The ruling on one who breaks an oath due to his father's command, and the ruling on the phrase "O my master"
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
The listener Muhammad Idris Muhammad Sudani sent a message beginning with: To my master, the guide and answerer of listeners' questions, may Allah grant him understanding:
It happened one day that I swore by Allah three times that I would not do this thing, but my father insisted that I do it, so I did it. What is obligatory upon me? May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
You must pay the expiation for the oath. If you swore that you would not do something that is permissible in itself, such as swearing that you would not speak to so-and-so, or not visit so-and-so, or not eat so-and-so's food, and there is no legal impediment to visiting him or eating his food, and then you decided to visit him and eat his food, or your father insisted on it; then you must expiate your oath. The expiation is feeding ten poor people, or clothing them, or freeing a slave. Whoever is unable to do so must fast for three days, as Allah explained in His great Book in Surat al-Ma'idah.
Likewise, if your father did not compel you, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said in the authentic hadith to 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Samurah:Sunan an-Nasa'i 3784Sahih (Darussalam), and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih al-Bukhari 6718 This is the Sunnah. If you swear to something and then see that the benefit lies in breaking the oath, then you break it and expiate your oath with what Allah prescribed in His saying in Surat al-Ma'idah: [al-Ma'idah: 89].
So He explained that the expiation is what the Mighty and Majestic specified: feeding ten poor people, or clothing them, or freeing a slave, meaning freeing a slave. Whoever is unable to do this and cannot afford it must fast for three days. People are best aware of their own circumstances, so if one sees that his oath is burdensome for him, or that it causes him harm, or that it angers his father or mother or the like, or if he sees that the benefit lies in breaking the oath for another reason, he expiates his oath and does what is better and more sound.
Unless it is a sin, in which case he must avoid the sin. For example, if he says: "By Allah! I will not drink intoxicants," or "By Allah! I will not smoke," then in this oath he has done well. It is obligatory for him to fulfill it and not break it. Even if his father says to him: "Break it," he has no right to obey his father or anyone else; because smoking is forbidden and has many harms, and drinking intoxicants is also forbidden by explicit text from the Qur'an and the Sunnah. It is not permissible for him to return to it, even if he had not sworn. It is obligatory for him to avoid smoking and avoid intoxicants even if he had not sworn. If he swears, it becomes an affirmation of that, so he has no right to break it. If he breaks it and does it, he must pay the expiation for the oath, along with the sin, and repent to Allah .
And you said at the beginning of the question: "O my master." This is a phrase that should be avoided; because it is authentically reported from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said:As-Sunan al-Kubra lil-Nasa'i 64:721 And regarding the slave, he said: He said: regarding his master, who is the owner. So some scholars took the view that the prohibition is not for the sake of prohibition in because he (peace and blessings be upon him) permitted the slave to say: "My master and my lord." The slave has his own status, and people have their own status.
So it is better to leave this phrase, and the safest course is to leave it. As for the slave, he may say it to his master: "O my master" or "O my lord"; there is nothing wrong with him saying it, or "O my uncle" as people say today. As for you, and you are not a slave, you address people with other terms, saying: "O so-and-so," or "O father of so-and-so," or "O Shaykh so-and-so," or "Judge so-and-so," or the like. You address him with known titles, other than "my master" and other than "my lord." Even "my lord" is better to leave; because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said when he was addressed as "O our master":Sunan Abi Dawud 4806Sahih (Al-Albani) He disliked being addressed with this, even though he is the master of the children of Adam (peace and blessings be upon him), and the best of people. But he feared that they would exaggerate in his regard, and he was afraid of their exaggeration, so he said: , meaning: the servant of Allah and His Messenger. Even though he is the master of the children of Adam, as he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Jami` at-Tirmidhi 3615Hasan (Darussalam) and the best of creation. But out of humility from him (peace and blessings be upon him) and fear for his Ummah from exaggeration, he guided them not to address him by saying: "O our master."
As for if it is said: "He is the master of the children of Adam," or if it is said: "He is our master," there is nothing wrong with it, provided it is not an address to him; because he has passed away (peace and blessings be upon him), and he disliked being addressed with this in his lifetime (peace and blessings be upon him).
