The ‘awl itself is the same across all madhhabs. What makes this chapter important is the classical Shafi’i position the matn holds regarding a remainder with no ‘ashabah — there is no radd; the remainder belongs to bayt al-mal — and how later Shafi’i scholars have handled it once bayt al-mal is no longer properly organized.
‘Awl
When the fixed shares exceed the base number, the base is raised to the total number of shares — every owner of a fixed share bears the shortfall proportionally. Only three base numbers can undergo ‘awl: 6 (→7, 8, 9, 10), 12 (→13, 15, 17), 24 (→27). The first ‘awl case was decided in Umar’s time through consultation among the companions, and it has been established practice ever since.
Quick example: a husband + 2 full sisters → 3/6 + 4/6 = 7/6 → base 7. Worked out in full in the case studies in chapter 12.
No radd: the logic of the Zayd system
The situation: the fixed shares have been paid, the estate still has a remainder, and there is no ‘ashabah. Fiqh offers three answers:
flowchart TB
classDef zaid fill:#7f1d1d,stroke:#ef4444,color:#fee2e2
classDef radd fill:#134e4a,stroke:#14b8a6,color:#ccfbf1
classDef tengah fill:#713f12,stroke:#ca8a04,color:#fef9c3
A["Estate remainder, no 'ashabah"] --> B["Zayd system / classical Shafi'i<br/>(held by THIS MATN):<br/>remainder → BAYT AL-MAL<br/>(also: dzawil arham do not inherit)"]:::zaid
A --> C["Hanafi & Hanbali<br/>(the line of the 2 previous bundles):<br/>RADD to fixed-share owners<br/>other than the spouse"]:::radd
A --> D["Later Shafi'i (muta'akhkhirin):<br/>if bayt al-mal is NOT organized,<br/>radd + dzawil arham are applied"]:::tengah
Reasoning of the Zayd system: the shares in An-Nisa are a fixed ordinance already set exactly right (“faridhatan minallah”) — increasing the mother’s share from 1/6 to more, for instance, is considered exceeding that ordinance; a remainder with no owner falls to the general treasury of the Muslims (bayt al-mal), which bears the shared welfare, and that is the ummah’s own “‘ashabah”.
Reasoning of radd’s supporters (Umar, Ali; Hanafi & Hanbali): relatives have a better right than the general treasury, based on the general principle that “those of blood relationship are closer to one another in the Book of Allah” (al-Anfal 75).
The middle path put into practice: later Shafi’i scholars (muta’akhkhirin) have ruled — as recorded in comparative-fiqh works — that when bayt al-mal is not managed in a shar’i manner (it doesn’t exist, or cannot be trusted to distribute properly), the remainder is returned (radd) to fixed-share owners other than the spouse, and dzawil arham do inherit. In practice, in a country without an organized bayt al-mal such as Indonesia today, the end result often converges with the Hanbali line — but you need to know the point each one starts from.
Consequences for dzawil arham
This comes bundled with the position on radd: according to the matn, relatives outside the fixed list (a daughter’s children, a maternal grandfather, aunts, a sister’s children…) do not inherit — bayt al-mal takes precedence. The Hanafi/Hanbali madhhabs give them inheritance via tanzil. The position of later Shafi’i scholars follows the condition of bayt al-mal as described above.
How to work it in a problem
In this bundle, every “remainder without ‘ashabah” case is answered on two layers, and that is how you should answer such problems too:
- The matn’s answer (Zayd/classical Shafi’i): fixed-share owners are paid exactly their fixed share; the remainder is recorded as ”→ bayt al-mal”.
- Practical note: if bayt al-mal is not organized → radd applies (calculate as in the Ibn Uthaymin bundle, chapter 07: the remainder is divided proportionally among fixed-share owners other than the spouse).
Both are worked side by side with rupiah amounts in the case studies in chapter 12.
Sources: Matn ar-Rahbiyyah (Shamela 11372); cross-madhhab positions on radd & dzawil arham: al-Fiqh al-Muyassar, Shamela and Sharh al-Hazimi (Shamela 36125); QS. An-Nisa 11–12, al-Anfal 75. Full list in 15-references.