The Impact of the Islamic Financial Wills System on Achieving Sustainable Social Development

Abstract

Wills within the legislative+ system for donation contracts are considered highly beneficial and have a great impact on both testators and legatees. They hold financial and value dimensions aimed at linking today’s generation with future generations, perpetuating humanitarian work, and extending it beyond death. Consequently, wills, along with other charitable resources such as endowments, constitute significant channels that can contribute to achieving sustainable development in societies. This study aims to illustrate the impact of the relationship between wills and sustainable development. It highlights the importance of wills for societal advancement, noting that they are no less important than endowment systems. This study concludes that the legislation of wills is among systems that encompass intergenerational ties; strengthen social cohesion; elevate societies by maintaining ties of kinship; improve the conditions of financially and socially disadvantaged people; provide education and healthcare for the underprivileged; and foster intergenerational bonds in the forms of compassion, empathy, and integration. Moreover, wills grant individuals participation in shaping a better future for forthcoming generations, in addition to alleviating the suffering caused by poverty and striving for self-sufficiency, social care, and education, thereby embodying the economic and social dimensions of sustainable development.

1. Introduction

Wills within the legislative system for donation contracts are highly beneficial and have a great impact on both testators and legatees. Simultaneously, they address several future societal needs in all scientific, missionary, health, and social fields, provided that they are well-drafted when set up and effectively executed. This legislative gesture is a good indication of not neglecting future generations and linking the deceased’s reward with the benefits for future generations.

A will is legislation that carries financial and value dimensions aimed at linking today’s generation with future generations, perpetuating humanitarian work and extending it beyond death. Consequently, wills, along with other charitable resources such as endowments, constitute significant channels that can contribute to achieving sustainable development in societies.

2. Research Problem

• To what extent does the wills system contribute to achieving the goals and dimensions of sustainable development?
• Can wills be leveraged and optimally employed to achieve sustainable social development, which has become the primary goal of international organisations and contemporary countries today?

3. Research Objectives

• Investigate the impact of the relationship between wills and sustainable development.
• Investigate the impact of wills on the dimensions and goals of sustainable development in societies.
• Investigate the impact of wills on achieving charitable developmental purposes within societies, highlighting their importance in societal advancement and that they are no less important than endowment systems, which have often been influenced by wills in theory and practise. It is even said that endowment rulings can be derived from will provisions.

4. Literature Review

To the best of the researcher’s knowledge, there are no studies on the impact of wills on achieving the goals and dimensions of sustainable social development. However, several general studies have addressed wills in terms of the concept, legislative wisdom, and related provisions.

5. Research Methodology

The researcher adopted inductive, descriptive, and deductive analytical methodologies, as they align with the nature of this study by addressing the theoretical aspects of wills, in addition to reviewing the historical context of wills throughout the ages by tracking, surveying, and deriving a legislative philosophy related to sustainable development.

6. Research Plan

This paper includes an introduction, a preface, two chapters, and a conclusion as follows:

Preface: Clarifying the terms ‘wills’ and ‘sustainable development’ and explaining their legislative philosophy.

• Chapter One: The Impact of Wills on Achieving Sustainable Development Goals

First Section: The Impact of Wills on Eliminating Poverty and Hunger

Second Section: The Impact of Wills on Securing Natural Resources

Third Section: The Impact of Wills on Providing Education and Sponsorship for Learners

Fourth Section: The Impact of Wills on Healthcare Provisions

• Chapter Two: The Impact of Wills on Achieving the Dimensions of Sustainable Development

First Section: The Impact of Wills on Achieving the Economic Dimension of Sustainable Development

Second Section: The Impact of Wills on Achieving the Social Dimension of Sustainable Development

We end with Praise to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds.

7. Preface

Clarifying the terms ‘wills’ and ‘sustainable development’.

• First: The concept of ‘wills’ and the philosophy of their legislation.

Scholars have varied in defining wills.

Some of them have said the following: a will is the transfer of ownership after death through donations, whether tangible or beneficial [1].

Others have defined them as a contract that imposes a right on one-third of the testators that is binding upon their death or by proxy thereafter [2].

Others have defined them as a command for the disposal or the donation of wealth after death [3].

