Does a deathbed gift to a wife require the other heirs' approval?
2026-10-14
T212 · Ibn Taymiyyah
Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah
شيخ الإسلام أحمد بن تيمية
Original Q&A · Complete source question and answer
Complete original question and answer, 31/304. The recommendation that the children agree is distinguished from an enforceable obligation; the source expressly says they are not compelled.
النص العربي
السؤال الأصلي
وسئل رحمه الله عن رجل خلف شيئا من الدنيا، وتقاسمه أولاده، وأعطوا أمهم كتابها وثمنها، وبعد قليل وجد الأولاد مع أمهم شيئا يجيء ثلث الوراثة. فقالوا: من أين لك هذا المال؟ فقالت: لما كان أبوكم مريضا طلبت منه شيئا فأعطاني ثلث ماله، فأخذوا المال من أمهم، وقالوا: ما أعطاك أبونا شيئا: فهل يجب رد المال إليها؟
الجواب
ما أعطى المريض في مرض الموت لوراثه فإنه لا ينفذ إلا بإجازة الورثة، فما أعطاه المريض لامرأته فهو كسائر ماله، إلا أن يجيز ذلك باقي الورثة. وينبغي للأولاد أن يقروا أمهم، ويجيزوا ذلك لها، لكن لا يجبرون على ذلك، بل تقسم جميع التركة، قال النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم: "لا وصية لوارث".
English translation
English translation prepared for SalafAlSalih.com from the cited Arabic source. It is not an official translation.
Original question
He, may Allah have mercy on him, was asked about a man who left some wealth. His children divided it and gave their mother her documented marriage entitlement and her one-eighth inheritance share. Soon afterwards, they found with her an amount equal to a third of the estate. They asked where she had obtained it. She said: “When your father was ill, I asked him for something, and he gave me a third of his wealth.” They took it from her, saying that their father had given her nothing. Must the money be returned to her?
Answer
What a sick person gives an heir during his final illness does not take effect without the other heirs' approval. What he gave his wife is therefore treated like the rest of his estate, unless the remaining heirs approve it. The children ought to let their mother retain it and approve it for her, but they are not compelled to do so; otherwise, the whole estate is divided. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “There is no bequest for an heir.”
Source and editorial notes
Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā 31/304
مجموع الفتاوى
Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā
Arabic checked against the cited source and adjacent question boundaries. Diacritics and display marks omitted; honorific glyphs expanded. Titles and scope notes are editorial.