Yahya said that Malik said, "The way of doing things in our community about Yahya said that Malik said, "The procedure in swearing in manslaughter is that those who claim blood swear and it becomes due by their swearing. They swear fifty oaths, and there is blood-money for them according to the division of their inheritances. If it is not possible to divide up the oaths which they swear between them evenly, one looks to the one who has most of those oaths against him, and that oath is obliged against him."

Malik said, "If the slain man only has female heirs, they swear and take the blood-money. If he only has one male heir, he swears fifty oaths and takes the blood-money. That is only in the accidental killing, not in the intentional one."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Zayd ibn Aslam that Umar ibn al-Khattab asked the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, about someone who died without parents or offspring, and the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said to him, "The ayat which was sent down in the summer at the end of the Surat an-Nisa (Sura 4) is enoughfor you."

Malik said, "The generally agreed on way of doing things among us, in which there is no dispute, and which I saw the people of knowledge in our city doing, is that the person who leaves neither parent or offspring can be of two types. As for the kind described in the ayat which was sent down at the beginning of the Surat an-Nisa in which Allah, the Blessed, the Exalted! said, 'If a man or a woman has no direct heir, but has a brother or a sister by the mother, each of the two has a sixth. If there are more than that, they share equally in a third.' (Sura 4 ayat 12) This heirless one does not have heirs among his mother's siblings since there are no children or parents. As for the other kind described in the ayat which comes at the end of the Surat an-Nisa, Allah, the Blessed, the Exalted, said in it, 'They will ask you for a decision. Say, "Allah gives you a decision about the indirect heirs. If a man perishes having no children, but he has a sister, she shall receive a half of what he leaves, and he is her heir if she has no children. If there are two sisters, they shall receive two-thirds of what he leaves. If there are brothers and sisters, the male shall receive the portion of two females. Allah makes clear to you that you might not go astray. Allah has knowledge of everything" ' " (Sura 4 ayat 176).

Malik said, "If this person without direct heirs (parents) or children has siblings by the father, they inherit with the grandfather from the person without direct heirs. The grandfather inherits with the siblings because he is more entitled to the inheritance than them. That is because he inherits a sixth with the male children of the deceased when the siblings do not inherit anything with the male children of the deceased. How can he not be like one of them when he takes a sixth with the children of the deceased? How can he not take a third with the siblings while the brother's sons take a third with them? The grandfather is the one who overshadows the half-siblings by the mother and keeps them from inheriting. He is more entitled to what they have because they are omitted for his sake. If the grandfather did not take that third, the half-siblings by the mother would take it and would take what does not return to the half-siblings by the father. The half-siblings by the mother are more entitled to that third than the half-siblings by the father while the grandfather is more entitled to that than the half- siblings by the mother."

Yahya said that Malik said, "When the relatives of the deceased accept the blood-money then it is inherited according to the Book of Allah. Daughters of the dead man inherit and so do sisters, and whichever women would inherit from him ordinarily.

If the women do not take all his inheritance, then what remains goes to the agnatic relations who most deserve to inherit from him in conjunction with the women."

Malik said, "When one of the heirs of a man killed by mistake attempts to take his due from the blood-money while his companions are absent, he may not do that, and he has no right to any of the blood-money, however large or small, unless the qasama has been completed by him. If he swears fifty oaths then he has the right to his portion of the blood-money. That is because the blood-money is not established as due without there being fifty oaths, and the blood- money is not established as due unless the responsibility for the blood is established. If any one of the heirs comes after that he swears a number of the oaths commensurate with his fraction of the inheritance and takes his right until all the heirs exact their complete right. If a maternal uncle comes he has one sixth and must swear one sixth of the fifty oaths. So whoever swears may take his due from the blood-money and whoever abstains annuls his right. If one of the heirs is absent or is a child who has not reached puberty, those who are present swear fifty oaths and if the one who was absent comes after that or the child reaches puberty, they swear. and they swear according to their due of the blood-money and according to their shares of inheritance from it."

Yahya said that Malik said, "This is the best I have heard on the matter."

