بَابُ مَا تَرَكَهُ النَّبِيُّ ﷺWhat the Prophet ﷺ Left Behind

¹ His statement “nor did he bequeath anything”: An-Nawawi said: In another narration, it was mentioned in Aishah’s presence that Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) was the executor, and she said: “When did he bequeath to him? I was supporting him until he passed away, so when did he bequeath?” The meaning of “nor did he bequeath anything” is that he did not bequeath a third of his wealth or anything else, as he had no wealth. Nor did he bequeath to Ali or anyone else, contrary to what the Shi‘ah claim. As for the authentic Hadiths about his bequest regarding the Book of Allah, his household, expelling the Jews from the Arabian Peninsula, and allowing delegations, these are not meant by her statement “nor did he bequeath.” As for the land he had in Khaybar and Fadak, he designated it as charity for the Muslims during his lifetime. Regarding what some biographers mentioned, that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) had many camels, twenty she-camels kept around Madinah whose milk was brought nightly, seven sheep whose milk was consumed, and seven goats whose milk was consumed, this does not contradict this authentic Hadith. If true, it can be understood that these were from the charity camels, and his poor companions, like those of the Suffah and others, drank their milk. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)

¹ His statement “nor male slave nor female slave”: meaning those in bondage. This indicates that any mention of the Prophet’s (ﷺ) slaves in narrations refers to those who were either freed or manumitted. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)

² His statement “except his white mule”: meaning the one he specifically rode, and “his weapons,” meaning those he specifically used, such as a sword, spear, armor, helmet, and lance. This restriction may be relative, not considering other items like clothing or household goods, which are established elsewhere. The narrator’s omission of these may be due to their insignificance compared to what was mentioned. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)

³ His statement “and land which he designated as charity”: Al-Asqalani said: He gave the benefit of the land as charity, making it like an endowment. The meaning is that he designated it during his lifetime as an ongoing charity, its reward enduring as long as it remains, which does not contradict that his other properties became charity at his passing, as is clear. Al-Kirmani, in his commentary on Bukhari, said: Half of Fadak’s land, a third of Wadi al-Qura’s land, his share of Khaybar’s fifth, and a portion of Banu Nadir’s land. The pronoun in “he designated it” refers to all three, not just the land, as he said: “We, the company of prophets, do not leave inheritance; what we leave is charity.” (As stated in Al-Mirqat)

¹ His statement “My heirs will not divide a dinar”: with the verb in the feminine and nominative, indicating a factual statement. It means: My heirs will not divide a dinar after my passing, as I will not leave a dinar I possess for them to divide. It may also be a statement in form but a prohibition in meaning, which is more emphatic than an explicit prohibition. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)

² His statement “My heirs”: meaning potential heirs, as there is no division, so there are no heirs. Ibn Hajar said: Meaning those who would qualify as my heirs if possible. Mirak said: They were so potentially at the time, but were prevented from inheritance by the legal evidence, which is his statement: “We do not leave inheritance.” Then he explained the reason, stating: “Whatever I leave,” where “whatever” is the subject, “I leave” is its relative clause, and the omitted pronoun refers to what is left. “After the maintenance of my wives and the expenses of my agent, it is charity,” with the fa indicating the subject implies a condition. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)

³ His statement “after the maintenance of my wives and the expenses of my agent, it is charity”: In Sharh as-Sunnah, Sufyan ibn Uyaynah said: The Prophet’s wives were in the status of those in waiting, as they could never remarry, so maintenance was due to them. “My agent” refers to the caliph after him. The Prophet (ﷺ) took his family’s maintenance from the spoils allocated to him from Banu Nadir and Fadak, spending the rest on the Muslims’ welfare. Abu Bakr, then Umar, managed it similarly. A commentator from our scholars said: “After the maintenance of my wives,” because their maintenance after him depended on each wife’s lifetime, as they were restricted from remarriage for Allah and His Messenger, and the Prophet’s marriage bond remained effective during their lives, so maintenance was obligatory from the spoils’ wealth, like a wife’s maintenance from her husband. The point is that “maintenance of my wives” does not mean their inheritance, but because they were restricted from marriage due to him, they were like those in waiting as long as they lived. It is said: They had no waiting period, as he is alive in his grave, as are all prophets. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)

¹ His statement “We do not leave inheritance”: with sukoon on waw and fathah on ra, meaning we, the company of prophets, do not leave inheritance. Al-Baji said: The people of the Sunnah agree this applies to all prophets. Ibn Aliyah said: It is specific to our Prophet (ﷺ). The Imamiyyah said: All prophets leave inheritance, as noted by As-Suyuti. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)

² His statement “what we leave”: the pronoun refers to “what.” “Is charity” is a new sentence, as if, when it was said, “We do not leave inheritance,” it was asked, “What do you do with what you leave?” The response was: “What we leave is charity,” as At-Tibi noted. The Shi‘ah’s claim that “what” is negative and “charity” is the object of “we leave” is false and baseless, refuted by the pronoun in “we leave it” in most narrations, “it is charity” in some, and clear statements in other Hadiths, like: “We, the company of prophets, do not leave inheritance,” due to the contradiction that would arise between earlier and later statements. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)

¹ His statement “a forerunner”: with two fathahs, explained by the second term, meaning a predecessor, pioneer, and intercessor ahead of them, i.e., before them, when he passes away pleased with them. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)

¹ His statement “upon one of you”: includes the companions and others. His statement “and his wealth combined”: meaning with his family, emphasizing to dispel the notion that the waw means “or.” Alternatively, it could refer to family at one time and wealth at another. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)

¹ His statement “and mention of the tribes”: conjoined to “virtues,” meaning their mention encompasses both praise and censure. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)