In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
With pens of yearning
and ink of devotion,
we write words more precious than gold
describing the master of creation,
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
The Prophetic Characteristics (*Shama'il*)
Chapter: What Has Been Related Regarding the Inheritance of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
What is meant by the inheritance of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
is whatever worldly goods he left behind after his passing.
Narrated 'Amr ibn al-Harith, the brother of Juwayriyah
—he was a Companion—
who said:
"The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, left behind nothing
except his weapons, his white mule,
and land that he designated as a charity."
The narrator of this hadith
is 'Amr ibn al-Harith ibn Abi Dirar,
brother of the Mother of the Believers, Juwayriyah bint al-Harith (may Allah be pleased with her),
and he was a Companion.
He stated in this hadith:
"The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, left behind nothing..."
meaning, at the time of his death,
"...except his weapons,"
referring to the gear he wore specifically during combat,
such as his sword, spear,
chainmail, helmet, and short lance.
And his saying:
"...and his mule,"
refers to his white mule,
whose name was Duldul,
which lived until the reign of Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him).
And his saying:
"...and land that he designated as a charity,"
was half the land of Fadak,
a third of the land of Wadi al-Qura,
his share from the fifth of Khaybar,
and a portion of the land of Banu al-Nadir.
He designated all this land as an endowment for the general benefit of the Muslims.
Benefits derived from the hadith:
It demonstrates the Prophet's (peace be upon him) practice
of complete asceticism regarding worldly life
and contentment with very little,
as he departed from it
leaving behind only basic human necessities:
such as weapons to strive against the disbelievers,
and the mule he used to ride.
As for the land he left behind,
he had already made it an ongoing charity.
Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
"The entire world in its fullness
was far too insignificant in his eyes—
just as it is in the sight of Allah—
for him to strive after it
or to leave it behind as a material inheritance."
May Allah's blessings and peace be upon him,
and upon his brothers among the prophets and messengers,
and may He bestow abundant and everlasting peace upon them
until the Day of Recompense.
Narrated Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him):
Fatimah came to Abu Bakr
and asked, "Who inherits from you?"
He replied, "My family and my children."
She said, "Then why do I not inherit from my father?"
Abu Bakr said,
"I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
say, 'We do not leave inheritance.'
But I will support those whom the Messenger of Allah,
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, used to support,
and I will spend on those upon whom the Messenger of Allah,
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, used to spend."
In this hadith,
Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with her),
the daughter of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him),
came to Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him),
the Caliph of the Muslims,
seeking her share of her father's inheritance.
It seems it had not yet reached her knowledge
that the Prophet (peace be upon him) had said,
"We leave no inheritance."
So she asked, by way of introduction to her request:
"Who inherits from you?"
meaning: "When you die, who will inherit your estate?"
The Truthful One (*al-Siddiq*) replied: "My family and my children,"
meaning: "When I die, my family and my children will inherit from me,
both male and female."
So she said: "Then why do I not inherit from my father?"
meaning: "If your family and children inherit from you,
why should I not receive an inheritance
and a share from my father?"
Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) replied:
"I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)
say, 'We do not leave inheritance.'"
Therefore, he (may Allah be pleased with him) did not distribute
what the Prophet (peace be upon him) left behind
among his relatives or his wives.
When she (may Allah be pleased with her) heard the hadith
from Abu Bakr, she deferred to it completely.
Scholars noted that this confirms she had not heard it prior to this,
for had she known it, she would not have come asking.
And his saying:
"But I will support those whom the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
used to support,
and I will spend on those upon whom the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
used to spend,"
means that he would not cut off their maintenance;
rather, he would continue spending on everyone upon whom
the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to spend,
because he stepped into his role
in managing the affairs and needs of the Muslims.
Narrated 'A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her)
that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
said: "We do not leave inheritance;
whatever we leave behind is charity."
This hadith demonstrates the fairness of the Mother of the Believers,
'A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her), and her absolute truthfulness,
for she was among the heirs of the Prophet (peace be upon him)
had he left an inheritance.
Yet she narrated this hadith,
proving her commitment to clarifying the truth,
even if it was at her own personal expense.
