Special Faraid Cases: Khunsa, Mafqud, Unborn Child, Simultaneous Death & Severed Lineage

Five heir situations requiring special methods — the first three revolve around the principle of ihtiyat (caution): give no more than what is certain, withhold what is doubtful; the last two have definitive rulings.

In these cases an heir's status — their gender, whether they are still alive, or their lineage — is unclear or severed, so ordinary faraid cannot be calculated without additional methods.

1. Khunsa musykil (indeterminate gender)

An heir whose gender cannot be determined (unclear physical intersex cases). The Shafi'i method: calculate the distribution under BOTH assumptions (male & female); every heir — including the khunsa — receives the smaller share of the two scenarios; the difference is withheld (mawquf) until their status is confirmed (medically/by court).

2. Mafqud (missing person)

An heir who has disappeared without news. Two scenarios are calculated — "alive" and "deceased": the mafqud's share is fully withheld, and the other heirs take the minimum of the two scenarios. Final resolution awaits their return or a court declaring their death (in Malaysia: after the period & procedure under Islamic family/civil law).

3. Haml (unborn child)

A foetus already conceived at the deceased's death is entitled to inherit IF born alive. In the meantime, six possibilities are calculated (one boy/girl; twin boys/girls/mixed; not born alive) — the foetus's maximum share is withheld, and the other heirs receive the certain minimum.

4. Simultaneous death (al-gharqa wal-hadma)

Two people who would inherit from each other die in the same event — drowning, fire, collapse, accident — and the order of death is unknown. The majority ruling (including Shafi'i) is definitive: they do not inherit from each other; each person's estate goes directly to their surviving heirs. Historical precedent: the Amwas plague & wars of Umar RA's era — the Companions did not pass inheritance between victims who died together. If the order is known (the later one survived briefly), they inherit — and the case becomes munasakhat.

5. Severed lineage (illegitimate & li'an children)

A child born out of wedlock (illegitimate) or disavowed through a li'an oath has no paternal lineage — their lineage is to the mother only. The inheritance effect is two-way: they do not inherit from the biological father or any paternal relatives (and vice versa), while the maternal side remains fully intact. An important detail: their biologically "full" siblings count as maternal (uterine) siblings only. Per Malaysian fatwa, lineage is not established even if the parents later marry; for a li'an child, lineage is re-established if the father retracts his li'an.

💡 All five cases are available in the eFaraid Special Cases Calculator — scenario comparison tables, certain shares & withheld (mawquf) totals for the three ihtiyat cases, plus definitive tables for simultaneous death and severed lineage.