(11, 12) “Allah instructs you concerning your children: a male shall receive the share of two females. If there are more than two daughters, they shall receive two-thirds of what the deceased leaves; but if there is only one, she shall receive half. Each parent shall receive one-sixth of what he leaves if he has a child. But if he has no child and his parents inherit from him, his mother shall receive one-third. If he has siblings, his mother shall receive one-sixth, after any bequest he may have made or debt. Your parents and your children—you do not know which of them is nearer to you in benefit. This is an obligation from Allah. Allah is indeed All-Knowing, All-Wise.”

These verses, together with the verse at the end of the surah, are the verses of inheritance and encompass its rulings. Together with the hadith of Abdullāh ibn Abbās, authentically reported in Sahīh al-Bukhārī—“Give the prescribed shares to those entitled to them, and whatever remains goes to the nearest male relative”—they contain most of the rulings of inheritance. Indeed, they contain all of them, as will become clear, except the inheritance of grandmothers, which is not mentioned therein. It is, however, established in the Sunan collections, on the authority of al-Mughīrah ibn Shu‘bah and Muhammad ibn Maslamah, that the Prophet ﷺ awarded a grandmother one-sixth. The scholars unanimously agree on this.

Regarding the words of the Most High, “Allah instructs you concerning your children,” your children, O parents, are trusts placed in your care, and Allah has instructed you concerning them so that you attend to their religious and worldly welfare. You must teach and discipline them, keep them away from evil, command them to obey Allah, and require them constantly to adhere to piety. As the Most High says, “O you who believe, protect yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is people and stones.” Children have therefore been entrusted to their parents: they may either fulfill that trust or neglect it, thereby deserving the threatened punishment.

This indicates that Allah Most High is more merciful to His servants than parents are, for He instructed parents concerning their children despite the parents’ profound compassion for them.

He then explained how they inherit, saying, “A male shall receive the share of two females.” This applies to direct children and children through a son: the male receives the share of two females when there is no heir with a prescribed share alongside them; otherwise, they divide whatever remains after the prescribed shares in the same manner. The scholars unanimously agree on this. They also agree that when direct children are present, the inheritance belongs to them, and children through a son receive nothing when the direct children include both males and females. This concerns the case in which males and females are present together.

Two other cases remain. The first is when there are only males, whose ruling will follow. The second is when there are only females, which He mentioned in the words, “If there are more than two daughters”—meaning three or more direct daughters or daughters through a son—“they shall receive two-thirds of what the deceased leaves; but if there is only one”—a direct daughter or a daughter through a son—“she shall receive half.” This is a matter of consensus.

It remains to be asked: given the consensus that two daughters receive two-thirds, from where is this ruling derived?

The answer is that it is derived from His words, “But if there is only one, she shall receive half.” The implication is that when there is more than one, the prescribed share is no longer one-half, and the only prescribed share beyond it is two-thirds. Furthermore, when the deceased leaves a son and a daughter, the son receives two-thirds. Allah has stated that his share equals that of two females, which indicates that two daughters receive two-thirds.

Moreover, a daughter receives one-third when she inherits alongside her brother, even though his presence reduces her share more than a sister’s presence would. Her entitlement to that same third alongside a sister is therefore all the more evident.

Furthermore, the words of the Most High concerning two sisters, “If there are two, they shall receive two-thirds of what the deceased leaves,” constitute an explicit text concerning two sisters.

If two sisters, despite their more distant relationship, receive two-thirds, then two daughters, with their closer relationship, are all the more entitled to it. The Prophet ﷺ also awarded the two daughters of Sa‘d two-thirds, as reported in an authentic hadith.

It remains to be asked: what, then, is the purpose of the words “more than two”?

It has been said—and Allah knows best—that their purpose is to show that the prescribed share of two-thirds does not increase when the number of daughters exceeds two; rather, it applies from two daughters upward. The noble verse also indicates that when there is one direct daughter together with one or more daughters through a son, the direct daughter receives one-half. Of the two-thirds that Allah prescribed for direct daughters or daughters through sons, one-sixth then remains and is awarded to the daughter or daughters through a son. This sixth is therefore called the completion of two-thirds. ⦗167⦘

The same applies to a daughter through a son together with daughters through a son who are below her in degree.

The verse also indicates that whenever direct daughters or daughters through a son exhaust the two-thirds, any daughters through a son who are below them are excluded. Allah prescribed no more than two-thirds for them, and that share has already been completed. Were the lower descendants not excluded, they would have to be allotted more than two-thirds, contrary to the explicit text.

All these rulings are unanimously agreed upon by the scholars, praise be to Allah.

His words, “of what the deceased leaves,” indicate that the heirs inherit everything the deceased leaves behind, including real estate, furnishings, gold, silver, and anything else—even blood money that became payable only after his death and debts owed to him by others (1).

