Narrated Ibn `Abbas:Regarding the Qur'anic Verse: 'O you who believe! You are forbidden to inherit women against their will.' (4.19) The custom (in the Pre-lslamic Period) was that if a man died, his relatives used to have the right to inherit his wife, and if one of them wished, he could marry her, or they could marry her to somebody else, or prevent her from marrying if they wished, for they had more right to dispose of her than her own relatives. Therefore this Verse was revealed concerning this matter.
حَدَّثَنَا حُسَيْنُ بْنُ مَنْصُورٍ، حَدَّثَنَا أَسْبَاطُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ، حَدَّثَنَا الشَّيْبَانِيُّ، سُلَيْمَانُ بْنُ فَيْرُوزَ عَنْ عِكْرِمَةَ، عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ،. قَالَ الشَّيْبَانِيُّ وَحَدَّثَنِي عَطَاءٌ أَبُو الْحَسَنِ السُّوَائِيُّ،، وَلاَ أَظُنُّهُ إِلاَّ ذَكَرَهُ عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ {يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لاَ يَحِلُّ لَكُمْ أَنْ تَرِثُوا النِّسَاءَ كَرْهًا} الآيَةَ قَالَ كَانُوا إِذَا مَاتَ الرَّجُلُ كَانَ أَوْلِيَاؤُهُ أَحَقَّ بِامْرَأَتِهِ، إِنْ شَاءَ بَعْضُهُمْ تَزَوَّجَهَا، وَإِنْ شَاءُوا زَوَّجَهَا، وَإِنْ شَاءُوا لَمْ يُزَوِّجْهَا، فَهُمْ أَحَقُّ بِهَا مِنْ أَهْلِهَا، فَنَزَلَتْ هَذِهِ الآيَةُ فِي ذَلِكَ.
Bukhari
(Statements made under) Coercion • Hadith 9