CHAPTER 8
INHERITANCE

Reform introduced by Islām

The reform introduced by Islām into the rules relating to inheritance is twofold: it makes the female a co-sharer with the male, and divides the property of the deceased person amongst the heirs on a democratic basis, instead of handing it all over to the eldest son, as is done by the law of primogeniture. The Arabs had a very strong tradition that he alone could inherit who smites with the spear, and therefore they did not give any portion of inheritance to such of the heirs as were not capable of meeting the enemy and fighting in battles (IJC, IV, p. 171). Owing to this tradition, which strongly appealed to people among whom tribal fighting was carried on day and night, not only were all females — daughters, widows and mothers — excluded, but even male minors had no right to inheritance. Woman, in fact was looked upon as part of the property of the deceased (4:19), and therefore her right to property by inheritance was out of the question. Even in the Jewish law she had no better position; “There could have been no question in those days of a widow inheriting from her husband, since she was regarded as part of the property which went over to the heirs … Nor could there have been a question about daughters inheriting from their father, since daughters were given in marriage either by their father, or by their brothers or other relatives after the father’s death, thus becoming the property of the family into which they married.” (En. J., p. 583).

Islām came as the defender of the weaker sex and the orphans, and just when a defensive war against the whole of Arabia was being carried on by a handful of Muslims, the prevailing law of inheritance, which gave the whole of the property to those members of the family who bore arms, was declared to be unjust, and a new law was given which put widows and orphans on a level of equality with those who fought for the defence of the tribe and the country. When the change was first introduced, some of the Companions thought it very hard