Scholars said that the wisdom behind why
prophets (peace and blessings of Allah be upon them)
do not leave inheritances is that they are like spiritual fathers
to the Ummah, so their wealth belongs to the collective whole.
Narrated Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him),
from the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
who said: "My heirs shall not divide
a single dinar or dirham.
Whatever I leave behind, after providing for my wives' maintenance
and the upkeep of my manager, is charity."
This hadith carries the same meaning as the preceding
hadiths: the Prophet (peace be upon him)
does not pass on to his heirs
any dinar or dirham.
Specifying dinars and dirhams
serves as an indication for everything else as well;
mentioning them draws attention to items of even greater value.
And his saying:
"Whatever I leave behind, after providing for my wives' maintenance and the upkeep of my manager,
is charity,"
means that whatever he (peace be upon him) left behind
shall first cover the living expenses of his wives,
and whatever remains beyond that shall be spent in charity
for the benefit of the Muslims. The intended meaning
of "manager" is the leader who assumes authority over the Muslims
after him, though some said it refers to his servant.
Narrated Malik ibn Aws ibn al-Hadathan:
"I visited 'Umar,
and 'Abd al-Rahman ibn 'Awf,
Talhah, and Sa'd came in to see him.
Then 'Ali and al-'Abbas arrived, seeking judgment in a dispute.
'Umar said, 'I adjure you by Allah, by Whose permission
the heavens and the earth stand:
Do you know that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
said, "We do not leave inheritance;
whatever we leave behind is charity"?'
They replied, 'O Allah, yes!'"
In this hadith, there is a lengthy story:
the land of Banu al-Nadir
was part of the spoils that Allah granted to His Prophet (peace be upon him),
so the Prophet (peace be upon him)
used to take from it a year's provision for his family,
and whatever remained beyond that, he allocated
for the general needs of the Muslims.
When he (peace be upon him) passed away,
Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him)
maintained the Prophet's (peace be upon him) relatives
from its revenues.
Then, after Abu Bakr passed away, 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) followed the same practice.
Later, 'Umar entrusted its management to al-'Abbas and 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both)
so that they might distribute its yields
to the Prophet's (peace be upon him) relatives.
Subsequently, a disagreement arose between the two of them
regarding its management,
and they asked 'Umar to divide the property between them
so that each could independently manage his own portion.
'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) refused to divide it
and cited this hadith as his proof.
And the statement:
"In this hadith, there is a lengthy story,"
refers to a narrative recorded in both *Sahih al-Bukhari* and *Sahih Muslim*,
narrated by Malik ibn Aws ibn al-Hadathan al-Nasri,
reporting that 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him)
summoned him.
Just then, 'Umar's doorkeeper, Yarfa', came in and said,
"Would you permit 'Uthman, 'Abd al-Rahman,
al-Zubayr, and Sa'd to enter?"
'Umar said, "Yes," and admitted them.
After a brief moment, Yarfa' returned and said,
"Would you permit al-'Abbas and 'Ali to enter?"
He said, "Yes."
When they entered, al-'Abbas said,
"O Commander of the Faithful!
Judge between me and this man!"
—they were disputing over the property that Allah had granted as spoils
to His Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
'Ali and al-'Abbas exchanged sharp words,
The group said, "O Commander of the Faithful,
judge between these two
and relieve one from the other."
'Umar said, "Wait,
I adjure you by Allah, by Whose permission
the heavens and the earth stand:
do you know that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
said, 'We are not inherited from;
whatever we leave is charity'—referring to himself?"
They replied, "He indeed said that."
'Umar then turned to 'Abbas and 'Ali
and said, "I adjure you both by Allah,
do you know that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh)
had said that?"
They said, "Yes."
He said, "I shall now speak to you regarding this matter.
Allah Almighty
favored His Messenger (pbuh) with this property of *fai'* (spoils)
with something He did not grant to anyone else,
for Exalted is His mention, He said:
“And that which Allah gave as spoil unto His messenger from them, ye urged not any horse or riding-camel for the sake thereof, but Allah giveth His messenger lordship over whom He will. Allah is Able to do all things.” (59:6)
“And that which Allah gave as spoil unto His messenger from them, ye urged not any horse or riding-camel for the sake thereof, but Allah giveth His messenger lordship over whom He will. Allah is Able to do all things.” (59:6)
◁ and you made no expedition with horses or camels ▷
up to His saying: ◁ All-Powerful ▷.
