if she had taken possession of it, he would not have had the right to retract it. Likewise is the saying of 'Umar: "There is no gift (nahl) except a gift that the child takes possession of to the exclusion of the parent." Furthermore, because it is a gift to his child, it becomes binding upon death just as it would have if it were an isolated instance. His statement, "If that was during his lifetime (health)," indicates that his gift during his terminal illness to some of his heirs is not effective; because gifts made during a terminal illness are in the status of a bequest, in that they are reckoned from the third (of the estate) if made to a non-heir by consensus. Therefore, it is not effective regarding the heir either. Ibn al-Mundhir said: "Every scholar I have memorized from has reached a consensus that the ruling on gifts made during the illness of which the donor dies is the same as the ruling on bequests." This is the school of thought of al-Madini, al-Shafi'i, and the Kufi (Abu Hanifah). If he gives to one of his children during his health, then gives to another during his illness, Ahmad remained hesitant about this. He was asked about a man who married off his son and paid the dowry on his behalf, then the father became ill and he had another son; does he give to him [during his illness] just as he gave to his other son during his health? He replied: "If he had given it to him during his health, it admits two possibilities. One: It is not valid, because his gift during his illness is like his bequest, and if he had made a bequest to him, it would not be valid; thus, it is the same if he gives it to him. Second: It is valid, because equality between them is obligatory, and there is no way to achieve it in this situation except by giving to the other, so it becomes obligatory and thus valid, like the repayment of his debt."

Section: Ahmad said: "I prefer that he does not divide his wealth, and that he leaves it according to the obligatory shares (fara'id) of Allah Almighty, perhaps he might have more children born to him. If he gives his child his wealth, then a child is born to him, it is more pleasing to me that he retracts (the gift) and divides it equally among them." He means that he retracts the whole, or retracts some of what he gave to each of them in order to hand it over (10) to this newly born child, so that he may be equal to his siblings. If this child is born after the death, he does not have