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Understanding the Law of Inheritance of the Qur'an

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- Mr. Jochen Katz' Comment on the Explanation of the Law of Inheritance of the Qur'an

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Mr. Jochen Katz' Comment on the Explanation of the Law of Inheritance of the Qur'an

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scussion Initiated byAnonymousfrom Pakistanon 19-Mar-1998.

itle:r. Jochen Katz' Comment on the Explanation of the Law of Inheritance of the Qur'an

uestion/Comments:

bought a couple of books on Muslim fiqh and have looked in more detail into them and into youresponse to my inheritance share contradiction article.

am amazed to find that you do propose a lot of "methods" which have no resemblence of what any ofhe Sunni or the Shia legists do. You make up your own idiosyncratic methods.

ometimes you quote a hadith, where it fits your approach, but you forget all the other traditions thatave lead the Muslim scholars to divide the inheritance very different from your own methods.

o you feel comfortable to present people with your own opinion which is not followed by any Muslimcholar and applied nowhere in the Muslim world?

have found in those book some more examples where shares add up to more than one. They are quiteequent.

nd many of your rules (given out these shares first, and then applying the other shares only to theALANCE that remains...) is something which cannot be found in the Qur'an itself. If we allow anrbitrary number of outside rules, then everything can be solved. But when we take only what theur'an actually says, then you have not solved the contradiction. The Qur'an never says "first thepouse" and distribute the balance ... or "first the parents" and then the balance will be given to thehildren according to the following shares....

ne could get the impression you are playing fast and loose with the text.

ut in particular, I do wonder, why none of the legists has ever done it like you.

would be interested in your response to this observation.

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will maybe write a direct answer to you some time soon, asking those questions in public, if you doot either answer me or add some explanation to your web page that makes clear that your expositionvery unorthodox and your personal opinion only with no backing of traditional Muslim scholarship.

he books I consulted are:

Al-Muwatta" of Imam Malik Ibn AnasThe Reliance of the Traveller" by Nuh Ha Mim Keller [Shafi'i Jurisprudence]slamic Inheritance Law" by Dr. Yusuf Ziya Kavakcind the Shia Law web site that is linked from my page.

slightly updated page (though maybe not yet final form) is posted to

ttp://answering-islam.org/Quran/Contra/i001.html

y the way, the rebuttal to the grammar errorsby Newton and Rafiqul Haqq is on its way and should be

p within September.

Warm regards,

nswer:

y dear Mr. Katz,

ou state:

I am amazed to find that you do propose a lot of "methods" which have no resemblence ofwhat any of the Sunni or the Shia legists do. You make up your own idiosyncratic methods.

request you to please have a look at my article again. I have not proposed any methods in my article.have only elaborated my understanding of the text of the Quran. In this elaboration, I have also tried

o explain the linguistic and logical basis for my interpretation. I never claimed in my article that myoint of view is held by any Shia or Sunni scholar. I have given my understanding of the concerned

erses and I have also given reasons for my interpretation. I really think it would have been moreefitting for you to point out what was wrong with my interpretation, rather than see if such anterpretation is held by any one else. In your article on the Law of Inheritance, you criticised theuran. I, therefore, looked at the concerned verses of the Quran and presented my analysis of theseerses. I very honestly felt that my interpretation of these verses would remove all your objectionsgainst these verses. But now it seems that your objection is not really against the Quran, but againsthe generally held Shia and/or Sunni interpretation of these verses. I must admit that I am notterested in defending either of these views. My article is to present a rebuttal to a criticism against

he Quran, not to defend the interpretation of the Muslim Scholars.

ou call my methods "idiosyncratic". I do acknowledge that to some extent, my interpretation isfferent from others, but please do let me know which of my methods is "idiosyncratic".

ou further state:

Sometimes you quote a hadith, where it fits your approach, but you forget all the othertraditions that have lead the Muslim scholars to divide the inheritance very different fromyour own methods.

ease let me know which of the traditions have I forgotten, overlooked or ignored in my interpretationf the concerned verses.

ou ask:

Do you feel comfortable to present people with your own opinion which is not followed byany Muslim scholar and applied nowhere in the Muslim world?