As for if one of us says today: "Our master Muhammad," or "O Allah, send blessings upon our master," then there is nothing wrong with it; because it is the truth and there is no harm in it. But it is not said in things that have been transmitted without mention of lordship. One does not innovate in things Allah has prescribed that do not include the reward of lordship, but one restricts oneself to what has been transmitted. So it is not said in the adhan: "We bear witness that our master Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah," and it is not said in the iqamah likewise; because this has not been transmitted in the adhan or the iqamah. One restricts oneself to what has been transmitted, saying: "I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah" in the adhan and the iqamah.
And likewise in the tashahhud: "O Allah, send blessings upon Muhammad." And likewise: "I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and His Messenger" in the tashahhud in the tashahhud; because this is what has been transmitted. So it is better not to say that. And likewise in the adhan; because it was transmitted without mention of lordship. So one says as the mu'adhdhin used to say: "I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah." This is how the mu'adhdhins were in his time (peace and blessings be upon him) and the time of his Companions. It is upon us to follow their methodology in that. This is what is prescribed for us. But in our ordinary speech, when mentioning the hadith, and when mentioning him (peace and blessings be upon him), "O Allah, send blessings upon our master Muhammad," or in the khutbah, there is nothing wrong with that and no harm in that. Whoever says it has no harm, and whoever leaves it has no harm.
And one should not think that one who leaves it is harsh. That is a mistake. So whoever says it has no harm, and whoever leaves it has no harm. If he says: "O Allah, send blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad," or "upon Your servant and Your Messenger Muhammad," then all of it is truth, all of it is correct, and all of it is good, even if he does not say: "Our master." And if he says: "O Allah, send blessings upon our master Muhammad," or "the master of the children of Adam," then all of it is truth, there is nothing wrong with it, all of it is truth and prescribed. May Allah send blessings and peace upon him and upon his family and his Companions. Yes.
The presenter: O Allah, send blessings and peace and bestow favor upon our master Muhammad.
The listener Muhammad Idris Muhammad Sudani sent a message beginning with: To my master, the guide and answerer of listeners' questions, may Allah grant him understanding:
It happened one day that I swore by Allah three times that I would not do this thing, but my father insisted that I do it, so I did it. What is obligatory upon me? May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
You must pay the expiation for the oath. If you swore that you would not do something that is permissible in itself, such as swearing that you would not speak to so-and-so, or not visit so-and-so, or not eat so-and-so's food, and there is no legal impediment to visiting him or eating his food, and then you decided to visit him and eat his food, or your father insisted on it; then you must expiate your oath. The expiation is feeding ten poor people, or clothing them, or freeing a slave. Whoever is unable to do so must fast for three days, as Allah explained in His great Book in Surat al-Ma'idah.
Likewise, if your father did not compel you, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said in the authentic hadith to 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Samurah:
If you swear an oath, then you see something better than it, then offer expiation for your oath, and do that which is better.
إذا حلفت على يمين فرأيت غيرها خيرًا منها فكفر عن يمينك وائت الذي هو خيرBy Allah, Allah willing, if I ever take an oath, and then see that another is better than the first, I make expiration for my (dissolved) oath, and do what is better and make expiration.
والله! إني إن شاء الله لا أحلف على يمين فأرى غيرها خيرًا منها إلا كفرت عن يميني وأتيت الذي هو خيرAllah 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 أَيْمَانَكُمْSo He explained that the expiation is what the Mighty and Majestic specified: feeding ten poor people, or clothing them, or freeing a slave, meaning freeing a slave. Whoever is unable to do this and cannot afford it must fast for three days. People are best aware of their own circumstances, so if one sees that his oath is burdensome for him, or that it causes him harm, or that it angers his father or mother or the like, or if he sees that the benefit lies in breaking the oath for another reason, he expiates his oath and does what is better and more sound.
