Transliteration:( Tilka hudoodul laah; wa mai yuti'il laaha wa Rasoolahoo yudkhilhu Jannaatin tajree min tahtihal anhaaru khaalideena feehaa; wa zaalikal fawzul 'azeem )
"These are the limits of Allah, and whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger [55] will be admitted to Paradise, beneath which rivers flow. They will abide therein. And that will be the greatest success [56]."
From this we learn that in matters of bequest and inheritance, the Hadith is just as acceptable as the verses of the Qur’an.
This is because some laws of inheritance are mentioned in the Qur’an, and the rest are to be explained by the Prophet ﷺ.
The verse makes it clear: those who accept the commands of Allah and His Messenger ﷺ will attain Paradise—therefore, we must also accept the explanations given in Hadith.
According to Hadith-based rulings:
If the deceased leaves no children, then:
A paternal granddaughter, great-granddaughter, etc., will receive a share as if they were daughters.
But if the deceased leaves behind one daughter, then the granddaughter receives one-sixth.
If the deceased leaves behind a son, the granddaughter is excluded.
If there are two daughters, the granddaughter is also excluded.
However, if the deceased leaves behind one grandson, then the granddaughter and grandson together become Asbah (residuary heirs).
For a detailed understanding of these rulings, refer to Ilmul Meerath (Islamic knowledge of inheritance), which is brief yet comprehensive.
From this we learn:
Any injustice in the distribution of inheritance can lead to Divine punishment.
On the other hand, justice and fairness will result in Divine mercy and Paradise.
Muslims should take a lesson from this:
Those who deprive their daughters or other rightful heirs of their share in the estate are violating a divine boundary, and such action is severely condemned in Islam.
13. These are the limits (set by) Allah, and whosoever obeys Allah and His Messenger, will be admitted to Gardens under which rivers flow (in Paradise), to abide therein, and is the great success. 14. And whosoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger, and transgresses His (set) limits, He will cast him into the Fire, to abide therein; and he shall suffer a disgraceful torment.
Meaning, the Fara’id are Allah’s set limits. This includes what Allah has alloted for the heirs, according to the degree of relation they have to the deceased, and their degree of dependency on him. Therefore, do not transgress or violate them. So Allah said;
(And whosoever obeys Allah and His Messenger,) regarding the inheritance, and does not add or decrease any of these fixed shares by use of tricks and plots. Rather, he gives each his appointed share as Allah commanded, ordained and decided,
(Will be admitted to Gardens under which rivers flow (in Paradise), to abide therein, and is the great success. And whosoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger, and transgresses His (set) limits, He will cast him into the Fire, to abide therein; and he shall have a disgraceful torment.) This is because he changed what Allah has ordained and disputed with His judgment. Indeed, this is the behavior of those who do not agree with what Allah has decided and divided, and this is why Allah punishes them with humiliation in the eternal, painful torment. Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Hurayrah said that, the Messenger of Allah said,
(A man might perform the actions of righteous people for seventy years, but when it is time to compile his will, he commits injustice. So his final work will be his worst, and he thus enters the Fire. A man might perform the deeds of evil people for seventy years, yet he is fair in his will. So his final work will be his best, and he thus enters Paradise.) Abu Hurayrah said, “Read, if you will,
(These are the limits (set by) Allah) until,
(a disgraceful torment.).” In the chapter on injustice in the will, Abu Dawud recorded in his Sunan that Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah said,
(A man or a woman might perform actions in obedience to Allah for sixty years. Yet, when they are near death, they leave an unfair will and thus acquire the Fire.) Abu Hurayrah then recited the Ayah,
(After payment of legacies he (or she) may have bequeathed or debts, so that no loss is caused), until,
(and that is the great success.) This was also recorded by At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah, and At-Tirmidhi said, “Hasan Gharib”.
(4:13) These are the bounds set by Allah. Allah will make the man who obeys Allah and His Messenger enter the Gardens beneath which rivers flow. He will abide there for ever. That is the mighty triumph.
There is no commentary by Abul Maududi available for this verse.
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