http://answering-islam.org/Quran/Contra/i001.htmlhttp://www.understanding-islam.org/related/articles.jsp?point=1&id=18http://www.understanding-islam.org/related/articles.jsp?point=1&id=18http://answering-islam.org/Quran/Contra/i001.html


5/38


s all true Muslims, I only feel comfortable in adhering to the Quran and the Sunnah and presentingeople with the call of the Quran and the Sunnah. I have the greatest of regards for all the Muslimcholars, but for me none of them holds a position superior to the Quran and the Sunnah.

do acknowledge that my interpretation of the Quran may be wrong and that of the other Muslimcholars may be correct. But I think, unless you or someone else (a Muslim scholar??) presents aebuttal of the basis of my interpretation, I shall have no other option but to very comfortably presenteople with my own opinion even if it is not followed by any Muslim scholar or applied anywhere in theuslim world.

ease do let me know if there is anything wrong with my approach and my point of view in this respect.

ou further state:

And many of your rules (given out these shares first, and then applying the other sharesonly to the BALANCE that remains...) is something which cannot be found in the Qur'anitself. If we allow an arbitrary number of outside rules, then everything can be solved. Butwhen we take only what the Qur'an actually says, then you have not solved thecontradiction. The Qur'an never says "first the spouse" and distribute the balance ... or"first the parents" and then the balance will be given to the children according to thefollowing shares....

suggest that you should really read my article again. I have presented detailed linguistic and logicaleasoning for all that I have stated. In case you think any of my interpretations is without basis, pleaseoint it out to me. I shall be obliged to give my reasons or otherwise reconsider my opinion.

ou say:

One could get the impression you are playing fast and loose with the text.

can't help if "one" makes wrong impressions. It would definitely be much more beneficial if rather thanmaking impressions, "one" would take some time and help me in understanding the mistake, if there isny, in my interpretation of the concerned verses.

ou state:

But in particular, I do wonder, why none of the legists has ever done it like you.

do too.

ou say:

I will maybe write a direct answer to you some time soon, asking those questions inpublic, if you do not either answer me or add some explanation to your web page thatmakes clear that your exposition is very unorthodox and your personal opinion only withno backing of traditional Muslim scholarship.

ll those who have any knowledge of the Law of Inheritance, as interpreted by the Muslim scholars,now quite well that my interpretation is different from their's. It surprises me greatly that you did not.n any case, I shall await your response, in whatever shape and style it may come, with an open heartnd mind. I assure you, for me it is not a matter of winning any debates... it is purely a matter ofnding out the truth. Therefore, whatever the outcome of this debate, I shall come up a winner, and Iope so shall you.

ou write:

By the way, the rebuttal to the grammar errors by Newton and Rafiqul Haqq is on its wayand should be up within September.

hat is a very heartening news. I await eagerly.



6/38


egards

rticle


(12/31/1997) Hits: 13,632

elated Discussion(s)

More on the Law of Inheritance

Mr. Jochen Katz' Comment on the Explanation of the Law of Inheritance Posted on his Website



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scussion Initiated byAnonymousfrom Pakistanon 14-Jan-2000.

itle:r. Jochen Katz' Comment on the Explanation of the Law of Inheritance Posted on his Website

uestion/Comments:

r Jochen Katz has given links to Muslim responses to his criticism on the law of inheritance of theur'an, on the same pageon which his criticism can be seen. Below these links, Mr. Katz has given a

eneral comment for all these Muslim responses, which, incidentally, include my responseto his

riticism as well. As a response to these responses, he writes:

My response: All those above Muslim reactions either follow some school of Muslimjurisprudence and explain what should done in the problem cases, or they propose ownmethods which have nothing to do with Islamic reality. But they only explain what is to bedone when the Qur'an does not distribute all the estate or more than is available. But indoing so they import data from the outside (hadith, personal opinions, ...) and the issue ofour discussion is whether the Qur'an is sufficient and consistent in itself. The conclusion isthat the Qur'an is not logically consistent. In particular, the rule that one party (usually thespouse) is given their share first and then the remainder is distributed according to thegiven shares, is not found in the Qur'an but imported from the outside. And it is NOT theway the four schools of fiqh are doing it. Furthermore, [it] does not solve all the problemseither. It is not possible to obey the laws as given. None of of the responders solves the

problem that shares adding up to more than the available estate is a logical internalcontradiction in the Qur'an. None of the proposed solution methods of real life can bederived from the text of the Qur'an. The Qur'an contradiction remains. Human rules arenecessary to overrule the word that is claimed and believed to be divine.

