn ʿAbbās reports that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “The one who goes back on his gift is like a dog that vomits and then returns to its vomit.” This makes clear the prohibition of revoking a gift, except in the one case that the Lawgiver has exempted: a father may withdraw what he has given to his child. The Prophet ﷺ said, “It is not permissible for a man to give a gift and then take it back—except a father regarding what he gives his child.” Reported by the Five and graded sound by al-Tirmidhī.

Similarly, a father may take from, and assume ownership of, his child’s property provided that this neither harms the child nor deprives him of what he needs. ʿĀʾishah narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said, “The purest food you eat is from what you earn, and your children are part of what you earn.” Reported by al-Tirmidhī, who declared it fair, and by others; it has corroborating chains that indicate the same ruling.