These definitions highlight the diversity among schools of thought regarding the nature of wills. However, they generally agree that a will involves the donation of wealth after death. However, defining a will in this way and limiting it to the concept of donation after death is not a comprehensive definition, as it excludes rights owed to Allah, debts, and other obligations. It also does not cover all types of wills, such as those directing the performance of duties like pilgrimages (hajj) and almsgiving (zakat), returning entrusted items, paying off debts, and others. Moreover, it does not include financial rights that are neither wealth nor benefit, such as a will to postpone a debt for the debtor after its due date, a will to sell one’s house to someone or rent it to them, and so on.

Hence, the previous definition is not comprehensive for all types of wills.

Furthermore, these definitions do not meet contemporary needs, particularly in the era of personal status laws and the emergence of new, innovative forms of wills not known in ancient jurisprudence.

Perhaps the closest and most comprehensive definition is as follows: ‘a specific covenant added to post-death affairs, as bequeathed by the individual after his death’.

This is a general definition which encompasses all types of wills, including ownership and relinquishment, which includes the meaning of ownership and the will to discharge a debt, and pure relinquishment, such as the will for a guarantor’s discharge, as well as rights that are neither wealth nor benefit nor relinquishment and are related to money, such as the will to postpone a debt [4,5].

Legislating a will includes considering the interests of the people, given the people’s need for it, and allowing them to perform righteous deeds. Through a will, a person can compensate for neglecting obligations or charitable acts; benefiting individuals and communities with goodness and utility; relieving the needs of financially and socially disadvantaged people, fulfilling their necessities; and easing their hardships in life before their time comes to an end. By doing so, a person not only seeks goodness and charity but also reward. Simultaneously, a person may fear fulfilling their desire by donating money during their lifetime, fearing the need for this wealth to meet their worldly needs. For Islamic legislation to achieve what that person intends without any harm to them, the Islamic legislation of wills specifies the transfer of ownership after death to enable a person to achieve their goals without fear of needing bequeathed money during their lifetime. Thus, wills achieve worldly purposes as well as the afterlife purpose of increasing good deeds and righteous acts.

The Islamic legislation of wills empowers Muslims to compensate for what they missed in the past charitable acts, increase the number of good deeds that bring them closer to Allah, reward those who were kind to them during their life, and be kind and charitable to some of their relatives who are not heirs through blood ties, particularly those in poverty, by alleviating their poverty and need. It also provides an opportunity to provide money to those excluded from inheritance because of the presence of a closer relative, such as a grandfather when a father is present, or a son of a son when the son is present, as well as a brother, nephew, uncle, or a cousin in the presence of male heirs from the same side, particularly those in poverty.

Additionally, the legitimacy of wills contributes to wealth distribution rather than its concentration among the few individuals who circulate it among themselves, preventing many from being deprived of wealth [3,5,6].

A questioner might ask about the compatibility between the financial will made by the deceased in the Islamic system, the rights and shares of the heirs, and how the estate is distributed.

To answer this question, we say the following:

Inheritance, in Islamic law, goes to specific relatives with predetermined shares (fards) of the estate. These shares are mentioned in the Qur’an and Sunnah, which ensures that they receive fixed portions of the deceased’s estate.

Then, after distributing the fixed shares, the remaining estate (if any) is divided among the remaining heirs (the agnate) according to their hierarchical closeness to the deceased.

However, this distribution to the heirs does not take place until after the Muslim’s financial will for the overnight stay, if one exists, has been executed.

A Muslim has the right to bequeath up to a third of their property through their will to beneficiaries who are not legal heirs. This provision allows an individual to make personal decisions regarding part of their property while respecting mandatory shares.

None of the pre-specified heirs may benefit from the will. This ensures fairness and adherence to the divine allocation of shares.

In some jurisdictions, the implementation of wills and inheritances must comply with Islamic law and local civil laws. Here, legal advice may be necessary to ensure proper compliance.

In cases of disagreement between heirs or between the will and fixed shares, it can be resolved through arbitration by knowledgeable religious scholars or legal authorities.

Balancing the inheritance and the financial will of the deceased involves a careful understanding of the principles of Islamic law and any applicable civil laws. Ensuring debts and funeral expenses are settled first, calculating the amount allowed for the will, and then distributing the remaining inheritance according to fixed shares provides a fair and legally sound approach.

