Oaths and Vows (Kitab Al-Aiman Wa Al-Nudhur)

كتاب الأيمان والنذور

Chapter 20: Making An Exception (Saying: In-Sha'-Allah) After Swearing One's Oath

Narrated Ikrimah ibn AbuJahl

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: I swear by Allah, I shall fight against the Quraysh; I swear by Allah, I shall fight against the Quraysh; I swear by Allah, I shall fight against the Quraysh. He then said: "If Allah wills."

Abu Dawud said: A number of persons have narrated this tradition from Sharik, from Simak, from 'Ikrimah, from Ibn 'Abbas who reported from the Prophet (ﷺ): "But he did not fight against them."

Chapter 22: Vowing To Commit An Act Of Disobedience

Narrated 'Aishah

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: If anyone vows to obey Allah, let him obey Him, but if anyone vows to disobey Him, let him not disobey Him.

Chapter 23: The View That Atonement Is Necessary If A Man Vows To Disobey Allah

Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin

The Prophet (ﷺ) as saying: No vow must be taken to do an act of disobedience, and the atonement for it is the same as for an oath.

The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by al-Zuhri through a different chain of narrators to the same effect.Abu Dawud said

Abu Dawud said: I heard Ahmad b. Hanbal say: I have corrupted this tradition for us. He was asked: Do you think that it is correct that this tradition has been corrupted? Has any person other than Ibn Abi Uwais transmitted it ? He replied: Ayyub was similar to him in respect of reliability, and Ayyub transmitted it.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas

A man came to Prophet (ﷺ) and said: Messenger of Allah, my sister has taken a vow to perform hajj on foot. The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Allah gets no good from the affliction your sister imposed on herself, so let her perform hajj riding and make atonement for her oath.

Chapter 5: It Is Disliked To Swear By One's Forefathers

Narrated AbuHurayrah

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Do not swear by your fathers, or by your mothers, or by rivals to Allah; and swear by Allah only, and swear by Allah only when you are speaking the truth.

Narrated Ibn 'Umar

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) found 'Umar al-Khattab in a caravan while he was swearing by his father. So he said: Allah forbids you to swear by forefathers. If anyone swears, he must swear by Allah or keep silence.

Referring to the story of a bedouin, Talhah b. 'Ubaid Allah reported the Prophet (ﷺ) as saying

He became successful, by his father, if he speaks the truth, he will enter paradise, by his father, if he speaks truth.

Chapter 8: Ambiguity In Oaths

Narrated Suwayd ibn Hanzalah

We went out intending (to visit) the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and Wa'il ibn Hujr was with us. His enemy caught him. The people desisted from swearing an oath, but I took an oath that he was my brother. So he left him. We then came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and I informed him that the people desisted from taking the oath, but I swore that he was my brother. He said: You spoke the truth: A Muslim is a brother of a Muslim.

Chapter 9: What Has Been Reported About Swearing That One Has Nothing To Do With Islam Or That One Belongs To Another Religion

Narrated Thabit bin Adh-Dahhak

That he took oath of allegiance to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) under the tree. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: If anyone swears by religion other than Islam falsely, he is like what has has said. If anyone kills himself with something, he will be punished with it on the Day of Resurrection. A vow over which a man has no control is not binding on him.

Chapter 11: Saying "If Allah Wills" When Swearing An Oath

Narrated Abdullah ibn Umar

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: If anyone swears an oath and makes an exception, he may fulfil it if he wishes and break it if he wishes without any accountability for breaking.

Chapter 12: How The Prophet (saws) Swore An Oath

Narrated AbuSa'id al-Khudri

When the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) swore an oath strongly, he said: No, by Him in Whose hand is the soul of AbulQasim.

Narrated AbuHurayrah

When the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) swore an oath, it was: No, and I beg forgiveness of Allah.

Narrated Laqit ibn Amir

We came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) in a delegation. The Prophet (ﷺ) then said: By the age of thy god.

Chapter 14: One Who Swears Not To Eat Food

Narrated 'Abd al-Rahman b. Abi Bakr

Some guests visited us, and Abu Bakr was conversing with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) at night. He (Abu Bakr) said: I will not return to you until you are free from their entertainment and serving them food. So he brought them food, but they said: We shall not eat it until Abu Bakr comes (back). Abu Bakr then came and asked: What did your guest do? Are you free from their entertainment ? They said: No. I said: I brought them food, but they refused and said: We swear by Allah, we shall not take it until he comes. They said: He spoke the truth. He brought it to us, but we refused (to take it) until you come. He asked: What did prevent you ? He said: I swear by Allah, I shall not take food tonight. They said: And we also swear by Allah that we shall not take food until you take it. He said: I never saw an evil like the one tonight. He said: Bring your food near (you). He ('Abd al-Rahman) said: Their food was then brought near them. He said: In the name of Allah, and he took the food, and they also took it. I then informed him that the dawn had broken. So he went to th Prophet (ﷺ) and informed him of what he and they had done. He said: You are the most obedient and most trustful of them.

A similar tradition has also been transmitted by 'Abd al-Rahman b. Abi Bakr through a different chain of narrators. This version adds on the authority of Salim

"Expiation (for breaking the oath) has not reached me."

Chapter 15: An Oath To Sever Ties Of Kinship

Sa'id ibn al-Musayyab said

Umar said to him: The Ka'bah does not need your property. Make atonement for your oath and speak to your brother. I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: An oath or vow to disobey the Lord, or to break ties of relationship or about something over which one has no control is not binding on you.

Chapter 20: Making An Exception (Saying: In-Sha'-Allah) After Swearing One's Oath

Narrated 'Ikrimah

The Prophet (ﷺ) as saying: I swear by Allah, I shall fight against the Quraish. The then said: If Allah wills. He again said: I swear by Allah, I shall fight against the Quraish if Allah wills. He again said: I swear by Allah, I shall fight against the Quraish. He then kept silence. Then he said: If Allah wills.

Abu Dawud said: Al-Walid b. Muslim said on the authority of Sharik: He then said: But he did not fight against them.

Chapter 21: Is It Disliked To Make Vows

Narrated Abu Hurairah

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: A vow does not provide for the son of Adam anything which I did not decree for him, but a vow draws it. A Divine decree is one which I have destined, it is extracted from a miser. He is given what he was not given before.

Chapter 23: The View That Atonement Is Necessary If A Man Vows To Disobey Allah

Narrated Ibn 'Abbas

That the sister of 'Uqbah b. 'Amir took vow to walk on foot to the Ka'bah. Thereupon the Prophet (ﷺ) ordered her to ride and slaughter a sacrificial animal.