Riyad al-Salihin
From the words of the Master of the Messengers
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him
Chapter: The Prohibition of Swearing by Created Beings
Such as the Prophet or the Ka'bah
Or the angels, the sky, or one's forefathers
Or life, the soul, or one's head
Or the life of a ruler or the favor of a ruler
Or the soil of a certain person
Or the trust (al-amanah)
And it is among the most strictly forbidden of these
On the authority of Ibn 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both
From the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him
Who said: "Indeed, Allah the Exalted
Forbids you from swearing by your forefathers.
So whoever must take an oath,
Let him swear by Allah or remain silent."
Agreed upon.
In a narration in the Sahih:
"Whoever must take an oath,
Let him not swear except by Allah, or let him remain silent."
"Al-half" (swearing) is the oath and the vow.
"Li-yasmut" means let him remain silent.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The prohibition of swearing by forefathers and other created beings.
An oath and a vow may only be by Allah.
Whoever must take an oath,
Let him swear by Allah,
Or remain silent, by refraining from swearing by other than Allah.
On the authority of 'Abd al-Rahman Ibn Samurah, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"Do not swear by the 'tawaghi' (idols),
Nor by your forefathers."
Narrated by Muslim.
"Al-tawaghi" is the plural of "taghiyah,"
Which refers to idols.
From this is the hadith:
"This is the idol of Daws,"
Meaning their idol and what they worship.
It is narrated in other than Muslim:
"By the 'tawaghit' (false deities),"
The plural of "taghut,"
Which refers to the devil and the idol.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The prohibition of swearing by false deities, forefathers, and other than that,
From those who do not deserve glorification.
For the One who deserves glorification
Is the Most High, the Almighty, alone, with no partner.
On the authority of Buraydah, may Allah be pleased with him,
That the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"Whoever swears by the trust (al-amanah) is not one of us."
Narrated by Abu Dawud.
From the benefits of the hadith:
An oath is not valid except by Allah the Exalted or His attributes.
The trust is not among them.
Rather, it is one of His commands.
Therefore, swearing by it
Suggests equating it with the names and attributes of Allah the Exalted.
The prohibition of swearing by other than Allah the Exalted,
And among those is the trust.
On the authority of Buraydah, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"Whoever swears and says, 'I am free from Islam,'
If he is lying, he is as he said.
And if he is truthful,
He will never return to Islam safely."
Narrated by Abu Dawud.
On the authority of Ibn 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both,
That he heard a man saying:
"No, by the Ka'bah."
Ibn 'Umar said:
"Do not swear by other than Allah,
For I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, say:
'Whoever swears by other than Allah,
Has committed kufr (disbelief) or shirk (polytheism).'"
Narrated by al-Tirmidhi.
Some scholars interpreted his saying,
"Kufr or shirk,"
As being for emphasis and severity,
Just as it is narrated that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"Showing off (riya') is shirk."
From the benefits of the hadith:
The prohibition of swearing by other than Allah,
No matter how great the object of the oath may be,
Or how high its status,
Such as the Ka'bah, the prophets, the saints, and others.
Swearing by other than Allah is shirk or kufr.
This includes swearing by honor, children, or the mercy of one's father.
For all of this is from the shirk of words.
The shirk of words may be major kufr that removes one from the fold of religion,
If the person deems it lawful, or is dismissive, or mocks it.
Chapter: The Severity of a Deliberate False Oath
On the authority of Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him,
That the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"Whoever swears away the property of a Muslim man unjustly,
Will meet Allah while He is angry with him."
He said:
Then the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, recited to us
Its confirmation from the Book of Allah the Almighty:
“Lo! those who purchase a small gain at the cost of Allah's covenant and their oaths, they have no portion in the Hereafter. Allah will neither speak to them nor look upon them on the Day of Resurrection, nor will He make them grow. Theirs will be a painful doom.” (3:77)
To the end of the verse.
Agreed upon.
"Swears" means he took an oath.
"Unjustly" means he is not truthful in his oath.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The severity of the prohibition of a false oath while knowing it is false.
The prohibition of consuming people's wealth unjustly.
Affirming the attribute of anger for Allah.