Writing a financial will in European countries as a Muslim requires careful integration of Islamic inheritance principles with local legal requirements. By consulting both legal professionals and Islamic scholars, clearly documenting wishes, and regularly reviewing the will, Muslims can ensure their estate is distributed in a manner that respects both their religious beliefs and the law.

• Second: The concept of ‘sustainable development’.

The term ‘development’ comes from the base ‘develop’. This implies that something has grown and developed. The growth of a fire implies that it has expanded. Al-Asma’i said ‘I (developed) the conversation in a simple way’, meaning I conveyed it in a manner of reform and goodness, and ‘I developed it until it grew’, meaning I conveyed it in a manner of gossip and corruption [7].

As for ‘sustainability’, it is derived from the verb ‘sustain’. Sustaining refers to continuity, stability, and perpetuation. Sustaining a comfortable life means ensuring its continuity and sustainability [8].

Sustainability in language means permanence, continuity, and communication.

Sustainable development has been defined in numerous ways; the most widely used definition is the following: ‘Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’ (The United Nations General Assembly established the ‘World Commission on Environment and Development’ and named it the ‘Brundtland Commission’. The General Assembly approved its report ‘Our Common Future’, which is the source of the definition of sustainable development (Page 83)).

This definition, which has been adopted by most sources concerned with sustainable development, has been widely recognised and accepted by numerous researchers. Sustainable development, in this sense, requires solidarity, collaboration, and integration between contemporary generations and future generations to ensure the rights of future generations. It focuses on fairness and balance between present and future generations, where the intersection of the concept of wills and sustainable development becomes apparent.

The concept of development is generally based on people, who are the primary goals of human development politically, economically, socially, culturally, scientifically, and intellectually. Over the past three decades, the world has realised that current development models are no longer sustainable because consumer lifestyles are linked to serious crises, such as pollution, global warming, floods, and the depletion of non-renewable resources. This has led to the need for sustainable development programmes to achieve development goals while protecting and sustaining the environment [9].

The concept of sustainable development represents a historical evolution in economic development theory across various schools, addressing the shortcomings of previous theories. It attempts to address the main gaps in developing countries and seeks to provide comprehensive evidence after previous theories focused on a single criterion. Sustainable development gained importance through its adoption by the United Nations.

This development and its objectives do not conflict with the objectives of Islamic law and its developmental perspective, which refers to individual well-being, enhancing dignity, preserving health, and conserving the environment through various indicators that sustainable development seeks to enhance, as long as these objectives or indicators are regulated in accordance with the interests of Islamic law and are subject to the criteria of what is permissible and prohibited [10].

It is also important to consider the dimensions that sustainable development aims to achieve by referring to its consequences. Considering that the consequences of actions are significant and purposeful in Islamic law, actions must be adapted accordingly to prevent harm. Therefore, it is essential to align the objectives of sustainable development with Sharia interests and regulations [10].

8. Chapter One: The Impact of Wills on Achieving Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, the United Nations set forth sustainable development goals, comprising a set of 17 interconnected goals designed to form a ‘roadmap for achieving a better and more sustainable future for all humanity’. The goals are as follows:

Goal 1. Eliminating poverty in all its forms everywhere.

Goal 2. Eliminating hunger, providing food security and improved nutrition, and promoting sustainable agriculture.

Goal 3. Ensuring healthy lives and well-being for everyone at all ages.

Goal 4. Ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all.

Goal 5. Achieving gender equality.

Goal 6. Ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation services for all.

Goal 7. Ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all.

Goal 8. Promoting sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all.

Goal 9. Building resilient infrastructure, promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and fostering innovation.

Goal 10. Reducing inequality within and among countries.

Goal 11. Making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable.

Goal 12. Ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns.

Goal 13. Taking urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.

Goal 14. Conserving oceans, seas, and marine resources and using them sustainably to achieve sustainable development.

Goal 15. Protecting, restoring, and promoting sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems.

Goal 16. Promoting peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, providing access to justice for all, and building effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions at all levels.

Goal 17. Strengthening the means of implementation and revitalizing the global partnership for sustainable development.