Unless it is a sin, in which case he must avoid the sin. For example, if he says: "By Allah! I will not drink intoxicants," or "By Allah! I will not smoke," then in this oath he has done well. It is obligatory for him to fulfill it and not break it. Even if his father says to him: "Break it," he has no right to obey his father or anyone else; because smoking is forbidden and has many harms, and drinking intoxicants is also forbidden by explicit text from the Qur'an and the Sunnah. It is not permissible for him to return to it, even if he had not sworn. It is obligatory for him to avoid smoking and avoid intoxicants even if he had not sworn. If he swears, it becomes an affirmation of that, so he has no right to break it. If he breaks it and does it, he must pay the expiation for the oath, along with the sin, and repent to Allah .
And you said at the beginning of the question: "O my master." This is a phrase that should be avoided; because it is authentically reported from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said:
Let none of you say: "My master"; for your master is Allah.
لا يقولن أحدكم مولاي؛ فإن مولاكم اللهLet him not say: "My Lord," but let him say: "My master and my lord."
لا يقل: ربي، وليقل: سيدي ومولايLet him not say: "My master."
لا يقل: مولايSo it is better to leave this phrase, and the safest course is to leave it. As for the slave, he may say it to his master: "O my master" or "O my lord"; there is nothing wrong with him saying it, or "O my uncle" as people say today. As for you, and you are not a slave, you address people with other terms, saying: "O so-and-so," or "O father of so-and-so," or "O Shaykh so-and-so," or "Judge so-and-so," or the like. You address him with known titles, other than "my master" and other than "my lord." Even "my lord" is better to leave; because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said when he was addressed as "O our master":
The lord is Allah, the Blessed and Exalted
السيد الله تبارك وتعالىThe Master is Allah. Say what you say, or some of what you say, and do not let Satan delude you. I am Muhammad, the servant of Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). I do not like for you to elevate me above the status that Allah has assigned to me.
السيد الله قولوا بقولكم أو بعض قولكم ولا يستهوينكم الشيطان أنا محمد عبد الله ورسوله عليه الصلاة والسلام، ما أحب أن ترفعوني فوق منزلتي التي أنزلني الله I am the master of the children of Adam on the Day of Judgement, and I am not boasting.
أنا سيد ولد آدم يوم القيامة ولا فخرAs for if it is said: "He is the master of the children of Adam," or if it is said: "He is our master," there is nothing wrong with it, provided it is not an address to him; because he has passed away (peace and blessings be upon him), and he disliked being addressed with this in his lifetime (peace and blessings be upon him).
As for if one of us says today: "Our master Muhammad," or "O Allah, send blessings upon our master," then there is nothing wrong with it; because it is the truth and there is no harm in it. But it is not said in things that have been transmitted without mention of lordship. One does not innovate in things Allah has prescribed that do not include the reward of lordship, but one restricts oneself to what has been transmitted. So it is not said in the adhan: "We bear witness that our master Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah," and it is not said in the iqamah likewise; because this has not been transmitted in the adhan or the iqamah. One restricts oneself to what has been transmitted, saying: "I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah" in the adhan and the iqamah.
And likewise in the tashahhud: "O Allah, send blessings upon Muhammad." And likewise: "I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and His Messenger" in the tashahhud in the tashahhud; because this is what has been transmitted. So it is better not to say that. And likewise in the adhan; because it was transmitted without mention of lordship. So one says as the mu'adhdhin used to say: "I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah." This is how the mu'adhdhins were in his time (peace and blessings be upon him) and the time of his Companions. It is upon us to follow their methodology in that. This is what is prescribed for us. But in our ordinary speech, when mentioning the hadith, and when mentioning him (peace and blessings be upon him), "O Allah, send blessings upon our master Muhammad," or in the khutbah, there is nothing wrong with that and no harm in that. Whoever says it has no harm, and whoever leaves it has no harm.
And one should not think that one who leaves it is harsh. That is a mistake. So whoever says it has no harm, and whoever leaves it has no harm. If he says: "O Allah, send blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad," or "upon Your servant and Your Messenger Muhammad," then all of it is truth, all of it is correct, and all of it is good, even if he does not say: "Our master." And if he says: "O Allah, send blessings upon our master Muhammad," or "the master of the children of Adam," then all of it is truth, there is nothing wrong with it, all of it is truth and prescribed. May Allah send blessings and peace upon him and upon his family and his Companions. Yes.
The presenter: O Allah, send blessings and peace and bestow favor upon our master Muhammad.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.