Shafi'i
The Shafi'i school follows Imam al-Nawawi's Minhaj al-Talibin as its relied-upon manual. On the question of a grandfather's standing among his grandchild's siblings, Shafi'i reasoning traces back to a companion-era ruling by Zayd ibn Thabit, who treated the grandfather as if he were simply another brother sharing in the sibling group, rather than someone who outranks and excludes them.
How It Differs
Unlike Hanafi, a paternal grandfather does not exclude full or consanguine siblings under Shafi'i fiqh — they inherit together. The grandfather and the siblings' shares are pooled and then split between them at the familiar 2:1 male-to-female ratio, rather than the grandfather taking everything alone.
A Worked Example
A woman dies leaving her mother, her paternal grandfather, and one full sister, with no surviving husband or father.
The mother takes her fixed 1/3 share first. What remains is then pooled between the grandfather and the sister and split 2:1 in the grandfather's favor — over a base of 9, the mother receives 3/9, the grandfather 4/9, and the sister 2/9.
Source: Direct-fetched worked example ("Al-Mas'alah al-Kharqa'a") from a peer-reviewed academic source, cross-confirmed against a direct primary-text excerpt of Minhaj al-Talibin itself.
This page offers general educational information, not a personalized legal or religious ruling. Please consult a qualified scholar and legal advisor before acting on it.
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