it is kept below one-third, that is better and more complete. For this reason Ibn ʿAbbās (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “If only people would reduce the one-third to a quarter,” because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “A third—and a third is still a large amount.”

Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) declared, “I am content with what Allah chose for Himself,” meaning one-fifth; accordingly, he bequeathed one-fifth of his estate.

From this we understand that the common practice today—where people routinely bequeath a full third—is contrary to what is preferable, even though it is permissible. The better course is to leave less than a third, such as a quarter or a fifth. Our jurists (may Allah have mercy on them) have said that the optimal bequest is one-fifth and no more, following the example of Abu Bakr al-Ṣiddīq (may Allah be pleased with him).

The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) then said, “If you leave your heirs wealthy, that is better than leaving them destitute, holding out their hands to people.” In other words, keeping the wealth until you die so that your heirs inherit it and become self-sufficient is better than leaving them poor, with nothing, “holding out their hands to people,” that is, begging from them: “Give us, give us.”

This indicates that when a deceased person leaves wealth for his heirs, it is something good for him. One should not imagine that if he leaves money behind, which the heirs then take despite his wishes, he will receive no reward; on the contrary, he is rewarded. Indeed, the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “If you leave your heirs wealthy, that is better than leaving them destitute…” For when you leave the wealth to your heirs, they benefit from it—and they are your relatives—whereas if you give it away in charity, distant people benefit instead.