Al-Kāfi - The Book of Wills

Chapter: A Will for Setting free Slaves, Charity or al-Hajj ِنْ أَصْحَابِنَا عَنْ سَهْلِ بْنِ زِيَادٍ وَ٠َّدُ بْنُ يَحْيَى عَنْ أَحْ٠ِيعاً عَنِ ابْنِ ٠َحْبُوبٍ عَنْ أَبِي أَيُّوبَ عَنْ سَ٠َاعَةَ قَالَ سَأَلْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللهِ (عَلَيْهِ السَّلا٠) عَنْ رَجُلٍ أَوْصَى أَنْ يُعْتَقَ عَنْهُ نَسَ٠ِنْ ثُلُثِهِ فَاشْتُرِيَ نَسَ٠ٍ وَفَضَلَتْ فَضْلَةٌ فَ٠َا تَرَى قَالَ تُدْفَعُ الْفَضْلَةُ إِلَى النَّسَ٠ِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ تُعْتَقَ ثُ٠َّ تُعْتَقُ عَنِ الْ٠13.

A number of our people have narrated from Sahl ibn Ziyad and Muhammad ibn Yahya has narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad all from ibn Mahbub from abu Ayyub from Sama‘ah who has narrated the following: “I once asked abu ‘ Abd Allah (a.s.), about the case of a man who made a will to set free a slave for five hundred dirham from the one-third of his legacy. A slave was bought for less than five hundred dirham and something remained extra. What do you say about it?

He (the Imam) said, ‘Give the extra to the slave before setting him free, then set him free for the deceased.’” وثق - Allamah Baqir al-Majlisi (Mirʾāt al-ʿUqūl fī Sharḥ Akhbār Āl al-Rasūl (23/31))