Sunan Abi Dawud

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: I am nearer to every believer than himself, so if anyone leaves a debt or a helpless family, I shall be responsible, but if anyone leaves property, it goes to his heirs. I am patron of him who has none, inheriting his property and freeing him from his liabilities. A maternal uncle is patron of him who has none, inheriting his property and freeing him from his liabilities. Abu Dawud said: da'iah means dependants or helpless family. Abu Dawud said: This tradition has been transmitted by al-Zubaidi from Rashid b. Sa'd from Ibn 'A'idh on the authority of al-Miqdam. It has also been transmitted by Mu'awiyah b. Salih from Rashid who said: I heard al-Miqdam (say).

I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: I am the heirs of Him who has none, freeing him from his liabilities, and inheriting what he possesses. A maternal uncle is the heir of Him who has none, freeing him from his liabilities, and inheriting his property.

A client of the Prophet (ﷺ) died and left some property, but he left no child or relative. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: Give what he has left to a man belonging to his village. Abu Dawud said: The tradition of Sufyan is more perfect. Musaddad said: Thereupon the Prophet (ﷺ) said: Is there anyone belonging to his land ? They replied: Yes. He said: Then give him what he has left.

A man came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said: I have property left by a man of Azd. I do not find any man of Azd to give it to him. He said: Go and look for man of Azd for a year. He then came to him after one year and said: Messenger of Allah, I did not find any man of Azd to give it to him. He said: Look for a man of Khuza'ah whom you meet first and give it to him. When he turned away, he said; Call the man to me. When he came to him, he said: Look for the leading man of Khuza'ah and give it to him.

A man of Khuza'ah died and his estate was brought to the Prophet (ﷺ). He said: Look for his heir or some relative. But they found neither heir nor relative. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: Give it to the leading man of Khuza'ah. The narrator Yahya said: Sometimes I heard him (al-Husayn ibn Aswad) say in this tradition: Look for the greatest man of Khuza'ah.

A man died leaving no heir but a slave whom he had emancipated. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) asked: Has he any heir? They replied: No, except a slave whom he had emancipated. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) assigned his estate to him (the emancipated slave).

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: A woman gets inheritance from the three following: one she has set free, a foundling, and her child about whom she has invoked a curse on herself if she was untrue in declaring he was not born out of wedlock.

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) assigned the estate of a child of a woman about whom she had invoked a curse to her mother, and to her heirs after her.

On his father's authority, said that his grandfather reported from the Prophet (ﷺ) something similar.

The Prophet (ﷺ) as saying: A Muslim may not inherit from an infidel nor an infidel from a Muslim.

I said: Messenger of Allah, where will you stay tomorrow ? This (happened) during his Hajj. He replied: Has 'Aqil left any house for us ? He then said: We shall stay at the valley of Banu Kinarah where the Quraish took an oath on unbelief. This refers to al-Muhassab. The reason is that Banu Kinarah made an alliance with the Quraish against Banu Hashim that they would have no marital connections with them, nor will have commercial transactions with them, not will give them any refuge. Al-Zuhri said: Khalf means valley.

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: people of two different religions would not inherit from one another.

I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: Islam increases and does not diminish. He, therefore, appointed a Muslim heir (of a non-Muslim).

Mu'adh bought the property of a Jew whose heir was a Muslim. He then narrated from the Prophet (ﷺ) to the same effect.

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: An estate which was divided in pre-Islamic period may follow the division in force then, but any estate in Islamic times must follow the division laid down by Islam.

'Aishah, mother of believers (ra), intended to buy a slave-girl to set her free. Her people said: We shall sell her to you on one condition that we shall inherit from her. 'Aishah mentioned it to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). He said: That should not prevent you, for the right of inheritance belongs to the one who has set a person free.

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: The right of inheritance belongs to only to the one who paid the price (of the slave) and patronised him by doing an act of gratitude.

On his father's authority, said that his grandfather reported: Rabab ibn Hudhayfah married a woman and three sons were born to him from her. Their mother then died. They inherited her houses and had the right of inheritance of her freed slaves. Amr ibn al-'As was the agnate of her sons. He sent them to Syria where they died. Amr ibn al-'As then came. A freed slave of hers died and left some property. Her brothers disputed with him and brought the case to Umar ibn al-Khattab. Umar reported the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: Whatever property a son or a father receives as an heir will go to his agnates, whoever they may be. He then wrote a document for him, witnessed by AbdurRahman ibn Awf, Zayd ibn Thabit and one other person. When AbdulMalik became caliph, they presented the case to Hisham ibn Isma'il or Isma'il ibn Hisham (the narrator is doubtful). He sent them to 'Abd al-Malik who said: This is the decision which I have already seen. The narrator said: So he ('Abd al-Malik) made the decision on the basis of the document of Umar ibn al-Khattab, and that is still with us till this moment.

Tamim asked: Messenger of Allah), what is the sunnah about a man who accepts Islam by advice and persuasion of a Muslim? He replied: He is the nearest to him in life and in death.

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) forbade selling or giving away the right to inheritance by a manumitted slave.