What is wasiyat?
A wasiyat (will) is a command of the deceased which is followed after death. For example, if a person says at the time of death that after his death, so much money or so much land from his property should be given to such and such a person or such a religious institution or a boarding house or an orphanage, then this is called a will.
The will should be written in the presence of two witnesses so that no dispute arises later. The law of will has been made in Islamic law; so that those loved ones who are not getting a share in the inheritance by law and are deserving of help, for example, there is an orphaned grandson or granddaughter or a widow of a son who is in trouble or a brother or sister or any other loved one who is in need of support, then this person should be helped through a will.
Although both making a will and not making a will are permissible, in some cases making a will is preferable and better. It is obligatory for the heirs to execute a will in one-third of the property, i.e., if a person’s property is worth 900,000 rupees after paying the funeral expenses, other obligatory rights, and debts, then it is obligatory for the heirs to execute a will up to 300,000 rupees. The heirs have the option of executing a will for more than one-third or not.
If a person makes a will to deprive an heir or all the heirs, it is a major sin, as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever deprives an heir of his inheritance, Allah will deprive him of Paradise on the Day of Resurrection (for a while).” (Ibn Majah and Bayhaqi) After death, the distribution of the estate (property or money) will be solely based on the law of inheritance.
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In the early days of Islam
In the beginning of Islam, until the shares of inheritance were fixed, it was obligatory for every person to determine the shares of his heirs through a will so that after his death there would be no quarrels in the family and no rightful owner would be deprived of his rights. But when later Allah Almighty Himself established the principles and rules for the distribution of inheritance, which are mentioned in Surah An-Nisa,.
Then the obligation of a will ceased, although its desirability remained with two basic conditions. 1) A will cannot be made for a person who has received a fixed share in the inheritance, for example, a mother, father, wife, husband and children. As the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said in front of a gathering of about 150,000 companions on the occasion of the Farewell Pilgrimage: “Allah Almighty has determined the share of every heir, so now it is not permissible to make a will for any heir.” (Tirmidhi. Chapter: What came without a will for the heirs) There is further clarification in the hadith of Hazrat Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) that inheritance has abrogated the will of those who have a fixed share in the inheritance, for other relatives who do not have a share in the inheritance, the rule of a will still remain.) The enforcement of a will can be enforced on a maximum of one-third of the estate, unless all the heirs agree to the enforcement of the entire will.
Consensus among the Muslim Ummah
There is a consensus among the Muslim Ummah that it is no longer obligatory or obligatory for relatives who have no fixed share in the inheritance to make a will, because the rule of the obligation of a will has been abrogated. (Tafsir al-Jassas, Tafsir al-Qurtubi) That is, it is recommended to make a will under the condition of necessity.
The legitimacy of a will from the Holy Quran
(1) Allah Almighty says: It is prescribed for you that if any of you leaves behind wealth, when death approaches him, he should make a will in accordance with what is lawful for his parents and relatives. This is an obligatory duty on the righteous… Then whoever changes it after hearing it, then the sin will be on those who change it. Surely, Allah is Hearing, Knowing… But if anyone fears that the testator is committing an unjustified favoritism or a sin and he reconciles between the people concerned, there is no sin on him. Indeed, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Surah Al-Baqarah 180-182) The necessity and obligation of a will was given at a time when the laws of inheritance had not been revealed. Allah Almighty revealed the law of wills gradually. In other words, the obligation of making a will has been abolished in the above verse; however, its recommendation remains.
(2) Allah Almighty has mentioned this law several times in Surah An-Nisa, where He has mentioned the fixed shares of the heirs: “This entire distribution will be after carrying out the will that the deceased has made, or after paying off any debt that he has.” The legality of a will is clear as day from the numerous mentions of will in Surah An-Nisa.
3) Allah Almighty says: “O you who believe! When death approaches one of you, the way to make a will is to have two trustworthy men from among you as witnesses to settle your affairs, or if you are traveling in the land and death befalls you while you are there, then two from among the non-Muslims.” (Surah Al-Ma’idah 106) In this verse, Allah Almighty has said that a will can be made while traveling with a person present, and when making a will, you should also have two trustworthy people as witnesses; so that there will be no dispute later.
