And if he have brethren, -his mother (hall have à fixth part, after the legacies *
which he lhall bequeath, and his debts belaid. Ye know not whether your
parents or your children be of greater ufe unto you. This is an ordinance
from G od, and G od is knowing and wife. Moreover ye may claim half of
what your wives lhall leave, if they have no iflue ; but if they have iffiie
then ye lhall have the fourth part of what they lhall leaver' after the legacies
which they lhall bequeath, and the debts'- be paid. They alfo fhali have thfe fourth
part of what ye lhall leave, in Cafe ye -have no iflue Y but if’-ÿé have iflue
then they Ihall have the eighth part of what ye lhall leave, after the'legacies
which ye lhall bequeath, and your debts be paid. And if a man or woman’;
fubfiance be inherited by a diftant relation ”, and he or {he have a brother or
filler; each of them two lhall have a fixth part ■ of the efiatef . But if there
be more than this number, they lhall be equal Shelters in a third part, after
payment of the legacies which lhall be bequeathed, :and'the :debts;s without prejudice
to the heirs. This is an ordinance from G od ; and G od is knowing-und
gracious. Thefe are the ftatutes of G od. Ànd whofo ’qbeyetiv G odYM his
apoftle, G od lhall lead him into gardens wherein rivers flow, they lhall con-
tinue therein for ever ; and this lhall be great happinefs. ButwhofoMifobey-
• eth God, and his apoftle, and tran%reflTeth his ftatutes , -,Ghb (hall call him
into .hell fire; he lhall remain therein for ever, -and he -lhall. differ Sa Ihameful
puniihment. If any of'yóuf women be guilty of whoredorri“1,'ptfodUce
four witnefies from among you againft them, and if: they bear witriéifs aVdiiitt
them, -imprifon them in feparate apartments until death releafe them, or G od
afforded» them a way to efcape*. And if two of you commit the l i k M M
nefs’f pumfh them both■* ; but if they repent and amend, let them both a-
: lone ;
ytthe legacies;] By legacies in this and the fol-
: lowing paflages are chiefly meant thdfe bequeathed
To pious ufes ; for the Mohammedans approve
not of a perfori’s giving away his fubftance from
his family and near relations on any other ac-
,• count.
* For this -may happen by con trad, or on
fome other ipecial -occafion.
e Each of themjhallhave a fixth p q ttf& c ]
Here, and in the next cafe, the brother arid After
are made equal Iharers/ wjiich is .an exception to
the general rule, of giving a male twice as much
as a female; and the reafori is faidto be, becaufe
• o f the fmallnefs of the portions, which deferve
not fuch exadnefs of diftributidh ; for in other
cafes the rule holds between brother and lifter,
as well as other relations 1.
4 Whoredom] Either adultery or fornication.
e imprifon tbem— till deatb rlledfe them, &c.]
Their puniihment in the beginning of Moham-
tnedifm was to be immured till they died, but
afterwards this cruel doom was*mitigated, and
• they might avoid it by undergoing the punilh-
.ment ordained in foftead by the Sonna; accord-
iing.to which.the maidens are to he fcourged
t^ith a hundred jbip?s,! and to ie .^nilhed for a
full year; and the married women to be ftoned2.
* 4nd i f two of you commit the like mckehtfs,
The commentators are not agreed,whetlier
the text fpeaks of fornication or. fodomy, Al
Zamakbjhari, and, fromhimy al Beiddwi fup-
pofe JM former is here meant: buj: Jallak'Jdin
is o f opinion, that the- crime, intended in this paf*
fage muft be committed between .twp men, and
not betweena. man and ft. woman; riot only becaufe
the pronouns are in the mafeuline,gender,
but becaule both are ordered to fuffer the fanfe
flight puniihment, and are both allowed the fame
repentance and indulgence ; and elpecially ,for
that a different and much feve/er putfiftnneijtis.
appointed for the women in the^receding words.
AfodlKafem Hébatallah takes.iitnple fornication
to be the crime intended, and that this paflagc
i$ abrogated by that of the 24th chapter,-where
the man and the woman who lhall be guilty of
fornication are ordered to be fcourged with a
hundred ftripes each.
