The wisdom behind the preference of the man over the woman in inheritance
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner:
The reality is that this beautiful detail informs us that what appears to some ignorant people—that in the division of inheritance the woman takes less than the man—is only a part of inheritance, and that in many cases the woman may actually take more than the man. First, we need you to clarify this, may Allah reward you with good: anyone who boasts that the woman takes less is extremely ignorant of the matter of inheritance. Second, he does not accept what Allah and His Messenger have decreed. Now they are talking about the oppression of women in Islam, that she takes half.
The Shaykh:
Inheritance.
The questioner:
Meaning, the time is running out. But we will start with this, and, if Allah wills, we will continue in a future episode. But a note on this point.
The Shaykh:
In detail and its beauty.
The questioner:
Then we will start explaining the foot with this. Do you have any comment on this point?
The Shaykh:
Yes, inheritance: Allah has taken charge of its division; He has not entrusted its division to anyone. So there is no objection to the ruling of Allah, who is the most wise of judges and the most merciful of the merciful, and who knows what is best for His servants. When the man bears many financial burdens, he is the one who provides for the household and bears the responsibilities, while the woman is provided for.
Indeed, Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, gave the man half of what he gives, or twice what he gives the woman, considering the man’s financial responsibilities, while the woman is exempted and he spends on her. In the pre-Islamic age of ignorance, they did not inherit the woman at all, and they said that inheritance is only for the one who carried the weapon, rode the horse, and bore the armor, so they did not give the woman an inheritance, nor did they give the small child an inheritance. When Islam came, it was just and gave an inheritance to the young and the old, and gave an inheritance to females and males. For women,[An-Nisa 4:7]. Allah gave the man because he bears responsibilities: he bears the responsibility of spending, he bears the responsibility of jihad in the path of Allah with wealth and self, he bears the responsibility of seeking provision and earnings, and the woman is exempted from all of this; he spends on her, either her guardian if she is not married, or her husband if she is married. But Allah, Mighty and Majestic, did not forbid her; He gave her from the inheritance of her relative [An-Nisa 4:7]. If the man and the woman are in the same degree, then the man either takes twice hers, or equals her, or she exceeds him; this has not been established in the Shari'ah, that the woman exceeds the man when they are in the same degree. However, if the degree is different, the woman may exceed the man. Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you and may He reward you with good.
The reality is that this beautiful detail informs us that what appears to some ignorant people—that in the division of inheritance the woman takes less than the man—is only a part of inheritance, and that in many cases the woman may actually take more than the man. First, we need you to clarify this, may Allah reward you with good: anyone who boasts that the woman takes less is extremely ignorant of the matter of inheritance. Second, he does not accept what Allah and His Messenger have decreed. Now they are talking about the oppression of women in Islam, that she takes half.
The Shaykh:
Inheritance.
The questioner:
Meaning, the time is running out. But we will start with this, and, if Allah wills, we will continue in a future episode. But a note on this point.
The Shaykh:
In detail and its beauty.
The questioner:
Then we will start explaining the foot with this. Do you have any comment on this point?
The Shaykh:
Yes, inheritance: Allah has taken charge of its division; He has not entrusted its division to anyone. So there is no objection to the ruling of Allah, who is the most wise of judges and the most merciful of the merciful, and who knows what is best for His servants. When the man bears many financial burdens, he is the one who provides for the household and bears the responsibilities, while the woman is provided for.
Indeed, Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, gave the man half of what he gives, or twice what he gives the woman, considering the man’s financial responsibilities, while the woman is exempted and he spends on her. In the pre-Islamic age of ignorance, they did not inherit the woman at all, and they said that inheritance is only for the one who carried the weapon, rode the horse, and bore the armor, so they did not give the woman an inheritance, nor did they give the small child an inheritance. When Islam came, it was just and gave an inheritance to the young and the old, and gave an inheritance to females and males. For women,
For men is a share of what the parents and close relatives leave, and for women is a share of what the parents and close relatives leave, be it little or much - an obligatory share.
نَصِيبٌ مِّمَّا تَرَكَ الْوَالِدَانِ وَالْأَقْرَبُونَ وَلِلنِّسَاءِ نَصِيبٌ مِّمَّا تَرَكَ الْوَالِدَانِ وَالْأَقْرَبُونَ مِمَّا قَلَّ مِنْهُ أَوْ كَثُرَ نَصِيبًا مَّفْرُوضًاFor men is a share of what the parents and close relatives leave, and for women is a share of what the parents and close relatives leave
لِّلرِّجَالِ نَصِيبٌ مِّمَّا تَرَكَ الْوَالِدَانِ وَالْأَقْرَبُونَ وَلِلنِّسَاءِ نَصِيبٌ مِّمَّا تَرَكَ الْوَالِدَانِ وَالْأَقْرَبُونَThe presenter:
May Allah reward you and may He reward you with good.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، شرح زاد المستقنع (حلقات إذاعية)|129 من 194|كتاب الفرائض|باب أصول المسائل|الفوزان|كبار العلماء — youtube.com (24:46)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.