These goals, set by the United Nations General Assembly in 2015 and intended to be achieved by 2030, are part of a United Nations resolution called the ‘2030 Agenda’.

These broad goals are interconnected, although each has its own specific sub-goals, totalling 169.

These goals, as stated above, cover a wide range of social and economic development issues (poverty, hunger, health, education, climate change, gender equality, water, sanitation, energy, environment, and social justice). Sustainable development goals include four fundamental pillars: the environment, social development, economic development, and partnerships.

The unique feature of sustainable development goals is that they are the first agreement to which 193 member states of the United Nations worldwide adhere. Each member state is required to develop a national action plan outlining future plans for implementing the sustainable development goals [11].

8.1. First Section: The Impact of Wills on Eliminating Poverty and Hunger

Poverty and hunger are among the most significant obstacles to societal development, hindering the renaissance and development of societies.

Eliminating extreme poverty and hunger topped the list of the Third Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations. Thus, development and poverty have an inverse relationship; as progress and development increase, poverty and deprivation decrease in society, and the impact of sustainable development begins to appear in the renaissance of societies and the improvement of individuals’ conditions.

One way to achieve this sustainable development goal is through wills, which are included in Islam’s legislative system. Wills provide a distinctive mechanism for achieving the goal of sustainable development by addressing poverty and hunger and alleviating the suffering of financially and socially disadvantaged people. This has been emphasised in the Quran and the Prophetic Sunna, and its implementation has increased in the lives of Muslims as a result of Prophet Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, urging ceaseless charity in his saying, ‘When a man dies, his deeds come to an end except for three things: ceaseless charity, a knowledge which is beneficial, or a virtuous descendant who prays for him (for the deceased)’ [12].

A will is considered ceaseless charity, as mentioned in some Hadith narrations on the authority of Abdullah bin Abi Qatada, on the authority of his father, on the authority of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace.

‘Three things follow a Muslim after his death: a charity that he gave, for which he will be rewarded, a righteous child who prays for him, and knowledge that he revealed and that is acted upon after his death’ [13].

When we contemplate the delegated will in Islam, the wisdom behind its legislation, and the forms that are mentioned by scholars in their books, such as wills for financially disadvantaged people, feeding the hungry, and funding charitable causes, we find a good legislative gesture that contributes to achieving the noble goal of sustainable development in Muslim societies by eliminating poverty and hunger, fulfilling needs, and providing dignified livelihoods. Additionally, we find that the practical application of the system of wills in the lives of Muslims throughout history has played a significant role in alleviating poverty, drying up its sources in the Islamic world, attempting to achieve self-sufficiency and improving people’s conditions through what benefactors have recommended throughout history in the legal wills of spending money on those in poverty, providing them with assistance, addressing their needs, providing a dignified life for them, alleviating hunger for those in need, and ensuring food security for them.

Moreover, they have worked to reduce the gaps between social classes through various means, such as meeting the basic needs of those in poverty for housing, food, and clothing. Numerous resources have been allocated to raise living standards and bridge the gap between them and the wealthy. Supporting those in poverty by providing cash and assistance has become a common theme in most Muslim wills.

During the Ottoman Caliphate era, institutions called ‘Takayas’ spread in Islamic countries under their authority. Takayas became well known for providing free popular meals to those in poverty, those living near mosques, and those serving in mosques. They are prevalent in several Islamic cities, such as Damascus, Baghdad, Basra, Mecca, Hijaz, Sulaymaniyah, Jerusalem, Hebron, Tripoli, Maghreb, and Egypt, among others [10].

Some of these Takayas were the result of wills made by benevolent Muslims and their endowments at that time, driven by a desire for rewards and commitment to meeting the needs of the impoverished in society.

Benevolent wills in various eras of Muslim nations, guided by Islam’s encouragement of ongoing charity, have accumulated productive capital allocated to charitable activities in societies, contributing to sustainable development and aiding financially and socially disadvantaged people.

Wills are voluntary financial acts of worship performed by Muslims to seek the satisfaction of their Lord and earn rewards. They also work to meet the needs of the society in which they live by making the testator feel that they are part of Muslim society, helping financially disadvantaged people, meeting their needs with kindness, and making those in poverty feel that they live in a society that guarantees them a decent life, thus filling the needs of society and developing it voluntarily.

