Majmu Fatawa - Salih Al-Fawzan - (2/628)

Majmu FatawaSalih Al-Fawzan

However, if those animals reached him through inheritance and her son had actually inherited them from her, then they are treated like the rest of his property: they are part of his estate and must be added to it. In other words, if your father received them from his mother by way of inheritance, they belong to him and form part of what he has left behind. My fear remains, as I said at the outset, that they were in fact a bequest.
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Inheritance and the Marriage Contract
Question: A man concluded a marriage contract with a young woman but had not yet consummated the marriage, and then one of them died. Does either spouse inherit from the other? What is the ruling regarding the ʿiddah (waiting period) if the husband dies before consummation—does the wife still have to observe it or not?

Answer: If the marriage contract has been properly concluded, meeting all of its pillars and conditions, and one of the spouses dies before consummation, the contract remains in force and inheritance is exchanged between the two spouses. This is based on the general meaning of the Almighty’s statement:
“Half of what your wives leave is yours if they have no child; but if they have a child, then one-quarter of what they leave is yours, after any bequest they may have made or debt. And one-quarter of what you leave is theirs if you have no child; but if you have a child, then one-eighth of what you leave is theirs, after any bequest you may have made or debt …” (Qur’an 4:12).
The verse applies generally, whether death occurs before or after consummation. Therefore, once the marriage contract is complete and one spouse dies before consummation, the marital bond remains and inheritance between them is duly established by virtue of this noble verse.

As for the ʿiddah, the wife is likewise required to observe the waiting period for a widow if her husband, who had only contracted marriage with her, dies before consummation, owing to the general wording of His statement:
“Those of you who die and leave wives behind must leave their wives to wait by themselves for four months and ten days.” (Qur’an 2:234).

أما إذا كانت تركتها من باب الإرث، وأن ولدها قد ورثها عنها، فهي تكون كسائر ماله، تكون من تركته وتضم إلى تركته إذا كان والدكم قد ورثها عن أمه، ووصلت إليه عن طريق الإرث، فهي مال له، وتركة له، لكن أخشى أن تكون كما أشرت أولًا، أنها وصية. *** الميراث وعقد الزواج سؤال: إذا عقد نكاح رجل على فتاة ولم يدخل بها، ومات أحدهما عن الآخر، فهل يرث أحدهما الآخر أم لا؟ وما الحكم من ناحية العدة، لو مات الرجل قبل الدخول بالزوجة، فهل عليها عدة أم لا؟ الجواب: إذا تم عقد الزواج مستوفيًا لشروطه وأركانه ثم مات أحد الزوجين قبل الدخول، فإن عقد الزواج يكون باقيًا، ويقع به التوارث بين الزوجين، لعموم قوله تعالى: ﴿وَلَكُمْ نِصْفُ مَا تَرَكَ أَزْوَاجُكُمْ إِنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُنَّ وَلَدٌ فَإِنْ كَانَ لَهُنَّ وَلَدٌ فَلَكُمُ الرُّبُعُ مِمَّا تَرَكْنَ مِنْ بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ يُوصِينَ بِهَا أَوْ دَيْنٍ وَلَهُنَّ الرُّبُعُ مِمَّا تَرَكْتُمْ إِنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ لَكُمْ وَلَدٌ فَإِنْ كَانَ لَكُمْ وَلَدٌ فَلَهُنَّ الثُّمُنُ مِمَّا تَرَكْتُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ وَصِيَّةٍ تُوصُونَ بِهَا أَوْ دَيْنٍ﴾ [النساء: ١٢] ، والآية عامة فيمن توفي عنها أو عامة في الوفاة قبل الدخول أو بعد الدخول، فإذا تم عقد الزواج ومات أحد الزوجين قبل الدخول، فإن الزوجية باقية، والتوارث بينهما مشروع، لعموم الآية الكريمة. وأما من ناحية العدة، كذلك تلزمها عدة الوفاة لو توفي زوجها الذي عقد عليها قبل الدخول، لعموم قوله تعالى: ﴿وَالَّذِينَ يُتَوَفَّوْنَ مِنْكُمْ وَيَذَرُونَ أَزْوَاجًا يَتَرَبَّصْنَ بِأَنْفُسِهِنَّ أَرْبَعَةَ أَشْهُرٍ وَعَشْرًا﴾ [البقرة: ٢٣٤] ،