A man from Banu Sahm went out with Tamim ad-Dari and Adi ibn Badda'. The man of Banu Sahm died in the land where no Muslim was present. When they returned with his inheritance, they (the heirs) did not find a silver cup with lines of gold (in his property). The Messenger of Allah (saws) administered on oath to them. The cup was then found (with someone) at Mecca. They said: We have bought it from Tamim and Adi.

Then two men from the heirs of the man of Banu Sahm got up and swore saying: Our witness is more reliable than their witness. They said that the cup belonged to their man.

He (Ibn Abbas) said: The following verse was revealed about them: "O ye who believe! when death approaches any of you....."

I found in my notebook from Shaiban and I did not hear from him ; Abu Bakr, a reliable friend of ours, said: Shaiban - Muhammad b. Rashid - Sulaiman b. Musad - 'Amr b. Suh'aib, On his father's authority, said that his grandfather said: The Messenger of Allah (saws) would fix the blood-money for accidental killing at the rate of four hundred dinars or their equivalent in silver for townsmen, and he would fix it according to the price of camels. So when they were dear, he increased the amount to be paid, and when cheap prices prevailed he reduced the amount to be paid. In the time of the Messenger of Allah (saws) they reached between four hundred and eight hundred dinars, their equivalent in silver being eight thousand dirhams.

He said: The Messenger of Allah (saws) gave judgment that those who possessed cattle should pay two hundred cows, and those who possessed sheep two thousand sheep.

He said: The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: The blood-money is to be treated as something to be inherited by the heirs of the one who has been killed, and the remainder should be divided among the agnates.

He said: The Messenger of Allah (saws) gave judgment that for cutting off a nose completely there was full blood-money, one hundred (camels) were to be paid. If the tip of the nose was cut off, half of the blood-money,i.e. fifty camels were to be paid, or their equivalent in gold or in silver, or a hundred cows, or one thousand sheep. For the hand, when it was cut of,f half of the blood-money was to be paid; for one foot of half, the blood-money was to be paid. For a wound in the head, a third of the blood-money was due, i.e. thirty-three camels and a third of the blood-money, or their equivalent in gold, silver, cows or sheep. For a head thrust which reaches the body, the same blood-money was to be paid. Ten camels were to be paid for every finger, and five camels for every tooth.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) gave judgment that the blood-money for a woman should be divided among her relatives on her father's side, who did not inherit anything from her except the residence of her heirs. If she was killed, her blood-money should be distributed among her heirs, and they would have the right of taking revenge on the murderer.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: There is nothing for the murderer; and if he (the victim) has no heir, his heir will be the one who is nearest to him among the people, but the murderer should not inherit anything.

Muhammad said: All this has been transmitted to me by Sulayman ibn Musa on the authority of Amr ibn Shu'aib who, on his father's authority, said that his grandfather heard it from the Prophet (saws).

Abu Dawud said: Muhammad b. Rashid, an inhabitant of Damascus, fled from Basrah escaping murder.

A dead man in debt used to be brought to Allah's Apostle who would ask, "Has he left anything to re pay his debts?" If he was informed that he had left something to cover his debts the Prophet would offer the funeral prayer for him; otherwise he would say to the Muslims present there), "Offer the funeral prayer for your friend:"but when Allah helped the Prophet to gain victory (on his expeditions), he said, "I am closer to the Believers than themselves, so. if one of the Believers dies in debt, I will repay it, but if he leaves wealth, it will be for his heirs.

The Prophet (saws) Said: The disputants should refrain from taking retaliation. The one who is nearer should forgive first and then the one who is next to him, even if (the one who forgives) were a woman.

Abu Dawud said: I have been informed that forgiving by women in the case of murder is permissible if a woman were one of the heirs (of the slain). I have been told on the authority of Abu 'Ubaid about the meaning of the word yanhajizu, that is, they should refrain from retaliation.