When we talk about the contribution of wills to addressing poverty and hunger, it is binding upon Muslims today to utilise legitimate wills and employ them in a way that achieves their goals by directing wealthy individuals towards innovative ideas that meet the needs of vulnerable groups in Muslim societies, contribute to eliminating poverty, provide food for them, and ensure food security; this includes establishing food banks and projects as well as endowment funds that adopt developmental goals that benefit those in poverty. Efforts to address poverty and hunger ultimately contribute to strengthening the foundational pillars of ‘sustainable development’, a process aimed at securing the continuity of essential needs for present and future generations.

8.2. Third Section: The Impact of Wills on Providing Education and Sponsorship for Learners

The magical key to development that is indispensable for achieving sustainable development is knowledge. It contributes to shaping developmental mindsets that resort to scientific methods for problem-solving rather than erratic approaches devoid of methodology or automatic deviations towards ideological solutions [14].

Access to good education is the foundation upon which people can improve their lives and achieve sustainable development.

Wills have played a significant role in providing education and sponsorship for students, both theoretically and practically, and scholars have mentioned within the recommended forms of wills evidence of this, stating, ‘It is recommended for one who leaves behind much wealth to allocate a fifth of it to a needy relative, or else to a poor person, or a scholar’ [15].They have also affirmed the validity of wills to scientific institutions, schools, and public interests, as stated by the Maliki and Hanbali schools, allowing their maintenance and operation unless their usage was specified by clear evidence.

Furthermore, wills in Muslims’ lives have contributed to the establishment of schools, Quranic schools, and various learning centres, providing the necessary maintenance for them, paying salaries to their staff, disseminating knowledge, advancing education, eradicating illiteracy, providing books and scientific libraries recommended by their owners to their heirs or students, and for publicly benefitting society after their death. Alongside endowments, wills have been a crucial element in the educational systems of Muslim societies at various stages, providing social advancement for different segments of society and elevating numerous individuals with low social status to the highest scientific, social, and political levels.

8.3. Fourth Section: The Impact of Wills on Healthcare Provisions

The sustainable development goals pursued by the United Nations in the current era emphasise that ensuring a healthy life and promoting well-being at all ages are essential for achieving sustainable development.

Wills contribute to achieving this goal through the agreement of scholars on the validity of wills for public entities such as mosques, schools of knowledge, hospitals, libraries, shelters, and similar institutions, whether the will is specific, such as a library, or general, such as rent for a house or commercial property, either permanently or temporarily [16,17].

For a long time, Muslims have directed their wills towards these entities, and their wills, alongside their endowments, have had a significant impact on providing healthcare, building hospitals, providing facilities, and contributing to medical progress in terms of knowledge and practise. This trend has persisted for several centuries. Numerous historians of Islamic history attribute scientific progress and the prosperity of medicine, pharmacy, and chemistry in Muslim countries to the Islamic endowment system [17].

Anyone who traces the history of medicine and hospitals in Islam will find that some of them were the result of the benevolent wills of Muslims in collaboration with the Islamic endowment system, which played a major role in their establishment in Muslim societies.

Moreover, Muslims’ desire to build mosques, religious centres, and related infrastructure has provided psychological stability to individuals, connecting them with their Lord and distancing them from the complexities of life. This contributes to self-development, sustained progress, and ensures the mental well-being of both heirs and legatees. It also fosters a sense of peace, contentment, and spiritual satisfaction in the legatees.

9. Chapter Two: The Impact of Wills on Achieving the Dimensions of Sustainable Development

Sustainable development is based on three fundamental dimensions: the economy, society, and environment. These dimensions and three elements are linked and intertwined to a significant extent. The economy is one of the main drivers of society, determining its nature (industrial, agricultural, pastoral, etc.). Society shapes the economy and forms the basic structures of prevalent economic patterns, depending on the economic ideology adopted by the society (capitalist, socialist, and Islamic). The environment provides a general framework that influences economic activity.

The environment is also influenced by the behaviours of members of society and impacts their health conditions and activities. Therefore, any successful sustainable development programme must achieve harmony and integration among these three elements, blending them into one crucible to enhance the quality levels of these elements together to achieve economic growth, meet the requirements of society, ensure environmental safety, and simultaneously preserve the rights of future generations to natural resources.

