Fiqh al-Wasiyyah — The Islamic Will and Bequest: The Rule That a Muslim May Bequeath Up to One-Third of the Net Estate to Non-Heirs (and Only One-Third), the Quranic Basis (2:180 'Prescribed for You When Death Approaches One of You — If He Leaves Wealth — Is That He Make a Bequest for Parents and Near Relatives'), the Prophetic Hadith Setting the One-Third Limit, the Prohibition of Bequest to Legal Heirs, the Conditions for a Valid Wasiyyah, and How This Interacts With the Quranic Inheritance Rules

Fiqh al-Wasiyyah (فِقهُ الوَصِيَّة — Jurisprudence of the Will/Bequest; *wasiyyah*: from *w-s-y*: to connect, to charge, to recommend; wasiyyah = a bequest — a disposition of property to take effect after death; also: wasiyyah as general 'counsel' or 'recommendation' [from the same root]; the testator [musi] and the legatee [musa lahu]; the basic definition: the wasiyyah is a statement by a person with legal capacity directing that a portion of their property is to go to a specified beneficiary after their death; it takes effect after death [unlike a gift, which takes effect immediately]; the Quranic basis: [1] 2:180: 'kutiba 'alaykum idha hadara ahadakum al-mawtu in taraka khayran al-wasiyyatu li-l-walidayni wa-l-aqrabina bi-l-ma'rufi haqqan 'ala al-muttaqin' [Prescribed for you when death approaches one of you — if he leaves wealth — is that he make a bequest [wasiyyah] for parents and near relatives, according to what is right — a duty upon the God-fearing]; [2] 2:240: provision for wives through bequest; [3] 4:11-12: the detailed inheritance rules [mawaris] that immediately follow the general bequest command; the relationship of wasiyyah and mawaris [inheritance] is debated — the Quran gives both; the Prophetic limit: the famous wasiyyah hadith: Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas reported: 'I became seriously ill and the Prophet visited me; I said: O Messenger of God, I have property and only a daughter to inherit — may I bequeath two-thirds of my wealth? He said: No. I said: One-half? He said: No. I said: One-third? He said: One-third — and one-third is much [kathir]; it is better to leave your heirs wealthy than to leave them poor and begging from people' [Bukhari, Muslim]; the one-third limit is the maximum — anything beyond one-third requires all legal heirs' consent; the prohibition of bequest to legal heirs: the Prophetic hadith: 'la wasiyyata li-waritin' [No bequest is valid for a legal heir] [Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi]; the mawaris system already allocates shares to legal heirs; an additional bequest to an heir would disrupt this allocation; if all heirs consent, most schools permit bequest to an heir; conditions for a valid wasiyyah: [1] the testator [musi] must be: [a] adult and sane [mukallaf]; [b] making the bequest voluntarily [not under compulsion]; [c] the bequest may be made while terminally ill but with certain constraints; [2] the legatee [musa lahu] must be: [a] capable of ownership; [b] not a legal heir of the testator [per 'no bequest to an heir']; [c] specific enough to be identified; [3] the bequest amount: [a] must not exceed one-third of the net estate; [b] net estate = total estate minus debts and funeral expenses; [c] if the bequest exceeds one-third, the excess is void unless all legal heirs consent after the testator's death; [4] the subject matter [musa bihi]: must be capable of ownership and transfer; the revocability of wasiyyah: wasiyyah is revocable during the testator's life — unlike most contracts; the testator can modify or cancel the wasiyyah until death [or until falling into a legally defined terminal illness state where certain restrictions apply]; school differences: [1] all four major Sunni schools agree on the one-third limit and the prohibition of bequest to heirs; [2] minor differences in what constitutes 'capacity' for the terminally ill testator; [3] the Ja'fari Shi'i position: accepts bequest to legal heirs; [4] modern codifications: most Muslim-majority countries have codified wasiyyah law in civil codes based on the classical fiqh with some modifications) is Islam's most precisely bounded act of testamentary freedom.