into her care more than eight years ago. He has now fallen seriously ill, summoned witnesses, and recorded two thousand dirhams as owed to his wife. Her sister is divorced, and he recorded the dowries as owed to both of them, although she had released him from hers and has been in Syria since he divorced her. He also recorded five hundred as owed to their mother. He has withheld what is due to me and deprived the daughter he had by me of her right to inherit. Ever since she had children, he has not treated them equally in any worldly matter, and he has given his income to her?”

He replied:

“His acknowledgment of a debt to his wife is invalid, especially if he makes it a bequest, for a bequest to an heir is not binding without the other heirs’ approval, by the consensus of the Muslims. Likewise, his acknowledgment of a debt to an heir is invalid according to the majority of scholars, particularly where there are grounds for suspicion. It is invalid according to the schools of Abū Hanīfa, Mālik, Imam Ahmad, and others.

“Likewise, his acknowledgment of a debt from which the woman entitled to it has released him is invalid. If she released him from her dowry and he subsequently acknowledged owing it to her, that acknowledgment is invalid, because it is known to be false. Even if he instead sought to grant her ownership of that amount, the majority likewise do not permit such a grant to be constituted as a debt owed by him.

“He has no right to deprive his daughter of her share of the inheritance, nor may he withhold from the divorced woman what he owes her. A hadith states:

‘Whoever cuts off someone’s inheritance, Allah will cut off his inheritance in Paradise.’

“In the Sunan collections, it is reported that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

‘A man may spend sixty years obeying Allah, then act unjustly in his will, so that his life ends in evil and he enters the Fire. And a man may spend sixty years disobeying Allah, then act justly in his will, so that his life ends in goodness and he enters Paradise.’

He then recited the words of the Most High: