Chapter on the Comprehensive Rulings of Oaths

In matters of oaths, reference is made to the intention of the one swearing, provided that the wording can bear it, ………………..

His statement, “Chapter on the Comprehensive Rulings of Oaths,” means: a chapter encompassing the rulings pertaining to oaths. Aymān is the plural of yamīn, meaning an oath. This chapter examines what an oath is to be understood in accordance with: customary usage, linguistic usage, intention, or the circumstance that prompted it.

His statement, “In matters of oaths, reference is made to the intention of the one swearing,” is supported by the Quran and the sunnah. As for the Quran, Allah the Exalted says:

“But He will call you to account for the oaths which you have sworn in earnest.” [al-Ma'idah 5:89]

The point indicated by the verse is that if one refers to intention in determining the very basis of an oath—whether it is binding or not—then it is even more appropriate to refer to it in determining what was intended by the oath.

As for the sunnah, the Prophet ﷺ said: “Actions are only by intentions, and every person shall have only what he intended.” (1) How profound this hadith is!

However, the author stipulates, “provided that the wording can bear it”; that is, the wording must be capable of carrying the meaning intended by the one swearing. If it cannot, his claim is not accepted, because such an intention contradicts and conflicts with the wording, and therefore is not accepted.

An example of an intention that the wording can bear is where someone says, “By Allah, I shall not sleep tonight except upon a soft bed,” then goes out and sleeps in the open desert upon sand. Then, when he