The enjoyment of this world is fleeting and its provision is small.
And the one who seeks it is lowly and humiliated.
A false oath warrants severe punishment from Allah the Exalted.
“The day when wealth and sons avail not (any man)” (26:88)
Except for one who comes to Allah with a sound heart.
The Qur'an and the Sunnah interpret one another,
And each supports the other.
So there is no contradiction or disagreement,
Because they both come from the niche of revelation.
On the authority of Abu Umamah,
Iyas Ibn Tha'labah al-Harithi, may Allah be pleased with him,
That the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"Whoever usurps the right of a Muslim man by his oath,
Allah has made the Fire mandatory for him,
And has forbidden Paradise to him."
A man said to him:
"Even if it is a small thing, O Messenger of Allah?"
He said: "Even if it is a twig of an Arak tree."
Narrated by Muslim.
On the authority of 'Abdullah Ibn 'Amr Ibn al-'As, may Allah be pleased with them both,
From the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, who said:
"The major sins are:
Associating partners with Allah,
Disobedience to parents,
Killing a soul,
And the 'Ghamus' (false) oath."
Narrated by al-Bukhari.
In a narration:
A Bedouin came to the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
And said:
"O Messenger of Allah,
What are the major sins?"
He said:
"Associating partners with Allah."
He said:
"Then what?"
He said:
"The Ghamus oath."
I asked:
"And what is the Ghamus oath?"
He said:
"That which usurps the property of a Muslim man,"
Meaning:
By an oath in which he is lying.
Chapter: Encouraging One Who Has Taken an Oath
But sees something else better than it,
To do that which is better,
Then offer expiation for his oath.
On the authority of 'Abd al-Rahman Ibn Samurah, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said to me:
"If you take an oath,
And see something else better than it,
Then do that which is better,
And offer expiation for your oath."
Agreed upon.
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him,
That the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"Whoever takes an oath,
And sees something else better than it,
Let him offer expiation for his oath,
And do that which is better."
Narrated by Muslim.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The recommendation of breaking an oath
If not fulfilling it is better in the sight of Allah than fulfilling it.
Whoever breaks his oath,
The expiation for the oath becomes binding upon him.
The expiation is contingent upon the breaking of the oath,
And not the other way around.
The hadith is evidence for the principle of interests and harms,
Upon which the Shari'ah revolves.
So prioritizing the greater interest is what is considered,
And likewise, warding off the greater harm.
On the authority of Abu Musa, may Allah be pleased with him,
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"By Allah, if Allah wills, I do not take an oath,
Then see something better than it,
Except that I offer expiation for my oath,
And do that which is better."
Agreed upon.
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"For one of you to persist in his oath regarding his family,
Is more sinful for him in the sight of Allah the Exalted,
Than to pay the expiation that Allah has obligated upon him."
Agreed upon.
His saying "persist" (yaluj),
Means he continues in it and does not offer expiation.
And his saying "more sinful" (athamu),
Means more sinful.
From the benefits of the hadith:
Whoever takes an oath concerning his family,
Where they are harmed by his failure to break the oath in that matter.
It is therefore appropriate that he should break it.
He should do that thing.
And offer expiation for his oath.
If he says, "I will not break my oath,"
"Rather, I will refrain from breaking it for fear of sin,"
Then he is mistaken in this statement.
In fact, persisting in not breaking the oath,
And causing harm to his family,
Is more sinful than breaking the oath.
This must be understood as applying when there is no sin in breaking the oath.
Breaking an oath is better than persisting in it,
If there is a preponderant benefit in breaking it.
There is an exhortation to remove harm from one's family and to care for them according to the path of Allah,
Not according to erratic whims.
Returning from a mistake is better than persisting in it.
This is not considered a flaw that diminishes the one who does it.
Rather, it is a virtue that only the most resolute of men can attain,
Those who prioritize the truth over their own selves.
Chapter: On the pardon for unintentional oaths.
And that there is no expiation for them.
This refers to what slips off the tongue without the intention of swearing an oath.
Such as one’s habitual saying,
"No, by Allah,"
And "Yes, by Allah,"
And the like.