The legitimacy of a will from the Prophetic Hadith
It was narrated from Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: It is not right for a Muslim who has anything worthy of a will to spend two nights without writing it down and keeping it with him. (Sahih Bukhari – Book of Wills) (Sahih Muslim – Book of Wills – Chapter of Wills).
In the light of the Quran and Hadith, scholars have said that this refers to a person who has a debt or is entrusted with someone’s trust or has an obligation that he is unable to pay himself, so it is necessary for him to write this detail in his will. It is not necessary for an ordinary person to write a will, but it is recommended.
The legitimacy of a will is based on the consensus of the entire Muslim community
In the light of the Quran and Hadith, there is a consensus of the entire Muslim community on the legitimacy of a will, as Allama Ibn Qudamah has mentioned in his famous book (Al-Mughni, Vol. 8, p. 390) the consensus of the entire Muslim community on the legitimacy of a will.
The wisdom of a will
One of the many wisdoms of a will is that after a person’s death, the inheritance is distributed on the basis of kinship and not on the basis of need, that is, the closer the person is to the deceased, the more he will receive, even if the other relatives are poorer. However, Islamic law has encouraged a person that if a person considers one of his relatives to be more deserving of help and he is not getting a share in the inheritance, then he should make a will for him up to one-third of his wealth. For example, if a person has lost a son and has grandchildren, then he should bequeath up to one-third of his property to his orphaned grandchildren. Allah Almighty has also encouraged this in Surah An-Nisa.
Types of Wills: Obligatory Wills
(1) If a person has a debt, it is obligatory to make a will.
(2) If he was unable to perform the obligatory Hajj in his life, it is obligatory to make a will.
(3) If Zakat was obligatory and he did not pay it, it is obligatory to make a will.
(4) If he was unable to fast, it is obligatory to make a will to pay charity in return.
(5) If a close relative is not able to receive a share in the inheritance according to the law of wills, for example, an orphaned grandson or granddaughter and they are in dire need, then it is not obligatory to make a will, but he must take care of his grandson. Some scholars have also considered making a will obligatory in such a case.
Recommended Wills
Islamic law has given every person the option to make a will of one-third of his wealth to any needy person or to a mosque or a madrasa or a boarding house or an orphanage; So that it becomes a continuous charity for him and he continues to receive its reward even after his death.
Recommended Will:
Islamic law has given every person the right to bequeath one-third of his wealth to any needy person or to a mosque or a madrasah or a boarding house or an orphanage; so that it becomes a continuous charity for him and he gets its reward even after his death.
Disliked Will
Hazrat Saad bin Abi Waqqas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) came to visit me, while I was in Makkah (on the occasion of the Farewell Pilgrimage or the Conquest of Makkah). The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) did not like to die in a land from which someone had migrated. The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: May Allah have mercy on Ibn Afra (Saad). I said: O Messenger of Allah! Should I bequeath all my wealth and wealth (in the way of Allah)? He (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: No. I asked, “Should I then give half?” He (peace be upon him) said, “No.” I asked, “Should I then give a third?” He (peace be upon him) said, “You can give a third, and that is also a lot.
If you leave your relatives behind you wealthy, it is better than leaving them poor and spreading their hands in front of people. Do not doubt that whenever you spend something lawfully, it is charity. Even the morsel that you take and put in your wife’s mouth (that is also charity) and (there is no need to make a will now), it is possible that Allah Almighty will cure you and after that many people will benefit from you and many others (opponents of Islam) will suffer. (Bukhari, Book of Wills) (Tirmidhi, Chapter What Came in the Will with a Third?) In other words, if children and other heirs are more deserving of wealth and property, then it is disliked to make a will for other people and institutions.
Explanation: After the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) prayed for his recovery, Hazrat Saad bin Abi Waqqas (may Allah be pleased with him) lived for about fifty years and accomplished great deeds. Hazrat Saad bin Abi Waqqas (may Allah be pleased with him) founded the city of Kufa in 17 AH, which later became the cradle of knowledge and deeds. Under his leadership, a superpower like Iran was conquered. He himself had put his horses in the Tigris River. How well Allama Iqbal (may Allah be pleased with him) has said: The desert is a desert, we did not leave the river, and we made our horses run in the sea ofdarkness.
