Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
This chapter is dedicated to mentioning that which the Prophet (peace be upon him) left behind after his death, and to clarify that the inheritance of Prophets is knowledge and anything else is left for charity.
399. ‘Amr ibn al-Hārith, the brother of Juwairiyya said: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) did not leave behind anything except his weapons, his mule and a piece of land that he allocated for charity.” [465]
Ibn Hajar al-Asqalānī said,
The Juwairiyya referred to in this hadith is the mother of the believers, Juwairiyya bint al-Hārith.
The slaves of the Prophet (peace be upon him) who were mentioned in the hadīths were either freed or died during his lifetime [as stated in the hadith in Sahīh al-Bukharī which reads, “When Allah’s Apostle died, he did not leave any dirham or dinār (i.e. money), a slave or a slave woman, neither did he leave anything else besides his white mule, his arms and a piece of land which he had given in charity.”]
Ibn Battal said,
The king of Aylah sent the Prophet (peace be upon him) a white mule as a gift.
400. Abu Hurairah narrated: “Fātimah came to Abū Bakr and asked him, ‘Who shall inherit from you?’ He replied, ‘My wife and my children.’ She said, ‘Then why is it so, that I cannot inherit from my father?’ He replied, ‘I heard the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) say, ‘We (i.e. the Prophets) are not inherited from.’ However, I will support those whom the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) used to support and I will spend upon those whom he spent upon.’” [466]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
Fātimah came to Abū Bakr after he become the successor of the Prophet (peace be upon him) to ask him for her share from that which her father (peace be upon him) had left behind [as he acquired some estates from war booties]. It seems that she was not aware of his statement that no one inherits from him. This can be supported by the fact that she did not object to the statement of the Prophet (peace be upon him) after she heard it and this is why Abū Bakr did not distribute that which the Prophet (peace be upon him) had between his wives and daughters. Nonetheless, Abū Bakr explained that he was now responsible for the affairs of the Muslims. Therefore he would make sure to keep the arrangements of the Prophet (peace be upon him) stay as they were and thus, he would continue to give her the support that she used to receive from the Prophet (peace be upon him) and spend upon everyone that the Prophet (peace be upon him) spent upon during his lifetime.
Ibn Hajar al-Asqalānī said,
The hadīths indicating that Fātimah refused to talk with Abū Bakr after he denied her what she thought to be her right in the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) properties do not mean that she boycotted him. Rather, she refused to talk with him regarding the matter and she did not boycott him, which is forbidden to do so as stated in the hadīth.
Given the high level of piety and sensibility of Fātimah, it appears that she did not boycott Abū Bakr. This can be corroborated by the hadīth documented by al-Bayhaqī who reported from the way of al-Sha’bī that Abū Bakr visited Fātimah and Alī ibn Abī Tālib said to her that Abū Bakr sought permission to visit her. She said, “Are you happy for me to allow him?” He replied, “Yes.” So she allowed him to enter upon her.
Some of our scholars said that the forbidden type of boycott between Muslims is that when two people ignore each other when they meet. It is evident that what she did was avoid meeting him, as it seems to be the case that she was too busy with her sadness and sickness.
The reason she became upset though she heard the hadīth is because she understood the hadīth in a different manner to Abū Bakr. Her understanding led her to believe that she was not subject to this hadīth (meaning she was an exception to the general statement) whilst Abū Bakr understood the hadīth to be applicable to everyone, and the interpretation of both are possible.
401. Abū al-Bakhtarī narrated: “Both al-Abbās and Alī ibn Abī Tālib disputed over the inheritance of the Prophet (peace be upon him) so they went to ‘Umar during his reign as the Caliphate whilst each of them accused the other. ‘Umar said to Talhah, al-Zubayr, ‘Abdul Rahman ibn ‘Awf and Sa’d ibn Abī Waqqās, ‘Do you not bear witness that you heard the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) say, ‘The wealth that a Prophet [leaves behind] is for charity, except that which he used to feed and clothe his family. Indeed, we are not inherited from.’’ This hadīth also has a story [which is being shortened here].” [467]
Al-San’ānī said,
The meaning of this hadīth is that all of the wealth that the Prophet (peace be upon him) left behind was for his nation as charity. The money he used to feed his family was exempt from this ruling as Allāh allowed him to do so and it appears that even this was considered a charity for them (his family) during his lifetime.