s is clear from one of his previous writingsto me, Mr. Katz's statement: "All those above Muslim

eactions either follow some school of Muslim jurisprudence and explain what should [be] done in theroblem cases" do not apply to my response. In his earlier comment to me, Mr. Katz wrote:

I am amazed to find that you do propose a lot of "methods" which have no resemblance ofwhat any of the Sunni or the Shia legists do. You make up your own idiosyncratic methods.

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seems, therefore, that apparently his comment on my article is: "or they propose own methods whichave nothing to do with Islamic reality".

really do not know what Mr. Katz implies by "Islamic Reality" -- probably as long as the interpretationincorrect, it would be acceptable to Mr. Katz and would be coherent with what he terms as "Islamic

eality". However, to be honest, I did not expect such a lay-man's response from Mr. Katz on myrticle. Even in his previous letter to me, he had mentioned my proposing 'a lot of methods', to which Iad replied:

I request you to please have a look at my article again. I have not proposed any methodsin my article. I have only elaborated my understanding of the text of the Qur'an. In thiselaboration, I have also tried to explain the linguistic and logical basis for myinterpretation. I never claimed in my article that my point of view is held by any Shia orSunni scholar. I have given my understanding of the concerned verses and I have alsogiven reasons for my interpretation. I really think it would have been more befitting foryou to point out what was [and is] wrong with my interpretation, rather than see if suchan interpretation is held by any one else. In your article on the Law of Inheritance, youcriticized the Qur'an. I, therefore, looked at the concerned verses of the Qur'an andpresented my analysis of these verses. I very honestly felt that my interpretation of theseverses would remove all your objections against these verses. But now it seems that yourobjection is not really against the Qur'an, but against the generally held Shia and/or Sunniinterpretation of these verses. I must admit that I am not interested in defending either ofthese views. My article is to present a rebuttal to a criticism against the Qur'an, not todefend the interpretation of the Muslim Scholars.

You call my methods "idiosyncratic". I do acknowledge that to some extent, myinterpretation is different from others, but please do let me know which of my methods is"idiosyncratic".

nfortunately, Mr. Katz never responded to my request of "pointing-out what was wrong with myterpretation". Instead, holding firm to the "Truth" -- that shall set him free (?) -- he has continually

efrained from taking my explanation with any seriousness and yet has persisted with passing suchemarks as: "they propose own methods which have nothing to do with Islamic reality".

would, therefore, once again like to request Mr. Katz to give close consideration to my explanation.he Qur'an is in the Arabic language. Its acceptable interpretation is only the one which is linguisticallycceptable. No interpretation which is not in accordance with the Arabic language and the universal

rinciples of understanding language can be accepted. In my article, I had extensively explained thenguistic basis of my explanation (in a number of footnotes). If my explanation is not linguisticallyorrect, then Mr. Katz should at least guide me to the mistakes in it. I shall be deeply gratified to Mr.atz for helping me out of my mistakes. However, his avoidance in pointing out the mistakes in myesponse and yet his persistence in making such lay-man remarks on my interpretation can only beerceived as an indication that either he has not understood my response or that he cannot point outny linguistic mistakes in the interpretation and still is averse in accepting it.

r. Katz writes: "In particular, the rule that one party (usually the spouse) is given their share first andhen the remainder is distributed according to the given shares, is not found in the Qur'an but importedom the outside. And it is NOT the way the four schools of fiqh are doing it".

hough this may not be a comment on my response, yet I have given an interpretation (please notehat my explanation is not a SOLUTION to the problem but an INTERPRETATION of the words of theur'an) of the verses that results in a somewhat similar distribution. If my interpretation is correct,

hen such (first and second) distribution IS mentioned in the Qur'an. If Mr. Katz still thinks that it is notmentioned in the Qur'an, he should point-out the mistake in my interpretation of the Qur'anic verses.s far as the fact that "It is NOT the way the four schools of fiqhare doing it" is concerned, the matteras already been discussed with Mr. Katz in our exchange of comments. If the four schools of fiqhareot doing it, Mr. Katz should then criticize these four schools of fiqhand not the Qur'an. The case, thenone of human error of understanding. Not of a mistake in the Qur'an.