When we delve into the philosophy of legislation regarding wills and their wisdom, we find that they can provide several human needs and requirements, achieving the economic, cultural, social, and humanitarian dimensions aimed at by sustainable development.

These points are elaborated in the following sections.

9.1. First Section: The Impact of Wills on Achieving the Economic Dimension of Sustainable Development

The economic element is a fundamental pillar in the process of sustainable development and is based on the principle of maximising societal welfare to the fullest extent; enhancing living standards, health, security, and education; and eliminating poverty and needs through the rational and efficient utilisation of resources. The concept of basic needs refers to the world’s impoverished people, who should be prioritised [18].

The will system in Islam has a significant impact on economic development and achieving this pillar in sustainable development through its legislative provisions, which has resulted in developmental projects in Muslim societies, providing them with diverse resources and goods and contributing to various aspects of their religious, humanitarian, cultural, scientific, economic, social, and service-oriented characteristics.

Moreover, the wills of benefactors can be a means of providing productive capital [10], passing on a portion of the present generation’s capital to the next generation, and providing infrastructure and facilities such as roads, hospitals, schools, wells, rivers, and so on, which contribute to augment economic activity.

Additionally, legal wills can contribute to advancing and developing scientific research, playing a major role in enhancing education, developing facilities, caring for students, and providing all the elements that ensure a decent life throughout the period of their acquisition for science.

Furthermore, the social role that wills can play significantly contributes to sustainable economic development by providing the basic needs of financially and socially disadvantaged people in terms of housing, food, drinking, education, and healthcare. This helps develop their capabilities and increase their productivity, ensuring an increase in the quality and quantity of the human workforce, which is the main axis of the economic development process. Assisting the state in providing basic needs also directs financial surpluses that are supposed to be spent on non-productive social aspects towards productive investment projects that generate profits.

Wills also impact the revitalisation of the charitable sector, while simultaneously addressing the issue of unemployment and providing public services for those unable to obtain them from the state, such as education, healthcare, and clean water.

Thus, wills are essentially a transfer of funds from immediate consumption to future investment, yielding benefits and revenue to be consumed in the future, individually or collectively. In this sense, wills are considered an investment process that leads to an increase in the production of goods and services in society, which produces services and benefits which include a place of prayer in mosques, a bed for a patient in the hospital, or a place for a student at a school or university. Thus, wills are a process of investing in the future and building productive wealth for future generations to benefit from their returns and to distribute future resources in the form of benefits, services, revenues, and returns, which will ultimately benefit the future of societies.

A meditator can recognise the close relationship between the system of wills and the economy through the fact that wills lead to limiting the expansion of individual private wealth, encouraging its broader circulation by willing a portion of the wealth, estates, and money of wealthy individuals to private or public interests.

Considering this, wills contribute to the process of income redistribution in society, which is one of the biggest challenges facing most economies today because income distribution among members of society, based on the functional criteria of production elements, which rely on labour in income distribution and ownership in wealth distribution, leads to inequality in income and savings among members of society, and, thus, the accumulation of wealth among a certain class of society members. Over time, this leads to increased inequality between social classes and the emergence of class differences among society’s members. Therefore, Islam has paid attention to its legislation through the process of income distribution through various financial and social policies, including obligatory policies such as zakat, inheritances, expiration, and voluntary policies such as endowments, wills, gifts, and charity, to promote the process of income redistribution in favour of the financially and socially disadvantaged classes in Muslim societies.

The Impact of Wills on Securing Natural Resources: ‘Water as a Model’.

Ensuring and facilitating access to clean drinking water are major goals of sustainable development in the current era. Water scarcity poses a significant challenge in achieving this goal.

The Islamic wills system contributes to securing water resources and making them available to everyone, thereby supporting the sustainability of life in its simplest form through the inspiration of wealthy Muslims by the noble prophetic guidance in this regard, including the statement of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, ‘Whoever digs a well, no thirsty soul will drink from it whether it be a human, jinn, or bird, except that Allah will reward them on the Day of Judgment’ [19].