So this was exclusively designated for the Messenger of Allah (pbuh).
Yet, by Allah, he did not hoard it for himself,
but rather gave it to you and distributed it among you,
until this remaining portion of property was left over from it.
The Messenger of Allah (pbuh)
used to spend from this property the yearly maintenance for his family,
out of these funds,
and then he would take whatever remained
and allocate it as Allah's public funds.
The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) acted in this manner
throughout his life.
Then the Prophet (pbuh) passed away,
and Abu Bakr said,
'I am the successor of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh).'
So Abu Bakr took charge of it
and managed it in the exact same manner as the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) had done.
And you two were present at that time."
Then he turned to 'Ali and 'Abbas
and said,
"You two claim that Abu Bakr acted in this way as you say,
whereas Allah knows that he was truthful, righteous,
rightly guided, and a follower of the truth regarding it.
Then Allah took Abu Bakr's soul,
and I said, 'I am the successor of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh)
and of Abu Bakr.'
So I took charge of it for two years of my rule,
managing it in the exact same manner as the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) had done,
and as Abu Bakr had done.
And Allah knows that I am truthful, righteous,
rightly guided, and a follower of the truth regarding it.
Then you both came to me,
both of you asking the exact same thing,
and your cause was united:
you came to me—meaning 'Abbas—
and I said to you both,
'The Messenger of Allah (pbuh)
said, "We are not inherited from;
whatever we leave is charity."
If you wish that I hand it over to you,'
I said, 'If you wish, I will hand it over to you
on the condition that you make a covenant and pledge with Allah
that you will manage it
in the exact same manner as the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) had managed it,
and as Abu Bakr had done,
and as I have done since I took charge of it;
otherwise, do not speak to me about it.'
You both said, 'Hand it over to us on that condition.'
Are you now seeking from me a judgment other than that?
By Allah, by Whose permission
the heavens and the earth stand,
I will never render a judgment regarding it other than that
until the Hour is established!
If you are incapable of managing it, then return it to me,
and I will suffice you of its maintenance."
On the authority of Zirr ibn Hubaysh, he said that
'A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, said,
"The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) did not leave behind
a single dinar, nor a dirham,
nor a sheep, nor a camel."
He said, "And I doubt regarding the male slave and female slave."
In this hadith,
there is a clear indication that the Prophet (pbuh)
did not leave behind any worldly wealth worth mentioning,
which conveys the same meaning as the preceding hadiths.
Worldly life was to him (pbuh)
far too insignificant for him to work toward amassing it,
or to leave it behind as an inheritance.
Rather, his sole concern was spreading the religion of Allah, Mighty and Majestic is He,
so he left behind sacred knowledge as an inheritance;
whoever takes it has indeed taken an abundant share.
As for her statement, "and I doubt regarding the male slave and female slave,"
this doubt comes from the Tabi'i narrator—
meaning, did 'A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) mention
the male slave and female slave within her hadith or not?
Among the subtle stories narrated on this topic
is what has been reported on the authority of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him),
that he passed by the market of Medina,
stood before it, and said,
"O people of the market, how helpless you are!"
They asked, "And why is that, O Abu Hurayrah?"
He said,
"There is the inheritance of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh)
being distributed, while you are here,
not going to take your share of it!"
They asked, "And where is it?"
He replied, "In the mosque."
So they went hastily to the mosque,
and Abu Hurayrah waited for them until they returned.
He said to them, "What is the matter with you?"
They said, "O Abu Hurayrah,
we went to the mosque and entered it,
but we did not see anything being distributed in it."
Abu Hurayrah said to them,
"Did you not see anyone in the mosque?"
They replied, "Yes, we saw people praying,
people reciting the Qur'an,
and people discussing the lawful and the prohibited."
Abu Hurayrah said to them,
"Woe to you! That is the inheritance of Muhammad,
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him."
The hadith will be continued, Allah willing.
And Allah knows best.
May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad
and upon all his family and Companions.