After the furudh are paid, the rest of the estate falls to the ‘ashabah — the “nearest male relative” in the Bukhari-Muslim hadith. This chapter details the three types of ‘ashabah according to the structure of Tashil al-Faraidh, and the order of who takes priority over whom.
What ‘ashabah is
‘Ashabah is an heir who has no fixed fraction: they take the entire remainder after the ashabul furudh — this can be very large (the whole estate, if there are no ashabul furudh), can be small, or can even be zero (if the furudh exhaust the estate, the ‘ashabah gets nothing — see the Musytarakah case in chapter 08).
Its evidence is the hadith you already know from chapter 01: “…and what remains goes to the nearest male relative.”
Three types of ‘ashabah
flowchart TB
classDef asabah fill:#134e4a,stroke:#14b8a6,color:#ccfbf1
classDef orang fill:#1e3a8a,stroke:#3b82f6,color:#dbeafe
classDef catatan fill:#713f12,stroke:#ca8a04,color:#fef9c3
A["'Ashabah"]:::asabah --> B["Bin-nafsihi<br/>(by itself)"]:::asabah
A --> C["Bil-ghair<br/>(because of another)"]:::asabah
A --> D["Ma'al-ghair<br/>(together with another)"]:::asabah
B --> B1["All male relatives through the male line:<br/>children, grandchildren, father, grandfather, siblings,<br/>siblings' children, uncles, uncles' children"]:::orang
C --> C1["4 women 'pulled up' by their brother:<br/>daughter + son · son's daughter + son's son ·<br/>full sister + full brother ·<br/>paternal half-sister + paternal half-brother<br/>(split 2:1)"]:::orang
D --> D1["Full/paternal half-sister<br/>together with a daughter / son's daughter:<br/>the sister takes the REMAINDER"]:::orang
C1 --> N1["Women move from furudh → the remainder"]:::catatan
D1 --> N2["Her standing becomes like a full brother:<br/>she can block a paternal half-sister"]:::catatan
1. ‘Ashabah bin-nafsihi
Every male on the list of heirs except the husband and the maternal half-brother (both of whom are purely ashabul furudh). These are the “male relatives through the male line.”
2. ‘Ashabah bil-ghair
The four women who hold a 1/2–2/3 share in chapter 03 lose their furudh and become ‘ashabah if there is a brother of the same level: a daughter together with a son, a son’s daughter together with a son’s son, a full sister together with a full brother, a paternal half-sister together with a paternal half-brother. The split is male : female = 2 : 1 (An-Nisa 11: “the share of a son is equal to that of two daughters”).
Note on grandchildren: a son’s son also “helps” a son’s daughter who is blocked out (for example, because there are already 2 daughters who exhaust the 2/3) — together with a son’s son of the same or a lower level, that son’s daughter shares in the remainder at 2:1. Ibn Uthaymin calls the son’s son in this position akhun mubarak (a blessed brother).
3. ‘Ashabah ma’al-ghair
Specifically a full sister or paternal half-sister who inherits together with a daughter/son’s daughter: the sister’s furudh is dropped, and she takes the remainder after the daughter/son’s daughter takes her share. Its basis is Ibn Mas’ud’s ruling (in the same Bukhari 6736 hadith as the son’s daughter 1/6 case): “…and the remainder goes to the sister.”
An important consequence: a sister in this position holds the standing of a full brother, so a full sister as ma’al-ghair blocks paternal half-brothers/sisters.
Order of ‘ashabah: direction → degree → strength
If several ‘ashabah exist at once, only the strongest one takes the remainder. Compare them in tiers:
- Jihah (direction), in order: bunuwwah (children-grandchildren) → ubuwwah (father-grandfather) → ukhuwwah (siblings and siblings’ children) → ‘umumah (uncles and uncles’ children) → wala’. An earlier direction defeats every direction after it.
- Darajah (closeness) within the same direction: a child outranks a grandchild; a sibling outranks a sibling’s child; an uncle outranks an uncle’s child.
- Quwwah (strength) if direction and degree are equal: a full relative (two lines) outranks a paternal-half relative: full brother > paternal half-brother; full brother’s son > paternal half-brother’s son; full paternal uncle > paternal half-uncle.
Quick example: the deceased leaves behind a son’s son, a full brother, and a full paternal uncle → the entire remainder goes to the son’s son (the bunuwwah direction wins); the brother and uncle are blocked out.
Do not confuse this with hajb
The ‘ashabah order above determines who takes the remainder; it automatically forms most of the content of the hajb rules (the next chapter). But hajb is broader: it also governs the blocking-out of ashabul furudh (e.g. a maternal half-brother blocked out by a child) and the reduction of shares (mother 1/3 → 1/6). Continue to chapter 05.
Sources: Tashil al-Faraidh, chapter on at-ta’shib (Shamela 11095); Ash-Sharh al-Mumti’, Faraidh chapter; Bukhari 6732/6736, Muslim 1615; QS. An-Nisa 11 & 176. Full list in 15-references.