The Prophet, peace be upon him, also advised Saad ibn Abada, when he asked him ‘O Messenger of Allah, my mother has died, should I give charity on her behalf’? He said, ‘Yes’. I said, ‘Which charity is better?’ He said, ‘Giving water’. So he dug a well and said, ‘This is for Saad’s mother’ [19].

Saad’s hadith indicates the importance of including water provisions because of its significant rewards and widespread benefits. Perhaps this was what the writers of hadith understood when they mentioned it in the book of wills from their hadith books.

9.2. Second Section: The Impact of Wills on Achieving the Social Dimension of Sustainable Development

Community development refers to ‘achieving solidarity and social harmony among members of society through cooperation and integration with other social systems, ensuring social justice while preserving human dignity.

The system of wills in Islam is a distinctive Islamic model of societal sustainability, as it is a source of all good charitable deeds, it constitutes a strong guarantee for various aspects of charity and social solidarity, and it is a great form of donations that achieve good for human society, elevating it for the better.

Wills can be employed to benefit societies through charity and kindness towards others and they simultaneously benefit the benefactors themselves by earning rewards and blessings from Allah, the Almighty.

The Holy Quran has drawn Muslims’ attention to the social aspect of wills, as Allah says the following:

‘It is prescribed that when death approaches any of you—if they leave something of value—a will should be made in favour of parents and immediate family with fairness. This is an obligation on those who are mindful of Allah.

Some previous scholars believed that this verse was not abrogated and that its ruling remains valid.

Ibn Hazm Al-Zahiri said the following: ‘It is obligatory for every Muslim to will for his non-inheriting relatives [20].

However, several scholars consider the willingness of relatives who are non-heirs as a recommended form of wills, and they mentioned that it is preferable for the testator to give to those who are not heirs among their relatives, then to non-relatives, then to those related by breastfeeding, then by marriage, and then by proximity, which is the order of preference in voluntary charity [13,21].

This affirms the social purposes of the wills, explicitly showing their contribution to strengthening family ties by allocating a portion of wealth to those who are not entitled to inheritance, thus fortifying familial foundations, fostering cooperation among family members, and surrounding them with a strong barrier against the dissolution and breakdown of its bonds, thereby achieving the desired social cohesion.

The social aspect is also evident in the interpretation of the term ‘neighbours’ in wills according to the Shafi’i and Hanbali scholars, who said the following:

‘They are forty houses from each side of the four sides of the house’ [17]. This highlights the role of good neighbourliness in sustainable development by enhancing social bonds among residents of the same community and forming social responsibilities, transforming suburbs and neighbourhoods from mere adjacent houses into cohesive and cooperative entities, united by one place, and working together towards its development, preservation, and protection from harm [14,22].

The social dimension of sustainable development is embodied in the system of wills as interpreted by scholars, who concluded that the legatee does not need to be united with the testator in religion or residence. Therefore, a Muslim’s will to a non-Muslim is valid, as is a non-Muslim’s will to a Muslim. Similarly, a will is valid even with differences in residence. Unity or diversity in religion or residence does not affect the validity of the will, as detailed by them, despite the differences in some previous discussions [16].

The Sahabiya (female companion) Safiyya bint Huyayy realised this social significance of wills when she bequeathed a portion of her wealth to her Jewish brother on the authority of ‘Ikrima, that Safiyya bint Huyayy sold her property to Mu’awiyah for one hundred thousand, and she had a Jewish brother. She offered him conversion to Islam so that he could inherit, but he refused, so she bequeathed one-third of the amount to him’ [23].

The social dimension of wills reached its peak in contemporary legal jurisprudence, stating obligatory wills for orphans whose fathers died during their grandfather’s lifetime, addressing an existing social problem. This ruling is based on some Quranic verses, the opinions of some scholars, and consideration of the public interest, and mandates that grandfathers bequeath to the excluded grandchildren from their paternal uncles an amount equal to what the deceased son would have deserved from the grandfather’s inheritance, up to one-third, if they are non-heirs [9].

The above discussion indicates the impact of wills on achieving the social dimension, one of the main pillars of sustainable development, by achieving social justice, consolidating social cohesion, and eliminating factors that lead to division among relatives, such as conflict, contention, bitterness, envy, grudges, and feelings of oppression, in addition to providing a resource that they may greatly need.

