The Qur'an (4:11)allocates women half a man's share in inheritance. I presume that the rule that prescribes that women should inherit half a man's share is based on the injunction in the Qur’an(4:34)that men should maintain women. My question is this: what happens if the woman (and not the man) in the family is the main breadwinner? Or, what happens if both the husband and the wife are joint breadwinners? Does this rule then still apply?
Praise be to Allah.and blessings and peace be
upon the Messenger of Allaah.
The female takes half the
share of a male in inheritance regardless of whether she works and spends on
the household or not, because this is the ruling of Allaah. Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
“Allaah commands you as
regards your children’s (inheritance): to the male, a portion equal to that
of two females”
[al-Nisa’ 4:11]
This means that if a man
and woman are co-heirs, then the male’s share is equal to that of two
females. An exception is made when uterine brothers and sisters (related
through the mother) inherit, in the case of kalaalah, which is
mentioned in the passage (interpretation of the meaning):
“If the man or woman
whose inheritance is in question has left neither ascendants nor
descendants, but has left a brother or a sister, each one of the two gets a
sixth; but if more than two, they share in a third”
[al-Nisa’ 4:12]
The word kalaalah
refers to a case where the deceased leaves behind no ascendants or
descendents; if he has brothers and sisters through his mother (uterine
siblings), then each male receives a share equal to that of one female.
Al-Qurtubi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: “There is consensus on this
among the scholars; in the laws of inheritance there is no case where males
and females receive equal shares except in the case of uterine siblings”.
Because of the importance
of inheritance, Allaah explained the ruling on how the estate is to be
divided Himself, and He did not leave the matter to human reasoning or
interpretation. Hence Allaah concluded this aayah with the words
(interpretation of the meaning):
“(these fixed shares)
are ordained by Allaah. And Allaah is Ever All‑Knower, All‑Wise”
[al-Nisa’ 4:11]
Allaah comments on the
rulings of inheritance by saying (interpretation of the meaning):
“These are the limits
(set by) Allaah (or ordainments as regards laws of inheritance), and
whosoever obeys Allaah and His Messenger (Muhammad) will be admitted to
Gardens under which rivers flow (in Paradise), to abide therein, and that
will be the great success.
And whosoever disobeys
Allaah and His Messenger (Muhammad), and transgresses His limits, He will
cast him into the Fire, to abide therein; and he shall have a disgraceful
torment”
[al-Nisa’ 4:13-14]
From this it may be known
that there is no room for changing or altering these rulings, or to suggest
something different, because they came from Allaah, the All-Knowing,
All-Wise, Who does not do the slightest injustice to mankind, and Who is
more compassionate towards His slaves than a mother to her child.
Some scholars have sought
to explain the reason behind giving males more than females in inheritance
by referring to the verse (interpretation of the meaning):
“Men are the protectors
and maintainers of women, because Allaah has made one of them to excel the
other, and because they spend (to support them) from their means”
[al-Nisa’ 4:34]
They said that because
the man is obliged to spend on the woman, and on her children and servants,
and she is spared that obligation, so it is appropriate that his share
should be greater than hers.
This is one of the
obvious reasons, no doubt. The great scholar al-Shanqeeti (may Allaah have
mercy on him) said in Adwaa’ al-Bayaan: “because the one who in
charge of another and spending money on him will always have his money
decreasing, and the one who is being looked after and on whom the money is
spent is expected to have more. The wisdom of giving precedence to the one
on whose money more demands are made over the one whose money is expected to
increase is to make up for the expenses of the former. This is sound
reasoning.” (1/308).
It should be noted that
Islam preceded all the customs and laws in honouring women and treating them
fairly, and allowing them financial independence, whereas European women
were, until recently, denied the authority to own anything!
With regard to what is
mentioned in the question about a woman who spends on the household or
contributes to the household expenses, the answer is that women are not
required to do that, and they can refuse to work or refuse to spend their
money that they have earned themselves, and ask their husband to spend on
them and provide accommodation for them and their children. If the husband
refuses to fulfil this right, then she may ask for a divorce. But if she
agrees to spend on him and share the household expenses, then this is a good
deed on her part for which she will be rewarded. But it is not obligatory
for her to do that, and it has no effect on her share of inheritance.
It should also be pointed
out that this wife may take half the estate of her father or mother, if she
has no brothers, or she may inherit from her brother or sister, in addition
to whatever she is entitled to from her husband’s estate after he dies.
And her husband may be in
the opposite situation, I mean that he may inherit a small amount from the
estate of his father, mother or brothers, or he may not inherit anything.
The point is that the
words “to the male, a portion equal to that of two females” have to
do with males and females among the children of the deceased; they do not
apply to the husband and wife, as each of them have independent sources from
which they may inherit.
And Allaah knows best.