Benefits of the Verse: ((Allah bequeaths to you concerning your children: for the male, the share of two females...)).

Many benefits are derived from this verse. First: Allah is more merciful to the human being than his parents. Where is this taken from? From His saying: The One who bequeaths to you regarding something is more merciful to you and more concerned for you than you are. Therefore, if a person bequeaths to someone regarding his children, he is more merciful to his children than that executor is. Among its benefits: the wisdom in the distribution of inheritance, which includes all children, not just the young ones. That is, it is not limited to the young, or to those in need, or to those who do not earn, or the like. It is general. This is part of the wisdom for what is called in technical terminology the dispersal of wealth. Dispersal means distributing the wealth so that it does not become concentrated. This money, which is in the millions, was originally owned by one person. Now it is owned by a large number of people. Then, when that number dies, it will pass to other numbers. This is undoubtedly part of the wisdom. Among its benefits: another wisdom in the distribution of inheritance, where it was made that for the male is the share of two females, because there is wisdom in that. Among it is considering the financial responsibilities that are upon the male. Are there financial responsibilities upon the male? Yes, more than upon the female. He is responsible for spending, and for the mahr (bridal gift), and for jihad, and for more financial rights. So this was considered in the division of inheritance, and it was made that for the male is the share of two females. Also, it was made that for the male is the share of two females in order to clarify the honor of the man over the woman, and that he is more deserving of honor than she is. This is contrary to the onlookers now who prioritize females over males, and contrary to the people of the pre-Islamic age of ignorance who did not inherit anything for females. In the pre-Islamic age of ignorance, they did not inherit anything for the female. Who did they inherit for? They said, "We do not inherit for except the one who rides the camel and rides the horses and fights for the sanctuary." As for a woman sitting in the house, she has no inheritance. But Islam came and gave her inheritance, except that they are not like the male. Among its benefits: it is recommended for a person to choose the best words, even if the meaning is the same. This is based on His saying: And He did not say: "Allah bequeaths to you concerning your children: for the female, half the wealth of the male." And it has passed us in the tafsir (exegesis) the pointing out to that. Good expression has an effect. Perhaps some of you have heard the story of the king who saw in a dream that his teeth fell out. He saw his teeth fall out, so he called for an interpreter to interpret the dream. He said, "O interpreter, interpret this dream for me." He said, "O king, your retinue and your family will die." The king was shocked, so he ordered him to be beaten and flogged. Because what? ... Then he said, "Bring me another interpreter." So they brought another interpreter, and he asked him, and he said, "The king will be longer-lived than his retinue." So he said, "On the head." This interpreter was correct, and a reward was ordered for him. The meaning is that if they die before him, he will be the last one. But this shows that good expression has an effect. A person should, if he wants to express something, choose the most generous, easiest, and most pleasing expressions to souls. Among its benefits: the inheritance of women is pure. If they are one, it is half. And if they are two? If the wives are two? Half of one? That is, with children, it is one-eighth, and without them, it is one-quarter. What do you say, people? Is this what we established? We are now discussing children. For daughters, if they are two or more, it is two-thirds, and for one, it is half. And we have previously directed attention to the saying of the Exalted: . Among its benefits: inheritance is comprehensive of the entire estate, from real estate, and houses, and animals, and benefits, and rights. Where is this taken from? From His saying: Everything that is left is included in the inheritance. And with this, one must be alert if he has heirs other than those in the house he is in. For some people, when their deceased is in their house and they have other heirs outside the house, they enjoy the food and other things in the house and also reside in it. This is not permissible except with the permission of the remaining heirs, otherwise it will be divided from his inheritance. And also, a rent is charged on those in the house from the time the man died. Among its benefits: the fixed share of two-thirds does not increase with an increase in female daughters. Where is this taken from? From His saying: It includes even if they were two hundred. It is general. Among its benefits: the wisdom in estimating the inheritance of the child over the inheritance of the parents. What is it? Because the children are a part of their father or their mother, so their mention was prioritized over the parents. Among its benefits: if the parents inherit from their child and are exclusive in the inheritance, the mother gets one-third and the rest goes to the father. This is based on His saying: . Among its benefits: if a descending heir is found for the deceased, then the parents get one-sixth. It does not increase except with females. If something remains, the father takes it as a residuary heir. Among its benefits: the mother gets one-sixth with the presence of a group of siblings. This is based on His saying: , and the apparent meaning of the verse is whether they are heirs or not. In fact, its apparent meaning is that if they are not heirs, the mother has only one-sixth, because the fā' (conjunction) branches what follows it from what precedes it. Among its benefits: inheritance comes in the third rank of what the deceased left. This is based on His saying: . But the Sunnah indicated that the preparation of the deceased (funeral expenses) is prioritized over all of that. And with this, inheritance becomes in the fourth rank. The evidence from the Sunnah is that a man and his camel fell, and he was standing at 'Arafah, so he was asked about the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and he said: And he did not mention whether he had a debt or a bequest. This indicates that the costs of preparation are prioritized over the bequest and the debt. And because the preparation relates to the body of the deceased, it was prioritized over the bequest and the debt, like the debtor in bankruptcy. The debtor in bankruptcy, if he goes bankrupt and we declare him bankrupt, we prevent him from disposing of his wealth. We start with what his need relates to. We do not say, "Take off your clothes and we will sell them." No. What does not relate to his need remains for him. Among its benefits: the obligation to execute the bequest. This is based on His saying: So He prioritized it over what is due from the wealth, because its execution is obligatory. Among its benefits: slavery is a barrier to inheritance. This is from His saying: . The point is that the lām (preposition) indicates ownership, and the slave does not own. And with this, the slave has no right in inheritance because he does not own.