In several forms mentioned by scholars, wills achieve social solidarity among different segments of society, forming part of the solidarity laws in Islam by reducing differences between classes, distributing resources among specific social classes, assisting them in meeting their needs, and turning them into productive energies, thus creating an atmosphere of security and tranquillity that prevails in societies and eliminating hatred and envy that may have built up in people of various classes.

Wills also contribute to the redistribution of wealth. The initial distribution process of national income leads to each factor of production—natural resources, capital, and organisation—obtaining its share of participation in the production process. Often, the initial distribution of national income results in differences between individuals in income and savings, and thus in the accumulation of wealth, leading to the emergence of class systems in societies. Over time, and with the succession of the initial distribution processes of national income, the differences between social classes increase. Redistribution processes through financial and social policies may be mandatory, such as zakat, expenses for relatives, inheritances, competencies, and vows, or may be voluntarily or religiously adhered to by individuals, such as endowments, gifts, charities, and bequests from prosperous and wealthy public welfare institutions and financially and socially disadvantaged people to promote the redistribution process [24,25].

Based on these considerations, wills serve as an effective means to achieve social justice, upon which the pillars of sustainable development are based, in light of their assistance to financially and socially disadvantaged people and alleviating their problems. Therefore, they have played a significant role in instilling the values of moderation, mercy, and love in societies, contributing to the reduction in psychological and social ailments such as selfishness, miserliness, and stinginess among testators and hatred and envy among those in poverty.

Wills can play a significant role in social mobilisation, strengthening bonds, and building bridges of love and affection, thus becoming clear influencers aimed at preserving human dignity, providing dignified livelihoods, and supporting communities. When properly employed according to their legislative philosophy, wills represent a source of social capital, which is considered a fundamental principle of sustainable development in Islam, embodying its social dimension.

Today, our societies need to invoke Islamic social values derived from divine revelation, achieving solidarity among their members by utilising wills and employing them to embody this noble goal.

A questioner might ask about the lack of accurate statistics on the impact of a financial will on achieving development goals and sustainable realities in the lives of Muslims.

To answer that, we say the following:

The reason for this is that Muslims mostly write their wills within the family and do not document them with government agencies because of a lack of legal infrastructure.

In some Muslim-majority countries, the legal infrastructure to support the writing, registering, and executing of wills might be underdeveloped. This can make the process cumbersome and discourage people from using wills.

10. Conclusions

In conclusion, the key findings of this study are as follows:

First, sustainable development is a planned and purposeful process that considers the reality of generations and their future when dealing with human and natural resources. It addresses the problems of individuals, groups, and organisations in improving their quality of life.

Second, Islam, as much as it cares about benefiting the current generation, also focuses on benefits for future generations. This makes sustainable development a tangible and practical reality, creating interconnected links throughout the ages where each generation works to benefit the next.

Third, the philosophy of Islam and its approach emphasise the rights of future generations to the wealth of present generations.

This is evident in its legislation and various applications, including the system of wills, which connect present and future generations, benefiting both the deceased and the living equally, strengthening social bonds and improving them by linking family ties, improving the conditions of those in poverty, healing them, and providing education and treatment to them.

Fourth, the philosophy of legislating wills in Islam promotes the connection between the present and future generations brightly and compassionately, fostering charity, empathy, and integration. The Islamic system of wills allows individuals to participate in creating a better future for future generations.

This is the ultimate goal of sustainable development, which acts as a link between current and future generations to ensure the continuity of human life, achieve dignified living standards, and provide resources for the next generation.

Fifth, wills, as forms of charitable contracts, are beneficial and have a significant impact on meeting the needs of societies across scientific, religious, health, and social fields, particularly when properly formulated and implemented.

Sixth, the practical implementation of the system of wills in the lives of Muslims, according to their legislative philosophy, plays a major role in easing poverty, addressing its root causes in the Islamic world, striving for self-sufficiency, improving conditions, providing social and educational care, and embodying the economic and social dimensions of sustainable development.

Seventh, the Islamic wills system has achieved seven sustainable development goals in accordance with the vision of the United Nations, as shown by the sub-headings of the research mentioned above.