If a man swears an oath to disobey Allah, is this considered an oath of negligence?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner: His saying, the Exalted: [Al-Baqarah 2:224].
The Shaykh : Yes, what is His saying, the Exalted?
The questioner[Al-Baqarah 2:224] Is it if... is it the deliberate oath?
The Shaykh : What is deliberate?
The questioner : Deliberate in something.
The Shaykh : Ah, meaning if a man or a woman swears an oath to go to the taverns, for example, or to the cinema, is this the example of what you asked about?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : No, this is not an oath of negligence. He owes an expiation for the oath. But an oath of negligence is what people are accustomed to saying, when one says to another, "By Allah, you will eat," or "By Allah, you will drink," and the other says, "No, by Allah, I will not drink; I am full." An oath of negligence is one where the oath was not formed in his heart. But if the oath was formed in his heart, he is in one of two states: either the breaking of his oath is better for him, in which case he should break it and pay the expiation, or remaining faithful to his oath is what is obligatory for him. So whoever swears an oath to commit a sin, there is no doubt that it is not permissible for him to commit it. And if he commits it, he is sinful twice: the first time because he disobeyed Allah, and the second time because he broke his oath. Is the answer clear?
The questioner : Is that clear?
The Shaykh: All right.
And do not make [your oath by] Allah an excuse
لَا تَجْعَلُوا اللَّهَ عُرْضَةً لِأَيْمَانِكُمْThe Shaykh : Yes, what is His saying, the Exalted?
The questioner
And do not make [your oath by] Allah an excuse
لَا تَجْعَلُوا اللَّهَ عُرْضَةً لِأَيْمَانِكُمْThe Shaykh : What is deliberate?
The questioner : Deliberate in something.
The Shaykh : Ah, meaning if a man or a woman swears an oath to go to the taverns, for example, or to the cinema, is this the example of what you asked about?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : No, this is not an oath of negligence. He owes an expiation for the oath. But an oath of negligence is what people are accustomed to saying, when one says to another, "By Allah, you will eat," or "By Allah, you will drink," and the other says, "No, by Allah, I will not drink; I am full." An oath of negligence is one where the oath was not formed in his heart. But if the oath was formed in his heart, he is in one of two states: either the breaking of his oath is better for him, in which case he should break it and pay the expiation, or remaining faithful to his oath is what is obligatory for him. So whoever swears an oath to commit a sin, there is no doubt that it is not permissible for him to commit it. And if he commits it, he is sinful twice: the first time because he disobeyed Allah, and the second time because he broke his oath. Is the answer clear?
The questioner : Is that clear?
The Shaykh: All right.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.