What is the expiation for an oath?
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Question:
What is the expiation for an oath, with some detail? May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
The expiation for an oath is clarified by Allah in the Qur'an in Surat al-Ma'idah in His saying, the Exalted: [al-Ma'idah: 89] the verse.
This is the expiation for an oath, which our Lord (Glorified and Exalted is He) clarified in Surat al-Ma'idah. It is feeding ten poor people, giving each poor person half a sa' (a dry measure of about 3 kg) of dates, wheat, or rice, approximately one and a half kilograms for each poor person, fifteen kilograms in total, one and a half kilograms for each poor person—half a sa'—or providing them with a meal, either dinner or lunch, in his home or at a restaurant, which is sufficient.
Or clothing them, giving each one an izar (lower garment), a rida' (upper garment), or a shirt... or freeing a slave, a male or female slave. If he is unable to do any of these three, he must fast for three days. It is better for them to be consecutive. He fasts for three days, and it is better for them to be consecutive, because some scholars considered consecutiveness a condition, holding that consecutiveness is required. He should not leave off the consecutiveness. He should fast for three consecutive days, which is the most cautious course. If he fasts them on separate days, it suffices, but fasting them consecutively is more preferable and more cautious. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good, and may He do you good. The questioner asks His Eminence the Shaykh specifically about the expiation for an oath: Are we given a choice, or is there a specific thing that must be done?
The Shaykh: There is a choice among the three: feeding, clothing, and freeing a slave. He chooses one of the three. If he wishes, he feeds; if he wishes, he clothes; if he wishes, he frees a slave.
As for fasting, it is not resorted to except in the case of inability to do the three. Fasting does not suffice except in the case of inability to feed, clothe, or free a slave. If he is unable and becomes poor, unable to provide food, clothing, or freeing a slave, then he moves to fasting. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good, and may He do you good.
What is the expiation for an oath, with some detail? May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
The expiation for an oath is clarified by Allah in the Qur'an in Surat al-Ma'idah in His saying, the Exalted:
Allah will not impose blame upon you for what is meaningless in your oaths, but He will impose blame upon you for [breaking] what you intended of oaths. So its expiation is the feeding of ten needy people from the average of that which you feed your [own] families or clothing them or the freeing of a slave. But whoever cannot find [or afford it] - then a fast of three days [is required]. That is the expiation for oaths when you have sworn. But guard your oaths
لا يُؤَاخِذُكُمُ اللَّهُ بِاللَّغْوِ فِي أَيْمَانِكُمْ وَلَكِنْ يُؤَاخِذُكُمْ بِمَا عَقَّدْتُمُ الأَيْمَانَ فَكَفَّارَتُهُ إِطْعَامُ عَشَرَةِ مَسَاكِينَ مِنْ أَوْسَطِ مَا تُطْعِمُونَ أَهْلِيكُمْ أَوْ كِسْوَتُهُمْ أَوْ تَحْرِيرُ رَقَبَةٍ فَمَنْ لَمْ يَجِدْ فَصِيَامُ ثَلاثَةِ أَيَّامٍ ذَلِكَ كَفَّارَةُ أَيْمَانِكُمْ إِذَا حَلَفْتُمْ وَاحْفَظُوا أَيْمَانَكُمْThis is the expiation for an oath, which our Lord (Glorified and Exalted is He) clarified in Surat al-Ma'idah. It is feeding ten poor people, giving each poor person half a sa' (a dry measure of about 3 kg) of dates, wheat, or rice, approximately one and a half kilograms for each poor person, fifteen kilograms in total, one and a half kilograms for each poor person—half a sa'—or providing them with a meal, either dinner or lunch, in his home or at a restaurant, which is sufficient.
Or clothing them, giving each one an izar (lower garment), a rida' (upper garment), or a shirt... or freeing a slave, a male or female slave. If he is unable to do any of these three, he must fast for three days. It is better for them to be consecutive. He fasts for three days, and it is better for them to be consecutive, because some scholars considered consecutiveness a condition, holding that consecutiveness is required. He should not leave off the consecutiveness. He should fast for three consecutive days, which is the most cautious course. If he fasts them on separate days, it suffices, but fasting them consecutively is more preferable and more cautious. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good, and may He do you good. The questioner asks His Eminence the Shaykh specifically about the expiation for an oath: Are we given a choice, or is there a specific thing that must be done?
The Shaykh: There is a choice among the three: feeding, clothing, and freeing a slave. He chooses one of the three. If he wishes, he feeds; if he wishes, he clothes; if he wishes, he frees a slave.
As for fasting, it is not resorted to except in the case of inability to do the three. Fasting does not suffice except in the case of inability to feed, clothe, or free a slave. If he is unable and becomes poor, unable to provide food, clothing, or freeing a slave, then he moves to fasting. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good, and may He do you good.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.