Illegal will
Bequeathing more than one-third of the property. Bequeathing to an heir. This type of will will not be enforceable. Bequeathing to another person or religious institution to deprive children or any other heir of their property. It was narrated from Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “There are some people who live for sixty years in obedience to Allah, then when their time comes, they harm their heirs through their wills. Because of this, Hellfire becomes obligatory for them.” Then Abu Hurairah recited this verse (Surah An-Nisa 12): “After fulfilling what has been bequeathed and after paying off what the deceased owed, provided that he has not harmed anyone. This is the decree of Allah, and Allah is Knowing and Forbearing.” (Tirmidhi, Chapter 1: The Will of the Third Kind).
Some issues related to wills
(1) Any person can spend more or less money on the education of any child, construction of his house, etc. in his healthy life. Similarly, in normal healthy life, he can divide the property among the children with more or less, but he should be as equal as possible in giving the expenses and property to the children. In normal healthy life, the law of will or inheritance does not apply. In normal healthy life, the money or property given to children and other relatives is called a gift. In other words, in normal healthy life, if a father feels that any of his children is financially weak or wants to give some part of his money or property to his orphaned grandson or granddaughter, he can give it.
(2) Hazrat Amr bin Harith (RA), the brother of Umm al-Mu’minin Hazrat Juwayriya bint Harith (RA), says that the Holy Prophet (PBUH) did not leave any dirham, dinar, slave or maidservant at the time of his death except his white mule, his weapons and his land which he had given in charity. (Bukhari) In other words, he did not leave any legacy, and therefore there is no will of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) regarding the legacy.
3) Debt will be given priority over will. Hazrat Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) has ordered that debt should be paid before will (i.e., after the funeral and burial of a person, the debt should be paid first, then the will will be enforced); whereas you people read in the Holy Quran that the will is first and the debt after. (Tirmidhi, Chapter 1: What comes before the religion before the will) In the light of the above and other hadiths, the entire Muslim community is in agreement that the payment of debt takes precedence over the will.
(4) According to Sharia, a will cannot be made to an heir, but if a person has made a will to one of the heirs and all the heirs allow him to carry out his will after the death of the deceased, then that will will be enforced. Similarly, if a person has made a will of more than one-third of his property and all the heirs are allowing his will to be carried out after the death of the deceased, then that will will be effective.
(5) A written will can also be changed, that is, if a person has written a will and kept it with him, then he can change it during his lifetime.
An important point
Just as every person wants that after his death his property reaches his children and other heirs in a proper manner and that his children use his property in a proper manner and that it also increases. Similarly, we should also think and try that how our children will live their lives according to the commands of Allah and the way of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) after our death? So that they can always succeed in eternal life after death. As Allah Almighty has mentioned in His Holy Book the advice of Prophet Abraham (peace be upon him) and Prophet Jacob (peace be upon him) to their children: And this is what Abraham advised his sons, and Jacob (peace be upon him): “O my sons! Allah has chosen for you this religion, so when death comes to you, come to it while you are Muslims.” Were you present when the time of death came for Jacob to die, when he said to his sons, “Whom will you worship after me?” They all said, “We will worship one God, your God and the God of your fathers Abraham, Ishmael and Isaac, and to Him we submit.” (Surah Al-Baqarah 132 and 133)
Another important point
As we know very well from our life experiences, every person does something very important and necessary at the end of his life. You (peace be upon you) It is narrated from Hazrat Ali (RA), the son-in-law and cousin of the Prophet (PBUH), that the last words that came out of the blessed tongue of the Prophet (PBUH) were: (Prayer, prayer and fear Allah regarding your slaves). (Abu Dawud, Musnad Ahmad) Umm Salamah (RA) says that the last will of the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) was: Prayer, prayer. Fear Allah regarding your slaves (and subordinates), i.e., fulfill their rights. When he (PBUH) gave this will, the complete words were not coming out of his blessed tongue. (Musnad Ahmad) From this we can estimate the importance and emphasis of prayer that the benefactor of humanity (PBUH) gave the last will regarding the observance of prayer, so we should arrange prayer throughout our lives.