`Umar delivered a sermon on the pulpit of Allah's Apostle, saying, "Alcoholic drinks were prohibited by Divine Order, and these drinks used to be prepared from five things, i.e., grapes, dates, wheat, barley and honey. Alcoholic drink is that, that disturbs the mind." `Umar added, "I wish Allah's Apostle had not left us before he had given us definite verdicts concerning three matters, i.e., how much a grandfather may inherit (of his grandson), the inheritance of Al-Kalala (the deceased person among whose heirs there is no father or son), and various types of Riba(1 ) (usury) ."

The last Sura which was revealed in full was Baraa (i.e. Sura-at-Tauba), and the last Sura (i.e. part of a Sura) which was revealed was the last Verses of Sura-an-Nisa':-- "They ask you for a legal decision. Say: Allah directs (thus) About those who have No descendants or ascendants As heirs." (4.177)

Mujahid said that Abdullah ibn Amr slaughtered a sheep and said: Have you presented a gift from it to my neighbour, the Jew, for I heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) say: Gabriel kept on commending the neighbour to me so that I thought he would make an heir?

A man came to the Prophet (saws) and said: My son has died; what do I receive from his estate? He replied: You receive a sixth. When he turned away he called him and said: You receive another sixth. When he turned away, he called him and said: The other sixth is an allowance (beyond what is due).

Qatadah said: They (the Companions) did not know the heirs with whom he was given (a sixth). Qatadah said: The minimum share given to the grandfather was a sixth.

Whenever a dead man in debt was brought to Allah's Apostle he would ask, "Has he left anything to repay his debt?" If he was informed that he had left something to repay his debts, he would offer his funeral prayer, otherwise he would tell the Muslims to offer their friend's funeral prayer. When Allah made the Prophet wealthy through conquests, he said, "I am more rightful than other believers to be the guardian of the believers, so if a Muslim dies while in debt, I am responsible for the repayment of his debt, and whoever leaves wealth (after his death) it will belong to his heirs. "

Yahya related to me from Malik from Ibn Shihab that Talha ibn Abdullah ibn Awf said, and he knew that better than them, from Abu Salama ibn Abd ar-Rahman ibn Awf that Abd ar-Rahman ibn Awf divorced his wife irrevocably while he was terminally ill, and Uthman ibn Affan made her an heir after the end of her idda.

A man came to Allah's Apostle and said, "O Allah's Apostle! Suppose a man saw another man with his wife, should he kill him whereupon you might kill him (i.e. the killer) (in Qisas) or what should he do?" So Allah revealed concerning their case what is mentioned of the order of Mula'ana. Allah's Apostle said to the man, "The matter between you and your wife has been decided." So they did Mula'ana in the presence of Allah's Apostle and I was present there, and then the man divorced his wife. So it became a tradition to dissolve the marriage of those spouses who were involved in a case of Mula'ana. The woman was pregnant and the husband denied that he was the cause of her pregnancy, so the son was (later) ascribed to her. Then it became a tradition that such a son would be the heir of his mother, and she would inherit of him what Allah prescribed for her.

Yahya said that he heard Malik speak about a man who died and left properties in Aliya and Safila (outlying districts of Madina). He said, "Unirrigated naturally watered land is not in the same category as irrigated land unless the family are satisfied with that. Unirrigated land is only in the same category as land with a spring when it resembles it. When the properties are in one land, and are close together, each individual property is evaluated and then divided between the heirs. Dwellings and houses are in the same position."

I heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) Said: Allah , Most Exalted, has appointed for everyone who has a right what is due to him, and no will be made to an heir, and a woman should not spend anything from her house except with the permission of her husband. He was asked: Even foodgrain, Messenger of Allah? He replied: That is the best of our property. He then said: A loan must be paid back, a she-camel lent for a time for milking must be returned, a debt must be discharged, one who stands surety is held responsible.

Yahya said that he heard Malik say, "The way of doing things generally agreed upon in our community in the case of a man who dies and has sons and one of them claims, 'My father confirmed that so-and- so was his son,' is that the relationship is not established by the testimony of one man, and the confirmation of the one who confirmed it is only permitted as regards his own share in the division of his father's property. The one testified for is only given his due from the share of the testifier."