It was said that the wisdom for Prophets leaving nothing behind as inheritance was so that their heirs would not wish for their death. As for the inheritance mentioned in the ayāt: {Sulaymān inherited Dawūd}[468] and {Who will inherit me and inherit from the family of Ya’qūb}[469], both refer to knowledge.
Al-Khattabī said,
Mālik ibn Aws said: “‘Umar ibn al-Khattab sent a messenger to call me to present myself before him. I went and found ‘Umar sitting on a bare bed, with no mattress. I greeted him and sat down, and he said, ‘O Mālik, some families from your people have come to us and I have ordered that some shares be allocated to them. Take them and divide among them.’ I said, ‘O Amir al-Muminīn! I would prefer that you appoint someone else to do this.’ He said, ‘Take them [and perform the task.]’ Then his doorkeeper Yaria’ came to him and said, ‘Will you give ‘Uthmān, Abdul Rahman ibn ‘Awf, al-Zubayr and Sa’d ibn Abī Waqqās permission to enter?’ He responded, ‘Yes.’ So he let them in, they entered and sat down. Then after a while, Yaria’ came and said to ‘Umar, ‘Do you allow Alī and al-Abbās to enter?’ He replied, ‘Yes.’ So he let them in, and they entered. Al-Abbās said, ‘O Amīr al-Muminīn, judge between me and this one (Alī).’
The group, ‘Uthmān and his companions, said, ‘O Amīr al-Muminīn! Judge between them and give them a break from one another.’ ‘Umar said, ‘I ask you by Allāh, by whose permission the heaven and earth exist, do you know that the Messenger of Allāh said, ‘We cannot be inherited from; what we leave behind is charity?’’ The group replied, ‘He did say that.’ Then ‘Umar turned to Alī and al-Abbās and said, ‘I ask you by Allāh, do you know that the Messenger of Allāh said that?’ They said, ‘He did say so.’
‘Umar said, ‘Allāh allocated for the Messenger something exclusive for him when He said: {And what Allāh gave as booty (Fai’) to His Messenger (Muhammad (peace be upon him)) from them, for which you made no expedition with either cavalry or camels. But Allāh gives power to His Messengers over whomsoever He wills. And Allāh is Able to do all things.}’[470] Then he said, ‘And Allāh gave his Messenger the war booty of Banī al-Nadyīr but by Allāh, he did not keep it for himself and withhold it from you, rather he gave it to you and distributed it amongst you, until only this wealth was left. The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) gave his family what they needed for the whole year from this wealth, then he took what was left and put it in the Bayt al-Māl.’ Then he addressed the group, ‘I ask you by Allāh, do you know this?’ They replied, ‘Yes.’ Then he said to Alī and al-Abbās, ‘I ask you by Allah, do you know this?’ They replied, ‘Yes.’
‘Umar said, ‘Then Allāh took the soul of His Prophet (peace be upon him), and Abū Bakr said, ‘I am the successor of the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him).’ By Allāh, Abū Bakr took it and used it in the same manner that the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) had done. Then you and him (al-Abbās and Alī) went to Abū Bakr, you (al-‘Abbās) demanding your share from the inheritance of your nephew (the Prophet (peace be upon him)) and he (Alī) demanding the share of his wife from the inheritance of her father (the Prophet (peace be upon him)) and Abū Bakr said to you that he had heard the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) say, ‘We cannot be inherited from. All that which we leave behind is to be given for charity’ and Allāh knows that he was honest and sincere, and sought the truth.