Allah the Exalted said:
﴾ Allah will not hold you accountable for what is unintentional in your oaths. ﴿
“Allah will not take you to task for that which is unintentional in your oaths, but He will take you to task for the oaths which ye swear in earnest. The expiation thereof is the feeding of ten of the needy with the average of that wherewith ye feed your own folk, or the clothing of them, or the liberation of a slave, and for him who findeth not (the wherewithal to do so) then a three days' fast. This is the expiation of your oaths when ye have sworn; and keep your oaths. Thus Allah expoundeth unto you His revelations in order that ye may give thanks.” (5:89)
“Allah will not take you to task for that which is unintentional in your oaths, but He will take you to task for the oaths which ye swear in earnest. The expiation thereof is the feeding of ten of the needy with the average of that wherewith ye feed your own folk, or the clothing of them, or the liberation of a slave, and for him who findeth not (the wherewithal to do so) then a three days' fast. This is the expiation of your oaths when ye have sworn; and keep your oaths. Thus Allah expoundeth unto you His revelations in order that ye may give thanks.” (5:89)
“Allah will not take you to task for that which is unintentional in your oaths, but He will take you to task for the oaths which ye swear in earnest. The expiation thereof is the feeding of ten of the needy with the average of that wherewith ye feed your own folk, or the clothing of them, or the liberation of a slave, and for him who findeth not (the wherewithal to do so) then a three days' fast. This is the expiation of your oaths when ye have sworn; and keep your oaths. Thus Allah expoundeth unto you His revelations in order that ye may give thanks.” (5:89)
And whoever cannot find [the means], then a fast of three days.
“Allah will not take you to task for that which is unintentional in your oaths, but He will take you to task for the oaths which ye swear in earnest. The expiation thereof is the feeding of ten of the needy with the average of that wherewith ye feed your own folk, or the clothing of them, or the liberation of a slave, and for him who findeth not (the wherewithal to do so) then a three days' fast. This is the expiation of your oaths when ye have sworn; and keep your oaths. Thus Allah expoundeth unto you His revelations in order that ye may give thanks.” (5:89)
And guard your oaths.
On the authority of 'A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, who said:
This verse was revealed:
﴾ Allah will not hold you accountable for what is unintentional in your oaths. ﴿
Regarding a man saying,
"No, by Allah,"
And "Yes, by Allah."
Narrated by al-Bukhari.
From the benefits of the hadith:
An illustration of the vastness of Allah’s mercy toward His servants and His immense kindness.
And that He is more merciful to them than they are to themselves.
The oath that occurs in speech,
Such as "No, by Allah,"
And "Yes, by Allah,"
And similar expressions that slip off the tongue without intention,
Allah does not hold us accountable for them.
The interpretation of "unintentional" in oaths,
Is that it is an oath made without intention.
It is not as some have said,
That it is in jest, or in sin,
Or based on a strong assumption,
Or in anger,
Or out of forgetfulness,
Or regarding the abstention from food, drink, or clothing.
Chapter: The dislike of swearing oaths in sales.
Even if one is truthful.
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, say:
"Swearing an oath may sell the merchandise,"
"But it wipes out the earnings."
Agreed upon.
"May sell" means it is a cause for its promotion and a means of [attracting] it.
"Wipes out the earnings,"
Meaning it removes the blessing and the increase.
On the authority of Abu Qatadah, may Allah be pleased with him,
That he heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, say:
"Beware of excessive swearing in sales,"
"For it promotes [the sale] but then wipes out [the blessing]."
Narrated by Muslim.
From the benefits of the hadiths:
The exhortation to abandon swearing in sales,
Because it contains harms.
Among them:
Making the name of Allah the Exalted a tool for promoting merchandise,
And acquiring the fleeting goods of this world.
This is considered a degradation of His name, Blessed and Exalted is He.
Swearing by Allah in a sale, if one is truthful, is disliked.
And if one is lying,
It is a "plunging" oath (al-yamin al-ghamus).
We ask Allah for safety.
Swearing by Allah in a sale,
May promote the merchandise and increase sales,
But it wipes out the profit.
The blessing in things,
Is not in their quantity, their fame, or their popularity,
But rather in their benefit and their fruit.
Riyad al-Salihin.