r. Katz writes: "None of of the responders solves the problem that shares adding up to more than thevailable estate is a logical internal contradiction in the Qur'an".

his, unfortunately, is NOT the "Truth". I have shown in my response that if correctly interpreted, thehares stipulated in the Qur'an, can, in no case, exceed 'one' (the whole) or the 'available estate'.



9/38


r. Katz writes: "But they [the responses] only explain what is to be done when the Qur'an does notstribute all the estate or more than is available".

s stated earlier, I have shown in my response that the stipulated shares in the Qur'an can, in no casexceed 'one' or the 'more than is available'. Therefore, Mr. Katz's words "... or more than is available"o not apply to my response. As far as the fact that in certain cases, the Qur'an does not distribute thehole property of the deceased, I do not think this could be termed as a contradiction or a "logicalconsistency". If the legislature of a country passes a law that "after the death of a person, half of his/er property must be given to his/her wife/husband", what would be "logically inconsistent" about thisw? Any reasonable person would easily understand that in the case of the remaining half, the lawves the person a right to bequest in favor of anyone. Where does the "logical inconsistency" come inom? Especially, if the law also stipulates that a person can be made an inheritor by the deceased (asthe case of the law of inheritance of the Qur'an).

r. Katz writes: "But in doing so they import data from the outside (hadith, personal opinions, ...)".

n the example in the preceding paragraph [of the state legislation regarding only half of the deceased'sroperty] I have shown that no data needs to be "imported" from the "outside" to understand thegislation. However, that is the case only if the interpreters have any common sense. Nevertheless, in

he case of the state legislation, if a person does not leave a bequest for the remaining half of hisroperty, and a competent court of law awards it to one of the relatives of the deceased, even then none can say that there is a 'logical inconsistency' in the state legislation.

r. Katz writes: "the issue of our discussion is whether the Qur'an is sufficient and consistent in itself".

have shown in my response that in case of the law of inheritance, the Qur'an is both sufficient as wells consistent in itself. Mr. Katz should take a look at my response once again.

t the end of his comment Mr. Katz writes: "The Qur'an contradiction remains".

n the life of this world, man has been given a chance to ignore the "Truth". Turn away from it. Evenugh at it. The day is not very far off, when this chance shall be taken away from man. He shall thenave no option but to accept the "Truth". However, acceptance on that day shall not benefit any one.he "Truth" shall set us free, only if we accept it now, when we also have a chance of turning awayom it.

request Mr. Katz to point-out the mistakes, if there are any, in my interpretation of the relatedur'anic verses. I would be greatly indebted to him if he can do that. For that would open the door of

he "Truth" for me and shall set me free.

ll then, according to my interpretation and understanding, there is absolutely no contradiction in thew of inheritance of the Qur'an.

Copyright January 2000. All Rights Reserved with the Author

nswer:

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scussion Initiated byAmirfrom United States of Americaon 22-Jul-2005.

itle:ore on the Law of Inheritance

uestion/Comments:

ease clarify and explain the following questions.

) How did you derive from 4:11, 4:12 & 4:112 that there are two categories of inheritors and that therst right of the property lies with the first category and then the remaining wealth/property isstributed to the second category.

) Surah 2:180 states that "And [for protecting against feuds over wealth] it is obligatory upon you thatwhen death approaches one of you, if he is leaving behind some wealth - you make a will in favor ofarents and the near ones[6], according to the recognized custom [of the society]." Please define theerm "will" used in this Surah. Is the verse implying "shares" or one is obligated to write a will for thearent? I thought based on Surah 4:11 & 4:12; a person had an option to select the beneficiary of hisill. And then after the will is executed and if there is any property left, that this left property must bestributed based on the shares prescribed by God in the Qur'an.

