Islamic Inheritance is half of the knowledge (How and Why)
Wealth is the general word, but Estate mainly refers to wealth after death. Everything we do, including career, business, or goals, is framed to meet the target of wealth. Even though every moment we leave refers back to wealth, it is material and is considered evil in many societies. Islam considers wealth and estates to be important from both religious and moral points of view. Islamic ruling has discipline and criteria for wealth, debt, and inheritance. Islamic inheritance refers to ilm al-afraid or ‘ilm al-mawareeth (i.e., the science of inheritance). Learning with the intention that it is Fard kifayah (i.e., communal obligation) would help you fulfill both worldly and spiritual goals for distributing the estate of the deceased justly among the heirs as prescribed in the Holy Quran. Even though Learning Islamic inheritance is relatively easy and requires basic mathematical skills, many consider including attorneys and scholars complicated. Wassiyyah's Islamic Inheritance course is designed to remove these misconceptions and give everyone the opportunity to discover the beauty embodied in law. Learning is crucial for every Muslim, as highlighted in the below Hadith.
The Messenger of Allah (Sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said, "O Abu Hurairah. Learn about the Inheritance and teach it, for it is half of knowledge, but it will be forgotten. This is the first thing that will be taken away from my nation." -Sunan Ibn Majah, Chapter 26, Hadith no: 2719
This hadith reveals many important points that we will explore.
Importance of wealth.
Importance of inheritance or estates
Gaining knowledge is important.
Teaching and sharing knowledge is encouraged.
The knowledge of inheritance is half of all the knowledge.
Half of the knowledge in this world and Half of the knowledge hereafter.
It will be forgotten.
It is one of the signs of the day of judgment.
How all the points fit perfectly in the modern day, you can imagine after reading below!
Wealth
Everyone small or big, poor or rich, uneducated or professional, no one denies that wealth is important. The main survival and whatever we do in our life including career, education, business, good or bad tie back to wealth. So, this is a proven point that wealth is important.
Inheritance
Inheritance is important but it is highly underestimated. Wealth is tangible and you can feel it because you live with it. Inheritance is a matter after death that is hard to feel. It's extremely important for your warith (i.e. heirs) as they will feel if they do not receive what they suppose to receive.
Knowledge
Gaining knowledge is not a priority but is a must in today's world. In the old time, it was difficult to find a person who is educated but now it is the reverse that it is difficult to find a person who is not educated. Is it not so true that knowledge is getting more and more important as time passes which were said by our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam)?
Teaching and Sharing
I think the trend of teaching and sharing is not just for individuals but it's the main marketing strategy for any product or business. You see it all over the place on social media and everywhere on the net.
Half of the knowledge
Inheritance forms a substantial part, especially for wealthy people but on average, the inheritance will be close to half that when a person dies. It's not so true that you gather all the wealth in a lifetime (as a result of half of the knowledge) and remain to be part of the inheritance after death (the remaining is the outcome of half of the knowledge).
Forgotten
Inheritance is considered a topic of old people and not many people take it seriously even though you read lots about inheritance, estate planning, and the importance of succession planning. There are companies, attorneys, professionals, financial institutions, governments, and many organizations promoting the importance of inheritance and estate planning but still, the majority of people do not have estate plans and those who have them, are not adequate.
Sign of Qiyamah
We see the trend is closure meet compliance with this Hadith as the interest of people about inheritance regarding gaining knowledge and meeting estate planning duties is lacking day by day. All the points in the Hadith are perfectly settling in this regard.
