Q. Some people try to change the natural course of inheritance by transferring their property to certain relatives, particularly when they have no children. Take the case of a man who is put under pressure to transfer much of his property to his wife, so that his brothers or their children do not inherit from him. Or a widower who inherited much of his wife’s property giving it away so that it does not go back to his wife’s relations. Please explain what Islam says about this.
(Name and address withheld)
A. A Muslim must always remember that God has established the best system of inheritance known to mankind. It ensures that close relatives receive what is due for them, in all fairness, without doing injustice to anyone. Thus, it is not possible under Islam to disinherit any of one’s heirs, or favor any of them over and above the others. The heirs receive their shares apportioned by God. However, there are situations where close relatives do not inherit, such as brothers and sisters when the deceased is survived by his own children or by his parents. In order to allow a reasonable way to look after such close relatives, particularly when they are poor, God has given us the right to bequeath by will a portion of our property that does not exceed one-third of its total.
This should allow for all situations in a fair manner. However, some people look at their situation and find that their heirs include one or two people they do not like, or that those whom they favor will not receive a big share. So they try to circumvent the Islamic law by making gifts. While making gifts is acceptable in principle, when it is done in order to deny some heirs their rights or change the operation of the law of inheritance, they are committing an injustice for which God may hold them to account. They will not be able to plead any extenuating circumstances, because God knows their intentions. While no one can stop any person from making a gift of his property, in part or in full, to his wife or some other relative, if his intention is to deny any heirs their fair shares, they will have to account for this on the Day of Judgment.
In order to make the case clearer, the Prophet’s companions judged in a case of one of their number who divorced his wife during his last illness to deny her whatever share was due to her of his inheritance. Their judgment was to give the divorcee her full share, as if she was still married to the man. In other words, they did exactly the opposite of what he intended. They were unanimous in their decision, which makes it a part of the law of inheritance.
In the cases the reader cites, if a man dies having had no children, his wife will inherit one quarter of his property. The remainder goes to other heirs, who could be his parents, brothers and sisters, or the nearest of kin. If he gives her all his property in his lifetime, he may live to regret this decision. She may die before him and in this case, he inherits half of her property and the other half, which was originally his, goes to her relatives. If she has a child by an earlier husband, he takes only one quarter of her property and her son takes three quarters.
As for the other case, the widower who inherited half his wife’s property and has no children of his own will have some heirs. But when he dies his property, or that share of it he inherited from his wife, does not go back to her relatives.
Friday Prayers
Q. Could you please explain whether Friday prayer is obligatory, i.e. fardh, or of a lesser status, i.e. wajib? Could you also mention how is Zuhr prayer to be offered on Friday?
Omer Mustafa
A. The term wajib does not carry an agreed specific meaning among scholars. Linguistically speaking, it means something required as a duty. However, some scholars give it a lesser status than fardh, which means obligatory, while others give it the same meaning. Some scholars do not use it at all, preferring the other word that is derived from a root that means, “to assign a duty.”
Whatever the case, it is agreed by scholars that Friday prayer is an obligation of the most binding type, or fardh. It is incumbent on every Muslim man who has attained puberty even an hour before it became due. It is offered in congregation in mosques, and consists of a khutbah, or sermon, and a prayer of two rak’ahs. It replaces the obligatory Zuhr prayer on that day. Only a person who misses Friday prayer should offer Zuhr on that day. It may be preceded and followed by voluntary, or Sunnah, prayer of two or four rak’ahs each. Some scholars advocate praying Zuhr after it, assuming that the necessary conditions for Friday prayer are not always met in full. There is not much evidence to support this view.