) Why is the share of the parents (1/6) larger than the share of the wife (1/8). A wife may leavehildren behind and may need the highest share among any relative including parents.

hank you.

nswer:

nswers to your questions follow:

1. It is clear that one may describe shares in two different ways. Firstly, one may prescribe therelative shares of the sharers and secondly, one may prescribe absolute shares for the sharers.Thus, one may say: 'The wealth is to be distributed among the children equally'. In this case,

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even though the share of each individual child is not defined, yet the relative share of each childwith that of the other child has been given (i.e., equally). The Qur'anic statement 'each male'sshare shall be that of two females' is a similar statement, where only the relative shares - not theabsolute shares - of the children have been given. Contrary to the relative shares, one maydefine the absolute shares. Thus, in the statement, 'A sixth of the wealth should be given to thefather', the absolute share of the father has been given. It is a mathematical rule that whenevera statement entails both relative as well as absolute shares, then the only possible way ofdistributing the shares will be to allocate the absolute shares first and then divide the balanceamong those whose relative shares has been given. Consider the following example:

Distribute these sweets equally among all the participants of the class. If the

teacher is present, then the teacher should be given one-tenths of thesweets.

The only possible way of carrying out the above directive is to first give the teacher'sshare and then to divide the remaining sweets among the participants of the class equally.If, however, one were to try to first distribute all the sweets equally among theparticipants and then to take out the teacher's share, one would be faced with amathematical impossibility.

eeping the foregoing explanation in perspective, it is clear from the Qur'anic directives relating toheritance that the Qur'an has prescribed the shares in such a way that some of the relatives are givenn absolute share, while others are given a relative share in the wealth. Thus, applying the

mathematical rule explained above, it is obvious that first the absolute shares will have to be taken out

nd then the relative shares will be applied on the balance of the wealth.

2. The word 'will' implies bequest. It is clear that after the prescription of the Qur'anic shares, onemay not make a will that alters the shares prescribed by the Qur'an, except for extremely

justifiable reasons. Your stated understanding of the Qur'anic directive is correct. However, dueto the fact that the Qur'an has prescribed shares for a person's relatives, it would only beprudent that, under normal circumstances, one should not alter the shares prescribed by theQur'an, through one's will.

3. I really could not understand your question. Firstly, we know that the Qur'an has separatelyprescribed shares for the children. The shares of the children are not included in the share of thewife. There is no apparent reason to compare the share of the wife with that of the parents.Secondly, besides the prescribed share of inheritance for the wife, the Qur'an has also directed

the man to make a bequest making adequate provisions for the maintenance and residence ofthe wife for at least one year, after the person's death. Finally, there is no restriction on a personto make any and every provision for one's wife and other dependents during one's life. The law ofinheritance does not affect or restrict such provisions.

hope this helps.

oiz Amjaduly 23, 2005

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he Implication of the Word 'Kalaalah'

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Article written by: Moiz Amjad

Country: Pakistan

Date: 15-Jun-1999

itle:


Article:

Note:This article was basically written in reply to some comments/criticisms that I received from arother, on my article: "Understanding the Law of Inheritance of the Qur'an"**. It may kindly be noted

hat in contrast to the general writings on this web site, this article is of a comparatively technicalature and knowledge of the Arabic language may be necessary to fully comprehend it.

Mr. Salim Morgan, in his letter to Mr. Sultan writes:

"Kalaalahas the two meanings as you have said. However, the meaning in the verse isthe first one (no parents OR offspring) because that is the only way it makes sense in thatcontext. In the area of inheritance law, I don't believe this is an area of any difference of

opinion among the scholars."

Mr. Morgan, when he says that "the meaning in the verse is the first one (no parents OR offspring)"ctually means that the word "Kalaalah" has been used in the Qur'an for such a person who leavesehind EITHER no parents OR no offspring. I must confess here that almost all Arabic dictionaries givene of the meanings of the word "Kalaalah", as "a person who leaves behind NEITHER parents NORffspring", but unfortunately I could not come across even a single authentic Arabic dictionary whichives the meaning of the word "Kalaalah" as is stated by Mr. Morgan. I would therefor be quite

nterested in finding out what exactly is the source of Mr. Morgan's opinion.

ow, let us try to analyse the meaning of the word "kalaalah" as used in the Qur'an. The related part ofhe verse under consideration (Al-Nisaa4: 12) should be translated as:

