Malik related to me from Nafi‘ from ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“It is the duty of a Muslim who has anything to bequeath not to let two nights pass without writing a Will about it.”

[Al-Muwatta’ of Imam Malik: 37.1.1]

Writing a will is a religious obligation on every capable Muslim. It protects against many problems and conflicts that could arise after a person’s death. This obligation is more emphasized in the West; Failing to write a well founded will may result in the distribution of ones estate in discord with the Islamic law, and may lead to losses for some of the rightful inheritors.

For example under English law:

If you do not leave a valid Will, then under English law you are deemed to have died ‘intestate’, and your wealth will be distributed to certain relatives in fixed shares – which are not the same as those laid down by the Shari‘a – or if there are no such relatives, then it will go to the Crown, that is, the government.

For a sample Islamic Will and further guidance on how to write an Islamic Will please click here

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