I vowed to sponsor an orphan; is it required to do so every month, or is one month sufficient?

Question:
May Allah reward you with good. The questioner says: Honorable Shaykh, I went to perform 'Umrah, and during the tawaf (circumambulation) of the Ka'bah, I made a vow to Allah the Exalted, swearing by Him: "O Lord, if I pass the first and second stages of the exam for the college I was accepted into and am studying in, I will sponsor an orphan through the scholarship I receive." I passed, praise be to Allah, and Allah made it easy for me. During the year, I paid a sum of money to sponsor an orphan for one month in one of the Islamic countries through a charitable organization. The question is: Is my obligation discharged by this action? Or am I required to pay whenever I receive the scholarship? I have not specified a duration. Is this considered an oath that must be fulfilled for the four years? And if I am unable to do so, is there anything required of me? May Allah reward you both, O Shaykh?

Answer:
This is a vow, so it depends on the intention. If she intended to pay the expenses of an orphan to a specific organization, vowing to pay the expenses of an orphan to such-and-such organization every month, then this is binding and recurring, so the months, salaries, and scholarships recur. However, if she did not intend recurrence but intended a single orphan, then it is sufficient for her to sponsor one orphan, and this fulfills her vow. Yes.