SECTION ON INHERITANCE SHARES · 5 – THE GRANDMOTHER'S SHARE IN INHERITANCE
2894 – It is narrated from Qabīṣa ibn Zuʾayb (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: – A grandmother came to Abū Bakr al-Ṣiddīq (may Allah be pleased with him). She asked him about her share from the inheritance. Abū Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: – “There is no share for you in the Book of Allah. Nor do I know of anything for you in the sunnah of the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him). Return (to your home), and I will ask (the people) about this.” – Abū Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) asked the people about it. Mughīra ibn Shuʿba said: – “I witnessed the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) giving a sixth (share) to the grandmother.” Abū Bakr said: – “Do you have another witness with you?” Muḥammad ibn Maslama stood up and said the same as Mughīra ibn Shuʿba had said. Thereupon, Abū Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) gave the grandmother a sixth (share). Then, another grandmother came to ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb. She asked him about the grandmother’s share from the inheritance. ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb said to her: – “There is nothing for you in the Book of Allah. The ruling that was previously given in this matter was a (specific) ruling for someone other than you (another grandmother). I cannot add anything to the shares appointed by Allah. That share is one-sixth. If two grandmothers come together for one share, the one-sixth is divided between you. If only one of you remains, the one-sixth is hers.” [597]
EXPLANATION
Grandmother: She may be from the maternal side or the paternal side. Their share in inheritance is one-sixth. In a matter for which there is an explicit text (naṣ), there is no room for ijtihād (independent legal reasoning). The statement of ʿUmar, “I cannot add to the Book of Allah,” expresses this.
2895 – It is narrated from the father of Ibn Burayda, Burayda (may Allah be pleased with him): The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) gave a sixth share to the grandmother when the mother was not present.
EXPLANATION
If the mother and the grandmother are present together, the grandmother does not receive anything. The mother excludes the grandmother from inheritance. Here, the word “dūna” means “in the presence of” or “together with.” Qatāda said: The Companions did not know by which thing the grandfather inherited one-sixth from the heirs. Qatāda said: – The smallest share by which the grandfather is made an heir is one-sixth.