What is prescribed for a Muslim to bequeath from his wealth
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Fatwa No. ( 415 )
Q: He has four daughters, one wife, and a sister. He owns two houses and shops under one of the houses. He wishes to make these two houses and the shops an endowment (waqf) for his daughters, his wife, and his sister. He also wants the endowment to provide dates, coffee, rice, and meat for the mosque on the night of Friday and on the two days of the greater festival, and to build a mosque with one-third of his wealth. He asks about the Sharia-compliant method.
A: The guidance of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is that a Muslim should bequeath some of his wealth to be used in acts of righteousness. This is based on what is established in the two Sahihs from Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:Bulugh al-Maram 7:223 And from Mu'adh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Bulugh al-Maram 7:227 It was narrated by al-Daraqutni and also by Ahmad and al-Bazzar and others. These two hadiths clarify what is prescribed for a Muslim to bequeath from his wealth, and that one-third is the upper limit for the amount one may bequeath. Therefore, it is the Sunnah for this questioner to bequeath one-third of his wealth and allocate it to acts of righteousness. If any of the heirs is in need, he may benefit from the income, and there is no blame on him for that. He should leave the remainder of the wealth for the heirs to divide according to the prescribed shares of Islamic inheritance law. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Q: He has four daughters, one wife, and a sister. He owns two houses and shops under one of the houses. He wishes to make these two houses and the shops an endowment (waqf) for his daughters, his wife, and his sister. He also wants the endowment to provide dates, coffee, rice, and meat for the mosque on the night of Friday and on the two days of the greater festival, and to build a mosque with one-third of his wealth. He asks about the Sharia-compliant method.
A: The guidance of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is that a Muslim should bequeath some of his wealth to be used in acts of righteousness. This is based on what is established in the two Sahihs from Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:
I said, "O Allah's Messenger, I have wealth and no one to inherit from me except my one daughter. Shall I give two-thirds of my property as Sadaqah?" He replied, "No." I said, "Shall I give half of it as Sadaqah?" He replied, "No." I said, "Shall I give a third of it as Sadaqah?" He replied, "You may give a third as Sadaqah, which is still a lot. To leave your heirs rich is better than to leave them poor and begging from people."
قلت: يا رسول الله: أنا ذو مال، ولا يرثني إلا ابنة لي واحدة، أفأتصدق بثلثي مالي؟ قال: لا، قلت: أفأتصدق بشطره؟ قال: لا، قلت: أفأتصدق بثلثه؟ قال: الثلث والثلث كثير، إنك إن تذر ورثتك أغنياء خير من أن تذرهم عالة يتكففون الناسAllah gave (a favor) as Sadaqah to you a third of your property, when you are about to die, as an increase in your good deeds.
إن الله تصدق عليكم بثلث أموالكم عند وفاتكم زيادة في حسناتكم
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.