The questioner : A question about some words of supplication?

The Shaykh : Otherwise, if a person did not have an innate sense of grammar, he would stumble and start wondering whether a word is the subject or the object, whether a noun is declinable or indeclinable, and whether the genitive is declined or not. Then he would be unable to produce a single line. As some people have said, if Imru' al-Qays had read "Al-Khalil's Prosody", he would not have been able to produce a single verse of poetry. The rules are an aid; they are not the foundation. Allah may bless a person with an innate sense, and he may proceed well even if he is weak in grammar. Then he mentioned a word to which we should pay attention, which is the saying of some people: "Praise be to Allah, Who is not praised for any misfortune other than Him". This indicates a person's dislike of what Allah the Mighty and Majestic has decreed. What a person should do is adhere to the station of contentment with what Allah has decreed and not declare that he dislikes what Allah the Mighty and Majestic has ordained. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), when he saw something he liked, would say: And when he saw the opposite, he would say: He did not say: "Praise be to Allah, Who is not praised for any misfortune other than Him." Rather, he would say: This issue requires attention. We should also be alert to an even worse phrase that some people say. They say: "O Allah, I do not ask You to reverse the decree, but I ask You for gentleness in it". This is as if he is saying: "O Lord, test me with whatever You will, but be gentle with me." When a person makes a supplication, supplication reverses the decree, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said: This phrase is denounced; it is not permissible for a person to say: "O Allah, I ask You to reverse the decree". No, ask. You ask for your need, whether Allah the Mighty and Majestic has decreed it and then removed it through your supplication, or not. Ask Allah to fulfill your need or to grant you what you desire, and say: "O Allah, I ask You for such and such." The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade a person from saying: "O Allah, forgive me if You will," or "O Allah, have mercy on me if You will." He said: "Let the request be decisive and the desire be great, for Allah is not compelled to do anything." So, "I do not ask You to reverse the decree, but I ask You for gentleness in it"? That is wrong. Say: "O Allah, I seek refuge in You from such and such which You dislike, and I ask You for such and such which You love." Nothing reverses the decree except supplication. A student of knowledge, when he hears such phrases and finds them objectionable, and has not heard them from the words of the Messenger, nor from the words of the Companions, nor from anyone else, should pause. If he has the understanding to judge them, that is what is required; otherwise, he should ask the scholars. It is not possible to accept such phrases as a matter of course. Even in language, some people make many mistakes in matters they pass on. They say: "Up to here, and our article ends," "Up to here, and our article ends," "Up to here, and ends?" Say: "Up to here it ends." What is "up to here and ends?" The correct Arabic is "Up to here it ends". It contains words that are wrong, wrong in Arabic and wrong in creed, and people go along without noticing. Who is with us? Say: "O Allah, I ask You for Paradise," "O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the Fire." Even if one writes, for example, "O Allah, heal me from this illness," even if it is decreed that the illness will not be cured, supplication reverses the decree.