He then mentioned the inheritance of the parents, saying, “Each parent”—that is, his father and mother—“shall receive one-sixth of what he leaves if he has a child,” meaning a direct child or a child through a son, whether male or female, one or several.

The mother never receives more than one-sixth in the presence of any such child.

As for the father, when the descendants include males, he is entitled to no more than one-sixth. If the descendant is one or more females and nothing remains after the prescribed shares—as in the case of two parents and two daughters—he receives nothing as a residuary heir. If something remains after the prescribed share of the daughter or daughters, the father receives one-sixth as his prescribed share and the remainder as the residuary heir. This is because we assign the prescribed shares to those entitled to them, and whatever remains goes to the nearest male relative. The father is nearer than a brother, an uncle, or anyone else.

“But if he has no child and his parents inherit from him, his mother shall receive one-third.” The remainder belongs to the father, because Allah attributed the estate jointly to the father and mother and then specified the mother’s share, indicating that the remainder belongs to the father.

It is also understood from this that, in the absence of children, the father has no prescribed share. Rather, he inherits the entire estate as the residuary heir, or whatever remains after the prescribed shares. If, however, either spouse is present alongside the parents—these are known as the two cases associated with Umar—the husband or wife first receives the prescribed share, the mother then receives one-third of the remainder, and the father receives what remains.

This is indicated by His words, “and his parents inherit from him, his mother shall receive one-third”; that is, one-third of what the two parents inherit. In these two cases, that amounts either to one-sixth when the heirs are a husband, mother, and father, or one-quarter when they are a wife, mother, and father. The verse therefore does not indicate that the mother receives one-third of the entire estate whenever there are no children, such that these two cases would have to be regarded as exceptions.

This is further clarified by the fact that the share taken by the husband or wife is analogous to what creditors take: it is deducted from the gross estate, and the remainder is divided between the parents.

Moreover, if we awarded the mother one-third of the entire estate, she would receive more than the father in the case involving a husband, while in the case involving a wife the father would receive only half of one-sixth more than she did. There is no parallel for this, since the established pattern is either that she receives the same as the father or that the father receives twice her share.

“If he has siblings, his mother shall receive one-sixth.” This includes full siblings, paternal siblings, and maternal siblings, whether male or female, and whether they inherit or are excluded by the father or grandfather. [It may, however, be said that the apparent meaning of His words, “If he has siblings,” does not include those who do not inherit, as shown by the fact that it does not include someone barred from inheritance by a disqualifying attribute. On this basis, only siblings who actually inherit reduce the mother’s share from one-third. This is supported by the fact that the wisdom behind their reducing her share is to leave some of the estate available to them, whereas none would be available in this case. Allah knows best.] (2) This is subject to the condition that there be at least two siblings.

One objection is that the term “siblings” occurs in the plural. The answer is that what is intended is simply multiplicity, not the technical plural, and this applies to two.

The plural may be used while two are intended, as in the words of the Most High concerning David and Solomon, “And We were witnesses to their judgment.” He also said regarding maternal siblings, “If a man or woman leaves an estate without direct ascendants or descendants, but has a brother or a sister, each shall receive one-sixth. If they are more than that, they shall share one-third.”

He thus used the plural while intending two or more, according to scholarly consensus. Accordingly, if the deceased leaves a mother, father, and siblings, the mother receives one-sixth and the father receives the remainder. The siblings therefore reduce her share from one-third even though the father excludes them from inheritance. [According to the other possibility, however, the mother receives one-third and the father the remainder.] (3)

The Most High then said, “after any bequest he may have made or debt.” These prescribed shares, allotments, and inheritances become applicable and due only after deducting the debts owed by the deceased to Allah or to other people, and after executing the bequests he directed to be carried out following his death. Whatever remains thereafter is the estate to which the heirs are entitled.

The bequest is mentioned before the debt, although it comes after the debt in order of priority, to emphasize its importance, since heirs often find it difficult to execute. Debts nevertheless take precedence over bequests and are paid from the gross estate. ⦗168⦘

A bequest is valid for up to one-third in favor of someone outside the class of heirs—that is, a non-heir. Anything beyond that does not take effect unless the heirs approve it. The Most High says, “Your parents and your children—you do not know which of them is nearer to you in benefit.”

If the apportionment of inheritance had been left to your reasoning and choice, it would have caused harm known only to Allah, because human reason is deficient and does not know what is most fitting and best in every time and place. People do not know which of their children or parents will be most beneficial to them and most conducive to attaining their religious and worldly aims.

“This is an obligation from Allah. Allah is indeed All-Knowing, All-Wise.” That is, Allah—whose knowledge encompasses everything—has prescribed these shares. He has perfected what He legislated and apportioned what He decreed in the best possible manner. Human minds cannot propose anything comparable to His sound rulings, which are suited to every time, place, and circumstance.