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14/38


And if a man or a woman is made an heir on account of being a Kalaalah[relative] and he[or she] has one brother or sister, the brother and sister shall each receive a sixth and ifthey be more than two, they shall then share in one-third, after carrying out any will thathad been made or payment of any debt owed -- without harming anyone. This is acommand from Allah and Allah is all-knowing, most forbearing."

ather than give my comments on Mr. Morgan's observation, I present the meaning of the wordKalaalah", as it has been used in the Qur'an, basing my opinion on some of the most authentice andecognized sources of the Arabic language. The word "Kalaalah" is used in three (not two) meanings.amukhshareein his commentary on the Qur'an, "Al-Kashaaf", while explainingAl-Nisaa4: 12 writes:

... Kalaalahis used in three meanings: It is used as an adjective for such a person wholeaves behind [as inheritors] neither parents nor offspring; it is also used for those whoare left behind [as inheritors] and who are neither parents nor offspring of the deceased;and it is also used for any relationship besides that of parent or offspring. Arabs say: "Maawaris al-majd àn kalalatin" [i.e. 'he did not inherit nobility from a far off relation']. This isthe same as you would say: "Maa samata àn àyyin" [i.e. 'it was not due to incapacitythat he remained silent in the discussion'] or: "Maa kaffa àn Jubnin" [i.e. 'it was notcowardice that stopped him']. "Kalaalah" is actually a verbal noun in the meaning of"Kalaal", and "Kalaal" means: 'loss of power due to incapacity'. A line of one ofAa`shaa'sverses reads as: "fa aalaito la arthee lahaa min kalaalatin" [i.e. 'then I swore that I shall

not be kind to him due to his weaknesses']. Then, in figurative speech the word was usedfor relations other than those of parent and child. The reason was that such relationshipwas weak as compared to the relations of parent and child. And when the word is used asan adjective for the person whose wealth is being inherited or for the inheritors, it is thenused in the meaning of "Zu Kalaalah". As you would say: "Fulaanun min qaraabatee"implying "fulaanun min zawee qaraabatee". This word, like the words "Hajaajah" and"Faqaaqah" used in the meaning of 'idiot', can also be used as an adjective..."

t is worth mentioning here that the first meaning mentioned by Zamukhsharee [i.e. a person whoeaves behind [as inheritors] neither parents nor offspring], although is not against the principles ofrabic language [i.e. the meaning of a verbal noun may be used for both the active and the passivearticiples] , but it could not be found in any original source of the classical Arabic literature.

s far as the second meaning mentioned by Zamukhsharee [i.e. those who are left behind [asnheritors] and who are neither parents nor offspring of the deceased] is concerned, the word isbundantly used in this meaning in the classical Arabic literature. For instance, Yazeed ibn al-Hakam al-haqafiyy, advising his son, says:

A person is miserly in fulfilling his [financial] obligations [toward his bretheren] and [afterhis death] his herds that graze in the forests are taken away by his Kalaalahrelatives.

zhareehas quoted a poet as saying:

tp://www.understanding-islam.org/related/text.asp?type=article&aid=19&sscatid=124 (2 of 6)6/27/2006 10:53:58 AM


15/38


[When a person is wronged,] then his father is the first one to defend him, his Kalaalahrelatives [in such cases] are not [as] furious [as his father]

Bedouin has been quoted in "Lisaan al-Arab" as saying:

I possess a great amount of wealth, but my inheritors are only Kalaalahrelatives.

ccording to a narrative reported by Muslim, Jaabir (ra) is reported to have said to the Prophet:

O Messenger of Allah, my inheritors are only Kalaalahrelatives.

n a number of narratives used by the commentators of the Qur'an, the word "Kalaalah" has been used

n this meaning. For instance,Abu Bakr Jassaasin "Ahkaam al-Qur'an" writes:

In this connexion, one of the two opinions ascribed toAbu Bakr, `Aliand Ibn Abbaasisthat "all relatives of a person except parents and offspring are Kalaalahrelatives".Mohammad ibn Saalimreports from Sha`beeand Sha`beefrom Ibn Masoodthat IbnMasoodsaid that "Besides parents and offspring,

law of inheritance in islam

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