The questioner : Is it permissible to supplicate by saying: "O Allah, be gentle with us in Your decree, other than You?"

The Shaykh : No, no, there is nothing wrong with it. The phrase "O Allah, be gentle with us in Your decree, and ... other than You " has nothing wrong with it. But "O Allah, I ask You to reverse the decree "—we say that supplication reverses the decree.

The Shaykh : No, there is nothing wrong with it. We are not saying, "Say, 'Do not be gentle '." We are saying: Do not say "I do not ask You to reverse the decree, but I ask You for gentleness." When the disliked decree descends, say: "O Allah, be gentle with us." When you supplicate, do not say, "I do not ask You to reverse the decree," because it is reported in the hadith: Supplication removes hardship. For example, if illness or death has been written for a person, and he asks Allah for healing, he is healed. Allah makes a cause that prevents this decree.
I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan. Allah the Exalted said: . Among the benefits of this noble verse is that if the father and mother are both present in inheritance, the mother gets one-third and the rest goes to the father. Accordingly, the father in this case is an heir by residuary right, because his share is not fixed; he is an heir by residuary right. Among its benefits is the indication of the correct ijtihad of the Commander of the Faithful, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), regarding the two 'Umaric cases, where he gave the mother one-third of what remains after the fixed shares of the spouses. This is because if the wife or husband takes his or her right, the father and mother are left alone with what remains. Allah has decreed that if the father and mother are left alone, the mother gets one-third and the rest goes to the father. So, what remains after the fixed shares of the spouses, one-third of it goes to the mother. Among its benefits is that siblings reduce the mother's share from one-third to one-sixth, even if they are blocked by the father, based on His saying: The conjunction with "fa" (so/and) indicates that what follows is derived from what came before. Among its benefits is that a single sibling does not reduce the mother's share to one-sixth, based on His saying: This is unlike sons or daughters, where a single child reduces her share to one-sixth, based on His saying: "Child" (walad) is an indefinite noun in the context of the verse, encompassing the singular and the plural, and the male and the female. If someone asks: How do you give the mother one-sixth in the presence of siblings who are blocked by the father? Do you not say that if a mother and slave siblings are present, the siblings do not reduce the mother's share to one-sixth? Or if a mother and disbelieving siblings are present, they do not reduce the mother's share to one-sixth? That is, if a person dies leaving his mother and his siblings who do not pray, his mother gets one-third and the siblings who do not pray do not reduce her to one-sixth. Why? Because they are disbelievers who do not pray. The answer is that these people are blocked by their description, so they are not heirs at all. As for the siblings who are blocked by the father, they are heirs, but an obstacle is present. There is a difference between the presence of an obstacle and the absence of a condition. Siblings who differ in religion or are slaves are not eligible for inheritance at all, because one of the conditions for their entitlement to inheritance is that they agree with the deceased in religion and that they be free. But these siblings, in the presence of the father, are entitled to inheritance; they are free and agree in religion, but an obstacle is present, which is the father. This is the difference between one who is blocked by description, whose presence is like non-existence, and one who is blocked by person, whose presence is considered. Among its benefits is that inheritance does not occur except after the payment of debts and the execution of the bequest, based on His saying: However, debts may consume the entire estate, leaving nothing for the heirs. As for the bequest, it does not consume the entire estate, because the maximum possible is one-third, and anything more than one-third belongs to the heirs. Accordingly, there is a difference between debt and bequest: debt may consume the wealth, leaving nothing for the heirs, while a bequest cannot consume the wealth, because anything more than one-third is subject to the heirs' approval. Accordingly, if a person dies and leaves one hundred thousand...