Malik said, "An example of this is that a man dies leaving two sons, and 600 dinars. Each of them takes 300 dinars. Then one of them testifies that his deceased father confirmed that so-and-so was his son. The one who testifies is obliged to give 100 dinars to the one thus connected. This is half of the inheritance of the one thought to be related, had he been related. If the other confirms him, he takes the other 100 and so he completes his right and his relationship is established. His position is similar to that of a woman who confirms a debt against her father or her husband and the other heirs deny it. She must pay to the person whose debt she confirms, the amount according to her share of the full debt, had it been confirmed against all the heirs. If the woman inherits an eighth, she pays the creditor an eighth of his debt. If a daughter inherits a half, she pays the creditor half of his debt. Whichever women confirm him, pay him according to this.

Malik said, "If a man's testimony is in agreement with what the woman testified to, that so- and-so had a debt against his father, the creditor is made to take an oath with one witness and he is given all his due. This is not the position with women because a man's testimony is allowed and the creditor must take an oath with the testimony of his witness, and take all his due. If he does not take an oath, he only takes from the inheritance of the one who confirmed him according to his share of the debt, because he confirmed his right and the other heirs denied it. It is permitted for him to confirm it."

The Prophet (saws) said: I am nearer to every believer than himself, so if anyone leaves a debt or a helpless family, I shall be responsible, but if anyone leaves property, it goes to his heirs. I am patron of him who has none, inheriting his property and freeing him from his liabilities. A maternal uncle is patron of him who has none, inheriting his property and freeing him from his liabilities.

Abu Dawud said: da'iah means dependants or helpless family.

Abu Dawud said: This tradition has been transmitted by al-Zubaidi from Rashid b. Sa'd from Ibn 'A'idh on the authority of al-Miqdam. It has also been transmitted by Mu'awiyah b. Salih from Rashid who said: I heard al-Miqdam (say).

Malik related to me from Ibn Shihab from Urwa ibn az-Zubayr from Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abd al-Qari that Umar ibn al-Khattab said, "What is wrong with men who give their sons gifts and then keep them and if the son dies, they say, 'My property is in my possession and I did not give it to anyone.' But if they themselves are dying, they say, 'It belongs to my son, I gave it to him.' Whoever gives a gift, and does not hand it over to the one to whom it was given, the gift is invalid, and if he dies it belongs to the heirs in general."

Kathir ibn Qays said: I was sitting with AbudDarda' in the mosque of Damascus.

A man came to him and said: AbudDarda, I have come to you from the town of the Messenger of Allah (saws) for a tradition that I have heard you relate from the Messenger of Allah (saws). I have come for no other purpose.

He said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) say: If anyone travels on a road in search of knowledge, Allah will cause him to travel on one of the roads of Paradise. The angels will lower their wings in their great pleasure with one who seeks knowledge, the inhabitants of the heavens and the Earth and the fish in the deep waters will ask forgiveness for the learned man. The superiority of the learned man over the devout is like that of the moon, on the night when it is full, over the rest of the stars. The learned are the heirs of the Prophets, and the Prophets leave neither dinar nor dirham, leaving only knowledge, and he who takes it takes an abundant portion.

Abu Hudhaifa bin `Utba bin Rabi`a bin `Abdi Shams who had witnessed the battle of Badr along with the Prophet adopted Salim as his son, to whom he married his niece, Hind bint Al-Walid bin `Utba bin Rabi`a; and Salim was the freed slave of an Ansar woman, just as the Prophet had adopted Zaid as his son. It was the custom in the Pre-lslamic Period that if somebody adopted a boy, the people would call him the son of the adoptive father and he would be the latter's heir. But when Allah revealed the Divine Verses: 'Call them by (the names of) their fathers . . . your freed-slaves,' (33.5) the adopted persons were called by their fathers' names. The one whose father was not known, would be regarded as a Maula and your brother in religion. Later on Sahla bint Suhail bin `Amr Al-Quraishi Al-`Amiri-- and she was the wife of Abu- Hudhaifa bin `Utba--came to the Prophet and said, "O Allah's Apostle! We used to consider Salim as our (adopted) son, and now Allah has revealed what you know (regarding adopted sons)." The sub-narrator then mentioned the rest of the narration.

