Al-Sharḥ al-Mumtiʿ - Ibn al-'Uthaymin - (15/195)

Al-Sharḥ al-MumtiʿIbn al-'Uthaymin

If he says, “By Allah, I shall tread upon my wife,” and his wife says to him, “You have done nothing,” whereupon he replies, “Did I not tread on your foot?”—we say: he has not fulfilled his oath, because the ruling relates to sexual intercourse. The literal meaning—treading with one’s foot—has been abandoned, and customary usage has made “treading upon one’s wife” mean having intercourse with her.

To tread upon a house means to enter it, and this apparently applies even in the Arabic language, since it is impossible for a person to tread upon an entire house with his foot: a house is larger than a foot. Thus, if someone says, “By Allah, I shall not tread upon this house,” then enters it, he has broken his oath.

If he enters it while being carried, he has likewise broken his oath. If he had a particular intention, however, that is another matter. But if he had no specific intention, we say: if you enter it—whether you enter on your feet, while being carried, or in any other manner—you have broken your oath, because this is what “treading upon a house” means. This is well known among people: one may say, “By Allah, I shall not set foot in this place,” “By Allah, I shall not set foot in so-and-so’s house,” or “By Allah, I shall not set foot in so-and-so’s shop,” and the matter hinges upon entering it.

If he swears that he will not eat something, then eats it after it has been absorbed into something else—for example, if he swears that he will not eat clarified butter, then eats a sweet dish containing clarified butter whose taste is not perceptible; or swears that he will not eat eggs, then eats a confection made with eggs—he has not broken his oath. But if the taste of any part of that which he swore not to consume is perceptible, he has broken his oath.

His words, “If he swears that he will not eat something, then eats it after it has been absorbed into something else,” mean that he has not broken his oath. This is of great benefit. If he says, “By Allah, I shall not eat this thing,” and that thing is mixed into something else, but is absorbed and disappears, leaving no trace, taste, smell, or effect, then he has not broken his oath. For example, it may constitute one part in a hundred, two parts in a hundred, three parts in a hundred, or the like, such that it has no effect; in that case, he has not broken his oath. Suppose that he says, “By Allah, I shall not drink this thing,” then mixes it with water, and it disappears

ولو قال: والله لأطأن زوجتي، فقالت له زوجته: ما فعلت شيئاً، فقال: ألم أطأ على قدمك؟ نقول: ما بر بيمينه؛ لأن الحكم يتعلق بالجماع؛ إذ إن الحقيقة وهي الوطء بالقدم هُجِرت، وصار العرف أن وطء الزوجة جماعها. ووطء الدار دخولها، والظاهر أنه كذلك حتى في اللغة العربية، فمتعذر أن يطأ الإنسان الدارَ كلها بقدمه؛ لأن الدار أكبر من القدم، فإذا قال: والله لا أطأ هذه الدار، ثم دخلها فإنه يحنث. وإذا دخلها محمولاً فإنه يحنث، أما إذا كان له نية فهذا شيء آخر لكن إذا لم يكن له نيةً فنقول: إذا دخلتها، سواء دخلت برجلك، أو محمولاً، أو على أي وجه كنت فإنك تحنث؛ لأن هذا هو معنى وطء الدار، وهذا مشهور عند الناس، يقول أحدهم: والله ما أطأ هذا المحل، والله ما أطأ دار فلان، والله ما أطأ دكان فلان، فيتعلق بدخوله. وَإِنْ حَلَفَ لَا يَأْكُلُ شَيْئاً فَأَكَلَهُ مُسْتَهْلَكاً فِي غَيْرِهِ، كَمَنْ حَلَفَ لَا يَأْكُلُ سَمْناً فَأَكَلَ خَبِيصاً فِيهِ سَمْنٌ لَا يَظْهَرُ فِيهِ طَعْمُهُ، أَوْ لَا يَأْكُلُ بَيْضاً فَأَكَلَ نَاطِفاً لَمْ يَحْنَثْ، وَإِنْ ظَهَرَ طَعْمُ شَيْءٍ مِنَ الْمَحْلُوفِ عَلَيْهِ حَنِثَ. قوله: «وإن حلف لا يأكل شيئاً فأكله مُسْتَهْلَكاً في غيره» لم يحنث، وهذا فيه فائدة عظيمة، قال: والله لا آكل شيئاً، فخُلِط هذا الشيء في شيء آخر، لكن اسْتَهْلَكَ واضمحل ولم يبقَ له أثر، ولا طعم، ولا ريح، ولا تأثير، فإنه لا يحنث، مثل أن يُجعل جزءاً من مائة جزء، أو جزأين من مائة، أو ثلاثة من مائة، أو ما أشبه ذلك، بحيث لا يؤثر فإنه لا يحنث، ولنفرض أنه قال: والله لا أشرب هذا الشيء، فخلطه بماء، واضمحل هذا