Inheritance: the fixed shares first, then the nearest male relative

Lessons

Ibn Rajab calls this hadith a foundation of the law of inheritance. The heirs whose shares the Quran fixes (4:11-12, 4:176) take them first; whatever is left goes to the closest male relative on the father's side, and the nearer excludes the farther. Read with the verses, it settles how every estate is divided, including what the verses leave unstated.

He records where the Companions differed, for example whether a full sister takes the remainder when the deceased leaves a daughter: most of them, including 'Umar, 'Ali and Ibn Mas'ud, held that she does, while Ibn 'Abbas held otherwise. In practice: an estate is divided by these rules, not by preference, and dividing it is a matter for those who know the law of inheritance.

Evidence