44. We have assigned the residence and personal clothing of the deceased
to the male, not female, offspring, nor to the other heirs. #25
In a Tablet, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá indicates that the residence and personal
clothing of a deceased man remain in the male line. They pass to the
eldest son and in the absence of the eldest son, they pass to the
second-eldest son, and so on. He explains that this provision is an
expression of the law of primogeniture, which has invariably been upheld
by the Law of God. In a Tablet to a follower of the Faith in Persia He
wrote: "In all the Divine Dispensations the eldest son hath been given
extraordinary distinctions. Even the station of prophethood hath been his
birthright." With the distinctions given to the eldest son, however, go
concomitant duties. For example, he has the moral responsibility, for the
sake of God, to care for his mother and also to consider the needs of the
other heirs.
Bahá’u’lláh clarifies various aspects of this part of the law of
inheritance. He specifies that if there be more than one residence, the
principal and most important one passes to the male offspring. The
remaining residences will, together with the other possessions of the
deceased, have to be divided among the heirs (Q and A 34), and He
indicates that in the absence of male offspring, two thirds of the
principal residence and the personal clothing of the deceased father will
revert to the female issue and one third to the House of Justice (Q and A
72). Further, when the deceased is a woman, Bahá’u’lláh states that all
her used clothing is to be equally divided amongst her daughters. Her
unworn clothing, jewels and property must be divided among her heirs, as
well as her used clothing if she leaves no daughter (Q and A 37).
45. Should the son of the deceased have passed away in the days of his
father and have left children, they will inherit their father’s share #26
This aspect of the law applies only in the case of the son who predeceases
his father or mother. If the daughter of the deceased be dead and leave
issue, her share will have to be divided according to the seven categories
specified in the Most Holy Book (Q and A 54).
46. If the deceased should leave children who are under age, their share
of the inheritance must be entrusted to a reliable individual #27
The word "amín", translated in this paragraph as "reliable individual" and
"trustee", conveys in Arabic a wide range of meanings connected
principally with the idea of trustworthiness, but signifying also such
qualities as reliability, loyalty, faithfulness, uprightness, honesty, and
so forth. Used in legal parlance "amín" denotes, among other things, a
trustee, guarantor, custodian, guardian, and keeper.
47. Division of the estate should take place only after the Ḥuqúqu’lláh
hath been paid, any debts have been settled, the expenses of the funeral
and burial defrayed #28
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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