Malik said, The best of what I have heard about a mukatab whose master frees him at death, is that the mukatab is valued according to what he would fetch if he were sold. If that value is less than what remains against him of his kitaba, his freedom is taken from the third that the deceased can bequeath. One does not look at the number of dirhams which remain against him in his kitaba. That is because had he been killed, his killer would not be in debt for other than his value on the day he killed him. Had he been injured, the one who injured him would not be liable for other than the blood-money of the injury on the day of his injury. One does not look at how much he has paid of dinars and dirhams of the contract he has written because he is a slave as long as any of his kitaba remains. If what remains in his kitaba is less than his value, only whatever of his kitaba remains owing from him is taken into account in the third of the property of the deceased. That is because the deceased left him what remains of his kitaba and so it becomes a bequest which the deceased made."

Malik said, "The illustration of that is that if the price of the mukatab is one thousand dirhams, and only one hundred dirhams remain of his kitaba, his master leaves him the one hundred dirhams which complete it for him. It is taken into account in the third of his master and by it he becomes free."

Malik said that if a man wrote his slave a kitaba at his death, the value of the slave was estimated. If there was enough to cover the price of the slave in one third of his property, that was permitted for him.

Malik said, "The illustration of that is that the price of the slave is one thousand dinars. His master writes him a kitaba for two hundred dinars at his death. The third of the property of his master is one thousand dinars, so that is permitted for him. It is only a bequest which he makes from one third of his property. If the master has left bequests to people, and there is no surplus in the third after the value of the mukatab, one begins with the mukatab because the kitaba is setting free, and setting free has priority over bequests. When those bequests are paid from the kitaba of the mukatab, they follow it. The heirs of the testator have a choice. If they want to give the people with bequests all their bequests and the kitaba of the mukatab is theirs, they have that. If they refuse and hand over the mukatab and what he owes to the people with bequests they can do that, because the third commences with the mukatab and because all the bequests which he makes are as one."

If the heirs then say, "What our fellow bequeathed was more than one third of his property and he has taken what was not his," Malik said, "His heirs choose. It is said to them, 'Your companion has made the bequests you know about and if you would like to give them to those who are to receive them according to the deceased's bequests, then do so. If not, hand over to the people with bequests one third of the total property of the deceased.' "

Malik continued, "If the heirs surrender the mukatab to the people with bequests, the people with bequests have what he owes of his kitaba. If the mukatab pays what he owes of his kitaba, they take that in their bequests according to their shares. If the mukatab cannot pay, he is a slave of the people with bequests and does not return to the heirs because they gave him up when they made their choice, and because when he was surrendered to the people with bequests, they were liable. If he died, they would not have anything against the heirs. If the mukatab dies before he pays his kitaba and he leaves property which is more than what he owes, his property goes to the people with bequests. If the mukatab pays what he owes, he is free and his wala' returns to the paternal relations of the one who wrote the kitaba for him."

Malik spoke about a mukatab who owed his master ten thousand dirhams in his kitaba, and when he died he remitted one thousand dirhams from it. He said, "The mukatab is valued and his value is taken into consideration. If his value is one thousand dirhams and the reduction is a tenth of the kitaba, that portion of the slave's price is one hundred dirhams. It is a tenth of the price. A tenth of the kitaba is therefore reduced for him. That is converted to a tenth of the price in cash. That is as if he had had all of what he owed reduced for him. Had he done that, only the value of the slave - one thousand dirhams - would have been taken into account in the third of the property of the deceased. If that which he had remitted is half of the kitaba, half the price is taken into account in the third of the property of the deceased. If it is more or less than that, it is according to this reckoning."

Malik said, "When a man reduces the kitaba of his mukatab by one thousand dirhams at his death from a kitaba of ten thousand dirhams, and he does not stipulate whether it is from the beginning or the end of his kitaba, each instalment is reduced for him by one tenth."

