سنان بن سنان مولى

I asked Imam (as) about a paternal brother and a grandfather (in matters of inheritance). Imam (as) replied: "The inheritance is divided equally between them."

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said that Amir al-Mu’minin issued a judgment that said, ’All heirs inherit from the wergild except brothers and sisters from the mother’s side.’”

“I once asked abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), about a brother from a father and grandfather. He (the Imam) said, ‘The legacy between them is distributed in equal shares.’”

"Indeed, Allah (swt), the Mighty and Majestic, has only increased us in honor through Islam. Therefore, we inherit from them, but they do not inherit from us."

“About the case of inheritance of a newborn from a wergild, abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘He cannot inherit from a wergild anything unless he cries at birth and his crying is heard.’”

I asked Imam (as) about a man who passed away and left behind brothers and sisters from both his father and mother, along with a grandfather. Imam (as) said: "The grandfather is considered as one of the brothers, and the inheritance is divided among them with the male receiving the share equal to that of two females."

"I asked Abu Abdullah (as), 'For what reason is the inheritance for the male equal to the share of two females?' Imam (as) replied: 'Because Allah (swt) has allocated the dowry (ṣadaq) for her.'"

“About the case of a man who dies leaving behind a certain amount of assets and a mother who is owned by someone, I once heard abu ’Abd Allah (a.s.), saying, ‘His mother is bought, then the rest of the legacy is given to her.”’

“I once heard abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), saying, ‘The testimony of a female nurse about the crying of a newborn at the time of birth is effective for one-fourth of the legacy proportionate to the testimony of one woman.’ I then asked, ‘What happens if they are two women?’ He (the Imam) said, ‘It is effective for one-half of the legacy.’”

I asked Abu Abdullah (as) about a man who passed away leaving only his maternal brother as an heir and no other inheritor. Imam (as) said: "The entire estate belongs to him." I then asked: "What if there is also a grandfather along with the maternal brother?" Imam (as) replied: "The maternal brother is given one-sixth, and the grandfather receives the remainder."

“Abu ’Abd Allah (a.s.), has said that ’Amir al-Mu’minin issued a judgment about one whose husband had died before going to bed with her, that said, ’She must not marry until her waiting period of four months and ten days is complete, which is the waiting period for one whose husband dies.’”

“I once heard abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), saying that Ali (a.s.), upon the death of his slaves did not take anything from their legacy if they left any relatives, and he would say, ‘. . . relatives have priority to each other.’”

I asked Abu Abdullah (as) about a mukatab (a slave who had entered into a contract for his freedom) who purchased his freedom and left behind wealth valued at one hundred thousand dirhams, with no heir to inherit from him. Imam (as) said: "The one who is responsible for his liability (jarirah) inherits from him." I asked: "And who is responsible for his liability?" Imam (as) replied: "The one responsible for the liabilities of the Muslims."

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has stated this about the judgment of ’ Amir al-Mu’minin. It is about the case of a man who dies leaving behind a mother, who is owned by someone and a certain amount of assets. He (the Imam) has said, ‘His mother must be bought with his legacy and the rest of the legacy must be given to her, if there are no other relatives who have ordained shares according to the book.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said that Ali (a.s.), did not take anything from legacy of his slaves if they had relatives; and if the relatives were not of those who have the ordained shares, he would distribute the legacy among them (relatives).”

“I once asked abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), about the case of a man who leaves behind his brother from his mother. He (the Imam) said, ‘If he has not left other heirs besides him the legacy belongs to him.’ I then asked about a brother from a mother with a grandfather. He (the Imam) said, ‘One-sixth must be given to the brother from his mother and the rest is given to the grandfather.’ I then asked about a brother from the father and a grandfather. He (the Imam) said, ‘The legacy between them is in equal shares.’”

“I once asked abu ‘ Abd Allah (a.s.), about the case of a man who dies and leaves behind a woman with a child from the deceased and she gives the child to her servant for breastfeeding. She then asks the executor of the will to pay for the breastfeeding wages. He (the Imam) said, ‘She deserves an equivalent wages and the executor of the will cannot take the child away from her until he grows up. He then delivers his assets to him.

I asked Imam (as): "May I be your ransom, what is the blood money (diyyah) for a child born out of fornication?" Imam (as) replied: "The one who spent on him is to be given what he spent on him." I asked: "If the child dies and has wealth, who inherits it?" He (as) said: "The Imam." It has also been narrated: "The blood money (diyyah) for a child born out of fornication is eight hundred dirhams, and his inheritance is like the inheritance of the child of mula'anah (mutual cursing between spouses in the case of adultery accusations)."

"The Commander of the Faithful (as) ruled regarding a man who claimed that a slave belonged to him and asserted that he was his son. Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib (as) ruled that the slave should be freed from the wealth of the one who made the claim. If the claimant died and his wealth was divided before the slave was freed, then the inheritance had already preceded him. However, if the slave was freed before the division of the wealth, then he is entitled to his share of the inheritance."

I asked Aba Abdillah عليه السلام about a woman who wills that one-third [of her inheritance] should be used to pay off her debt and a “portion” of it should be given to a man and a woman [her relatives]. I [Abdallah b. Sinan] did not know that [i.e. what “portion” meant]. They took me to Ibn Abi Layla who said: they are to be given nothing. He [the Imam] said: He has lied by Allah! they are to be given one-tenth of the one-third.