8 Punifh them,both.] The original-is, t)o thetn
fome hurt or damage : by which fome underftand
1 .. -. E B B • ..that
lone; for G od iseafy :tö'be reeöncilédiind merciful. Verily repent&nce w ill
be accepted with G o d , from thdfe who .fto evil ignorantly, and then repent
fpeedil-y ; unto them 'will G od be tutned : for G od is knowing and wife. But
no repentance j (hall be accepted from thofe who dó evil until the time when
death prefenteth it felf unto one of them, and he faith, Verily I repent now;
nor unto thofe'who die: unbelievers ; for: them we prepared a grievous
puniihment. : ,0 trubbèldevers., it is not lawful fdr you to be heirs of women
againft their willa, nor'to hinder them frorh m&rryin/othersh, that ye may také
away part of whapye have given them in dowry Y unlefs they have been guilty
of a manifeft crime's but converfe kindly with them, jj And if ye hate them,
it may happen that ye ffiayhate a thing whereinG od hath placed much good.
I f ye be defirouSfto, exchange a wifefor another wiffe d, aM'ye have, alrea-
dygiveffi on<S of-them a, talent''; take not ailfay any'thing therefrom ’ Will
ye take it jby flandeting Art-, arid,'&ii#| /fón hi&hiféft-injuftice ? AM how cad
yetake it, -fifice thé one of you hath-goneYri unto the other, and they have received?
from you a fifm' cdvenMhy?' Ma#y not women, whom your fathers
have had to wife; (except what is' already paft :j for this is uncleannefs, and
a n abomination, "and at! evil way. Ye are forbidden to marry your mothers,
a n d your daughters,'aM your fillers, and your aunts: both on the Fathers and
on the mothersfide, itid-youf brothersddaughtè-S, and yoüt'fiflrérs'daughters,
a n d your mothers whö-bWégiven'yóftlucfe,' and' yoür foder^fift-ers’, and youf
w i v è s móthersj and your daüghtèrs-irf ratv-' which are under ytiiir tifitioh, fo r t i r
of yoiif: wives utfto vihom yë have göM'irv (but if ye' havé'mbt gbnè in unto
them, it lhall be no fin in you to marry them,') and the wives of your fons
v/ho proceed out of your loins ; and ye are alfo fo rb id d en fo take to wife two
lifters W except what is already'paft: fqr G od is graclbus aM' merciful. * f e V.
are who,.are married, except thofe wa-
««». whotp: your fight Kajids fhall ppffefs as/laves This is ordained you from
' n 1 1 y Ijha •» G o d .
that they ate only to reproach them in pnbïic
dr;ftrikè them'ori the head with their flippers 2,
(a great indignity in - the eaft;) though fome
imagine they may1 be fcourged 3.
A It is iïöt'lawfül for you to be 'heifs ofi zoomen
againft their w i l l ' It was cuftóiriafy'&mong thé
pagan Arabs, when a man died, for one of his"
relations- to claim a right to his widow, which
he affhrted by-throwing his garment over her ; •
and then he -either vmarried her himfelf, i f he
thought fit, on afligning hpr the fame dower,
her former husband had done, or kept her dower
and married fiér tó anothêV, or - elfe tefhfed to
let- hér marry urilefs'. ftfe redeemed hérfëlf bv
qmtting what;lhe might élaim of her husbandV
Séods 4-. This unjuft cuftom is abolifhed b y '
this paflage: • 1 .■ 1 •
Nor to hinder them from marry ing others. ] $0 m e.
ay thefe words are diredted to husbands, who
rifed to imprifon their wives without any juft
caufe, and out o f eovetqufnefs, meerly to make
them relinquifli their dower or their inheritance
J. -
* A manifeft crime.1 Sueh. as. difob,edierice, ill
behaviour, immodefty,. arid the like;'?.;.
4 T f ye be defirous to exchange a wife for another
wife, &c.] That is, by divorcing one, and marrying
another.
* A talent] i. e. Ever fo large a dower.
f See chap. 2. p. 27.
8 Ye are forbidden to take to wife two fifters.] The
fame was alfo prohibited by the Leviticallaw 7
h Ye_ arfforbidden to take to wife free.women who
are tarried,^except thofe women whom ye fhall pof-
fefs -as fiaves] According to this paflage it is not
lawful to marry a free woman that _ is already-
married, be Ihe a Mohammedan or not, unlefs
Jhe
jAriLALo’DDïN, Y a-h y a , A bul^ X s^m ; H ebAtal lah , ^//Beidawi. * Ja l la -
odin, ^/Beidawi. 3 A l Be 1 daw I. -+ Idem, 1 Idem, 6 Idem',’ 7 L e v it, xviii, 18.