Then Allāh took the soul of Abū Bakr and I said, ‘I am the successor of the Messenger of Allāh and the successor of Abū Bakr.’ I took over and I used it as the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) and Abū Bakr had done. And you have come to me and spoken to me, when you were both in agreement. When I thought that I might give it to you, I said, ‘If you wish, I will give it to you both, on condition that you make a promise to Allāh that you will use it as the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) did, as Abū Bakr did and as I have done since the beginning of my reign.’ You replied, ‘Give it to us on that basis.’ Thus I gave it to you. I ask you by Allāh, did I not give it to them on that basis?’ The group replied, ‘Yes.’ Then he turned to Alī and al-Abbās and said, ‘I ask you by Allāh, did I not give it to you on that basis?’ They replied, ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘And now you are seeking a different judgement from me? If you are not able to manage it properly, then give it to me and I will take care of it’”
Abu Dawūd said, “Al-Abbās and Alī came the second time asking ‘Umar to divide it in two halves between them so that each one could be responsible for his part but ‘Umar refused to divide it.” This is a very good explanation and is indicated from the context of the hadīth where it mentions that al-Abbās and Alī were in agreement regarding the matter but they differed upon a new idea that came into their mind at that time which was to divide it. Also, it cannot be that they acknowledged the statement of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and yet still came to demand inheritance. ‘Umar refused to divide it due to his fear that the people coming after al-Abbās and Alī may not possess their wisdom, insight, piety and knowledge and so they would claim its ownership.
402. Aisha narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) said, ‘We cannot be inherited from. All of that which we leave behind is for charity.’” [471]
403. Abu Hurairah narrated: “The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, ‘My inheritance is not to be distributed by dinārs and dirhams. Whatever is remaining, after setting aside the expenditure of my wives and workers, is for charity.’” [472]
Ibn Battal said,
The statement of the Prophet (peace be upon him) in this hadith does not entail an order because he did not leave behind any money to be divided as he died whilst his armour was still pawned. Thus he (peace be upon him) meant that his heirs will not have any money from him after his death as he will not leave behind any.
He (peace be upon him) excluded the expenditure of his wives after his death because they were his dependants and leaving them without support entails what Allāh said: {And it is not [conceivable or lawful] for you to harm the Messenger of Allāh.}[473]
The workers mentioned in this hadīth are his workers who worked in the land he possessed in Fadak, Banī al-Nadīr and Khaybar (his war booty) as he used the income generated from these lands to spend upon his family and the rest he gave in charity to benefit the Muslims. This remained until the time of ‘Umar who gave the wives of the Prophet the choice either to continue receiving their share from these lands or to allocate for them some properties. Aisha and Hafsah chose to take the properties and so he excluded them from their share in the lands and gave them what they wanted. These were then left for their heirs after they died.
Al-Tabarī said, “This is evidence that it is allowed to allocate some income for those whose time is dedicated to managing acts that are considered as good deeds such as the muadhin (caller to prayer), teachers, judges, rulers, scholars etc.”
404. Mālik ibn Aws ibn al-Hadathān narrated: “I entered upon ‘Umar and Abdul Rahman ibn A’wf, Talhah and Sa’d also came. At a later point, Alī and Abbās also entered whilst they were in the midst of an argument. ‘Umar asked them (Abdul Rahman, Talhah and Sa’d), ‘Do you bear witness by the One whose permission allows the heavens and earth to exist that the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) said, ‘We are not inherited from. Whatever is left behind is charity.’’ They replied, ‘O Allāh, yes.’” There is a long story behind this hadīth. [474]
405. Aisha narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) left behind no dinārs, dirhams, sheep or camels.” [The narrator of this hadith] said: “I am in doubt regarding whether she also mentioned male and female slaves.”
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
It is narrated that Abū Hurairah walked in the market of Madīnah. He stood and shouted, “O people of the market! How slack you are!” The people asked, “O Abu Hurairah! Why do you say that?” He replied, “The inheritance of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) is distributed whilst you are still here and not collecting your share from it!” The people asked, “Where is it distributed?” He replied, “It is now being distributed in the masjid. Thereupon, the people rushed to the masjid and Abū Hurairah waited in the market until their return. When they returned, he asked them about what happened so they said, “We went there but we saw nothing being distributed.” He said, “Have you not seen anyone in the masjid?” They said, “Yes, we did! We saw some people praying, and some people reciting the Qur’ān, and some people studying that which is lawful and that which is forbidden.” He said, “Woe to you! That is the inheritance of Muhammad (peace be upon him).”[475]