His statement, “And if he says, ‘You are divorced after a year,’ she is divorced after twelve months; but if he makes it definite by using the definite article, she is divorced upon the end of Dhu al-Hijjah”: as mentioned previously, if he says, “You are divorced after a year,” twelve months are counted from the time he speaks, after which she is divorced. But if he says, “You are divorced after the year,” then, once the year in which he made the statement has ended and Dhu al-Hijjah has passed, the woman is divorced. The distinction is clear: “a year” is indefinite, whereas “the year” is definite, and the definite article here refers to the year presently at hand; therefore, it is understood accordingly.

The scholars mention all these formulations in order to train the student, and because they may actually occur in a state of anger. Thus, if he says, “You are divorced for ten years,” and we know that there is an indicatory circumstance showing that he means, “You are divorced from now,” or that he intended immediate effect, then the divorce takes effect immediately. Otherwise, it does not take effect until ten years have passed.