Malik said, "If a man remits one thousand dirhams from his mukatab at his death from the beginning or end of his kitaba, and the original basis of the kitaba is three thousand dirhams, the mukatab's cash value is estimated. Then that value is divided. That thousand which is from the beginning of the kitaba is converted into its portion of the price according to its proximity to the term and its precedence and then the thousand which follows the first thousand is according to its precedence also until it comes to its end, and every thousand is paid according to its place in advancing and deferring the term because what is deferred of that is less in respect of its price. Then it is placed in the third of the deceased according to whatever of the price befalls that thousand according to the difference in preference of that, whether it is more or less, then it is according to this reckoning."

Malik spoke about a man who willed a man a fourth of a mukatab or freed a fourth, and then the man died and the mukatab died and left a lot of property, more than he owed. He said, "The heirs of the first master and the one who was willed a fourth of the mukatab are given what they are still owed by the mukatab. Then they divide what is left over, and the one willed a fourth has a third of what is left after the kitaba is paid. The heirs of his master gets two-thirds. That is because the mukatab is a slave as long as any of his kitaba remains to be paid. He is inherited from by the possession of his person."

Malik said about a mukatab whose master freed him at death, "If the third of the deceased will not cover him, he is freed from it according to what the third will cover and his kitaba is decreased according to that. If the mukatab owed five thousand dirhams and his value is two thousand dirhams cash, and the third of the deceased is one thousand dirhams, half of him is freed and half of the kitaba has been reduced for him." Malik said about a man who said in his will, "My slave so-and-so is free and write a kitaba for so-and- so", that the setting free had priority over the kitaba.

I was stricken by an ailment that led me to the verge of death. The Prophet came to pay me a visit. I said, "O Allah's Apostle! I have much property and no heir except my single daughter. Shall I give two-thirds of my property in charity?" He said, "No." I said, "Half of it?" He said, "No." I said, "Onethird of it?" He said, "You may do so) though one-third is also to a much, for it is better for you to leave your off-spring wealthy than to leave them poor, asking others for help. And whatever you spend (for Allah's sake) you will be rewarded for it, even for a morsel of food which you may put in the mouth of your wife." I said, "O Allah's Apostle! Will I remain behind and fail to complete my emigration?" The Prophet said, "If you are left behind after me, whatever good deeds you will do for Allah's sake, that will upgrade you and raise you high. May be you will have long life so that some people may benefit by you and others (the enemies) be harmed by you." But Allah's Apostle felt sorry for Sa`d bin Khaula as he died in Mecca. (Sufyan, a sub-narrator said that Sa`d bin Khaula was a man from the tribe of Bani 'Amir bin Lu'ai.)

Regarding the Verse:--"They ask your instruction concerning the women. Say: Allah instructs you about them and yet whom you desire to marry." (4.127) (has been revealed regarding the case of) a man who has an orphan girl, and he is her guardian and her heir. The girl shares with him all his property, even a date-palm (garden), but he dislikes to marry her and dislikes to give her in marriage to somebody else who would share with him the property she is sharing with him, and for this reason that guardian prevents that orphan girl from marrying. So, this Verse was revealed: (And Allah's statement:) "If a woman fears cruelty or desertion on her husband's part." (4.128)

Yahya related to me from Malik that he heard Rabia ibn Abi Abd ar-Rahman say, ''I heard that the wife of Abd ar-Rahman ibn Awf asked him to divorce her. He said, 'When you have menstruated and are pure, then come to me.' She did not menstruate until Abd ar-Rahman ibn Awf was ill. When she was purified, she told him and he divorced her irrevocably or made a pronouncement of divorce which was all that he had left over her Abd arRahman ibn Awf was terminally ill at the time, so Uthman ibn Affan made her one of the heirs after the end of her idda."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Abdu Rabbih ibn Said that Abu Bakr ibn Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Harith ibn Hisham only gave a fixed share to two grandmothers (together).

