30/3. Chapter:
Sunan an-Nasai 3634 — Why One-Quarter May Be Better
Bequeathing One-Third
One-Quarter Bequest: Ibn Abbas on Giving Less Than One-Third
Sunan an-Nasai : 3634
Sunan an-NasaiHadith Number 3634
أَخْبَرَنَا قُتَيْبَةُ بْنُ سَعِيدٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ، عَنْ هِشَامِ بْنِ عُرْوَةَ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ، قَالَ لَوْ غَضَّ النَّاسُ إِلَى الرُّبُعِ لأَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ " الثُّلُثَ وَالثُّلُثُ كَثِيرٌ أَوْ كَبِيرٌ ".
Ibn 'Abbas Narrated from:
If the people were to reduce (their bequests) to one-quarter (of their wealth, that would be better), because the Messenger of Allah said: 'One-third, and one-third is much or large.'
Reference : Sunan an-Nasa'i 3634In-book reference : Book 30, Hadith 24English translation : Vol. 4, Book 30, Hadith 3664
Summary of Sunan an-Nasai Hadith 3634
This hadith records the view of Ibn Abbas about the amount of a bequest. He says that if people reduced their bequests to one-quarter, that would be better. His reason is the Prophet’s statement that one-third is much or large. The main topic is bequest restraint. The narration does not say that one-quarter was a new fixed command. Rather, Ibn Abbas expresses a preference for reducing the amount because one-third had already been described as substantial. For someone searching for one-quarter will in Islam, the text should be read carefully: the quoted prophetic wording concerns one-third, while the suggestion of one-quarter comes from Ibn Abbas. The hadith therefore encourages caution and moderation when deciding how much of one’s wealth to place in a bequest.
What we learn from this hadith
- Ibn Abbas preferred that people reduce bequests to one-quarter.
- He based his view on the statement that one-third is much.
- The one-quarter suggestion is Ibn Abbas’s stated preference in this report.
- The narration supports moderation in the amount of a bequest.
