Last week we discussed how scholars of Hadith classified their collections in a most sophisticated system which helped later scholars of Hadith and Fiqh to find out what the Prophet said on a particular subject. We promised to look into the subject matter of the Hadith which we quoted last week to illustrate the system of classification. It is useful to begin by reminding ourselves of the full version of the Hadith related by Muslim in his Sahih. Of several versions listed by Muslim, we selected the following one which Amir ibn Saad reports on the authority of his father, Saad ibn Abu Waqqas, one of the best known companions of the Prophet. Saad says: “God’s messenger came to visit me during his farewell pilgrimage, when I was so ill that I thought I was dying. I said: ‘Messenger of God, you see what this illness has done to me, and I am rich and I have only one daughter to inherit me. Shall I give two-thirds of my money for charity?” He answered: ‘No.’ I said: ‘Shall I then give one-half of it for charity?’ He said: ‘No! One-third, and one-third is plenty. It is certainly much better that you leave your heirs with money than to leave them poor, begging people for help. Whatever money you spend, seeking sincerely to please God, will earn you a reward, even when you put a bite in your wife’s mouth.’ I said: ‘Messenger of God, would I be left behind after my companions have gone?’ He said: ‘If you were to be left behind, then whatever action you may do seeking to earn God’s pleasure will enhance your position and raise you to a higher level. It may be that you will be left behind until some people gain benefit through you and others come to grief. My Lord, accept from my companions their emigration and let them not turn back on their heels. The poor is Saad ibn Khawlah.’ God’s messenger felt sorry for him because he died in Makkah.”
This Hadith is the one from which scholars have deduced the Islamic regulation on inheritance by will. It has to be remembered that this story took place very late in the life of the Prophet, when he had offered his farewell pilgrimage, only a few months before he died. Therefore, it provides the final ruling on will and inheritance. At that particular time, Saad had only one daughter and he thought of leaving all his money to the poor. It is true that he had a daughter, but most probably he had provided well for her. The Prophet, however, did not approve his plan for leaving all his money for charity. Nor would the Prophet consider the lesser proportions of two-thirds or a half. He approved one-third, but told Saad that one-third is plenty. For this reason, some scholars argue that leaving one-third of one’s money for charity should be considered only when one’s heirs are quite well off. If they are poor, then he should leave by will a lesser proportion than one-third.
Perhaps it is important to explain that Islam has a detailed system of inheritance, with specific shares for each heir. The system caters for all situations and the details of each heir’s share is outlined in the Qur’an. The will is the provision which allows a Muslim to leave a portion of his money either for charity or for relatives who are not among his heirs. Take, for example, the case of a person who has parents, a wife and children as well as one or two poor sisters. His sisters do not qualify as heirs. As long as he lives, he would be able to look after his sisters as he thinks fit. If he considers that when he dies, they may be neglected, then it is appropriate to leave them something by will. Perhaps it should be added that the shares of each heir is determined by God. No heir can be left an additional amount by will and none may be disinherited. The system ensures fair distribution of wealth and militates against the concentration of great wealth in a few hands.
The Prophet explains to Saad the wisdom behind the Islamic system of inheritance which does not give anyone sole discretion over how to dispense with his wealth after he dies. The words of the Prophet need no comment: “To leave your heirs rich is certainly better than to leave them poor, begging other people for help.” There is no virtue in poverty. It is true that if one is poor, one should not grumble and complain much. One should accept what God has given him and work hard to improve his situation. If he has to accept zakah money and charity, there is no harm in that, as the zakah system is meant to help the poor. However, if one is well off, paying his zakah regularly, and spending it in charity, he has the means to earn more reward by God. Furthermore, he ensures the future of his children. It is to this fact that the Prophet refers by this statement.
The next statement by the Prophet tells us a great deal about how to use our money in order to earn reward. Every little amount we spend can bring us reward, if it is spent in a way which pleases God. The Prophet gives the example of a bite placed by a man in his wife’s mouth. In order to understand the significance of this statement, we have to remember that a man is required to support his wife and look after her by way of duty. Indeed, he is required to support her even when she is richer than him. Therefore, when he gives her food, he is only doing what he is bound to do.
If he places a bite in her mouth, he does this only as a gesture of endearment and flirtation. But even then, he can earn reward if his intention is to fulfil his duty and to make his wife happy. If this sort of gesture can earn reward, then every action and every riyal we spend can earn reward, provided that the purpose is sound.
In his illness, Saad felt sorry for himself that he might have to stay behind after the Prophet and his companions had gone back to Madinah. He worried that he might die in Makkah, like another companion of the Prophet named Saad ibn Khawlah who returned to Makkah earlier and died there, thus losing the status of immigration which applied to those of the Prophet’s companions who left Makkah with him, in support of the cause of Islam, and those who joined him in Madinah from other places before Makkah fell to Islam. To be counted among the Muhajireen, i.e. immigrants to Makkah, was a great honor. Saad would have done anything not to lose that status. Hence, the Prophet prayed that all his companions who immigrated with him be accepted by God and none of them would turn back on his heels.
In order to console Saad, the Prophet emphasized a different meaning of his statement. Saad said: “Messenger of God, would I be left behind after my companions have gone?” He meant that he might die in Makkah and be left behind. There was no question that if he got well, he would be joining them in Madinah to maintain his status among the Muhajireen. The Prophet, however, spoke of the status of being left behind as meaning survival and recovery. He raised that prospect before Saad to console him. He told him that if he was to be left behind, he would have a chance to enhance his position with God and raise his rank. Every action of his, dedicated for the purpose of pleasing God, would enhance his standing.
The Prophet then expressed his wish that Saad may live and be of benefit to some people while others would come to grief at his hands. It may be that the Prophet was informed by God at that point of Saad’s future life. Saad indeed lived more than forty years after this particular conversation with the Prophet. He was the commander of the Muslim army which fought the decisive battle of Qadissiyah, in Iraq, which broke the backbone of the Persian Empire. The victory achieved by the Muslim army under his command ensured that the whole of Iraq fell to Islam. Those who became Muslims in Iraq as the result of Saad’s victory were certainly the beneficiaries of his action. The Persians who fought Islam came to grief at his hands. This was certainly in answer to the Prophet’s prayer.
A final word should be added about Saad’s offspring. By the time of his death, he had more than 30 children. Some of them might have died during his lifetime, while many survived him to share in his inheritance
Arab News Islam 21 March 2003