Malik said, "The generally agreed on way of doing things among us in which there is no dispute and which I saw the people of knowledge in our city doing, is that the maternal grandmother does not inherit anything at all with the mother. Outside of that, she is given a sixth as a fixed share. The paternal grandmotherdoes not inherit anything along with the mother or the father. Outside of that she is given a sixth as a fixed share." If both the paternal grandmother and maternal grandmother are alive, and the deceased does not have a father or mother outside of them, Malik said,."I have heard that if the maternal grandmother is the nearest of the two of them, then she has a sixth instead of the paternal grandmother. If the paternal grandmother is nearer, or they are in the same position in relation to the deceased, the sixth is divided equally between them."

Malik said, "None of the female grand-relations except for these two has any inheritance because I have heard that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, gave the grandmother inheritance, and then Abu Bakr asked about that until someone reliable related from the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, that he had made the grandmother an heir and given a share to her. Another grandmother came to Umar ibn al-Khattab, and he said, 'I am not one to add to fixed shares. If there are two of you together, it is between you. If either of you is left alone with it, it is hers.' " Malik said, "We do not know of anyone who made other than the two grandmothers heirs from the beginning of Islam to this day."

Malik said, "The generally agreed upon way of doing things among us is that maternal half-siblings do not inherit anything when there are children or grandchildren through sons, male or female. They do not inherit anything when there is a father or the father's father. They inherit in what is outside of that. If there is only one male or female, they are given a sixth. If there are two, each of them has a sixth. If there are more than that, they share in a third which is divided among them. The male does not have portion of two females. That is because Allah, the Blessed, the Exalted, says in His Book, 'If a man or woman has no direct heir, and he has a brother or sister, by the mother, each of them has a sixth. If there are more than two, they share equally in a third.' " (Sura 4 ayat 12).

Yahya related to me from Malik from Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr ibn Muhammad ibn Amribn Hazm that Abdar-Rahman ibn Hanthala az-Zurqi was informed by a mawla of Quraysh,who used to be known as Ibn Mursi, that he was sitting with Umar ibn al-Khattab, and when they had prayed dhuhr, he said, "Yarfa! Bring that letter! (a letter which he had written about the paternal aunt.) We asked about her and asked for information about her." Yarfa brought it to him. He called for a small vessel or a drinking-bowl in which there was water. He erased the letter in it. Then he said, "Had Allah approved of you as an heir, we would have confirmed you. Had Allah approved of you, we would have confirmed you."

Malik related to me from Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr ibn Hazm that Amr ibn Sulaym az-Zuraqi informed his father that it had been said to Umar ibn al-Khattab, "There is here an adolescent boy who has not yet reached puberty. He is from the Ghassan tribe and his heir is in ash- Sham. He has property. Here he only has the daughter of one of his paternal uncles." Umar ibn al-Khattab instructed, "Let him leave her a bequest." He willed her a property called the well of Jusham.

Malik added, "That property was sold for 30,000 dirhams, and the daughter of the paternal uncle to whom he willed it was the mother of Amr ibn Sulaym az-Zuraqi."

I fell ill, and I had seven sisters. The Messenger of Allah (saws) came to me and blew on my face. So I became conscious. I said: Messenger of Allah, may I not bequeath one-third of my property to my sisters? He replied: Do good. I asked: Half? He replied: Do good. He then went out and left me, and said: I do not think, Jabir, you will die of this disease. Allah has revealed (verses) and described the share of your sisters. He appointed two-thirds for them. Jabir used to say: This verse was revealed about me: "They ask thee for a legal decision. Say: Allah directs (thus) about those who leave no descendants or ascendants as heirs.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) would not say funeral prayer over a person who died while the debt was due from him. A dead Muslim was brought to him and he asked: Is there any debt due from him? They (the people) said: Yes, two dirhams. He said: Pray yourselves over your companion.

Then AbuQatadah al-Ansari said: I shall pay them, Messenger of Allah. The Messenger of Allah (saws) then prayed over him.

When Allah granted conquests to the Messenger of Allah (saws), he said: I am nearer to every believer than himself, so if anyone (dies and) leaves a debt, I shall be responsible for paying it; and if anyone leaves property, it goes to his heirs.