Al-Qawa'id al-Nuraniyya - Ibn Taimiya - (345)

Al-Qawa'id al-NuraniyyaIbn Taimiya

cases in which it takes the conditional form. What most of them exclude from the hadith’s scope is only the actual effectuation of divorce or manumission. The distinction between effecting them and swearing by means of them is evident. Allah willing, we shall discuss the principle governing this qualification.

Since they include oaths made by means of these things within the Prophet’s words (peace and blessings be upon him), “Whoever swears an oath and says, ‘If Allah wills,’ will not be regarded as having broken it,” the same oaths must likewise fall within his words: “Whoever swears an oath and then sees something else that is better, let him do what is better and expiate his oath.” The wording of both hadiths is the same, and this is clear to anyone who reflects upon it.

The universal wording in the Prophet’s statement (peace and blessings be upon him), “Whoever swears an oath and says, ‘If Allah wills,’ will not be regarded as having broken it,” is the same as that in his statement: “Whoever swears an oath and then sees something else that is better, let him do what is better and expiate his oath.” Since the wording used by the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) concerning the qualification is the same as that used concerning expiation, it necessarily follows that every oath for which the qualification is effective may also be expiated, and every oath that may be expiated may also be qualified in this manner, as Ahmad explicitly stated in more than one place.

Anyone who claims that, by saying, “Whoever swears an oath and says, ‘If Allah wills,’ will not be regarded as having broken it,” the Messenger intended all the types of oaths that people swear—including oaths by Allah, vows, divorce, and manumission—but that, by saying, “Whoever swears an oath and then sees something else that is better,” and so forth, he intended only an oath by Allah, or only an oath by Allah and a vow, advances a weak position. For whatever one of the two formulations entails would have been just as present in the Prophet’s mind (peace and blessings be upon him) as what the other entails, since the wording is the same in both and the rulings belong to the same category: namely, [lifting] the oath, either through the qualification or through expiation.

فِيمَا إِذَا كَانَ بِصِيغَةِ الْجَزَاءِ، وَإِنَّمَا الَّذِي لَا يَدْخُلُ عِنْدَ أَكْثَرِهِمْ هُوَ نَفْسُ إِيقَاعِ الطَّلَاقِ وَالْعَتَاقِ. وَالْفَرْقُ بَيْنَ إِيقَاعِهِمَا وَالْحَلِفِ بِهِمَا ظَاهِرٌ. وَسَنَذْكُرُ إِنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ قَاعِدَةَ الِاسْتِثْنَاءِ. فَإِذَا كَانُوا قَدْ أَدْخَلُوا الْحَلِفَ بِهَذِهِ الْأَشْيَاءِ فِي قَوْلِهِ ﷺ: " «مَنْ حَلَفَ عَلَى يَمِينٍ فَقَالَ: إِنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ، فَلَا حِنْثَ عَلَيْهِ» "، فَكَذَلِكَ يَدْخُلُ فِي قَوْلِهِ: " «مَنْ حَلَفَ عَلَى يَمِينٍ فَرَأَى غَيْرَهَا خَيْرًا مِنْهَا، فَلْيَأْتِ الَّذِي هُوَ خَيْرٌ، وَلْيُكَفِّرْ عَنْ يَمِينِهِ» "، فَإِنَّ كِلَا اللَّفْظَيْنِ سَوَاءٌ، وَهَذَا وَاضِحٌ لِمَنْ تَأَمَّلَهُ. فَإِنَّ قَوْلَهُ ﷺ: " «مَنْ حَلَفَ عَلَى يَمِينٍ، فَقَالَ: إِنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ، فَلَا حِنْثَ عَلَيْهِ» "، لَفْظُ الْعُمُومِ فِيهِ مِثْلُهُ فِي قَوْلِهِ: " «مَنْ حَلَفَ عَلَى يَمِينٍ فَرَأَى غَيْرَهَا خَيْرًا مِنْهَا فَلْيَأْتِ الَّذِي هُوَ خَيْرٌ وَلْيُكَفِّرْ عَنْ يَمِينِهِ» ". وَإِذَا كَانَ لَفْظُ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ فِي حُكْمِ الِاسْتِثْنَاءِ هُوَ لَفْظُهُ فِي حُكْمِ الْكَفَّارَةِ: وَجَبَ أَنْ يَكُونَ كُلُّ مَا يَنْفَعُ فِيهِ الِاسْتِثْنَاءُ يَنْفَعُ فِيهِ التَّكْفِيرُ، وَكُلُّ مَا يَنْفَعُ فِيهِ التَّكْفِيرُ يَنْفَعُ فِيهِ الِاسْتِثْنَاءُ، كَمَا نَصَّ عَلَيْهِ أحمد فِي غَيْرِ مَوْضِعٍ. وَمَنْ قَالَ: إِنَّ الرَّسُولَ قَصَدَ بِقَوْلِهِ: " «مَنْ حَلَفَ عَلَى يَمِينٍ، فَقَالَ: إِنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ، فَلَا حِنْثَ عَلَيْهِ» " جَمِيعَ الْأَيْمَانِ الَّتِي يُحْلَفُ بِهَا، مِنَ الْيَمِينِ بِاللَّهِ وَبِالنَّذْرِ وَبِالطَّلَاقِ وَبِالْعَتَاقِ، وَأَمَّا قَوْلُهُ: " «مَنْ حَلَفَ عَلَى يَمِينٍ فَرَأَى غَيْرَهَا خَيْرًا مِنْهَا» إِلَخْ " إِنَّمَا قَصَدَ بِهِ الْيَمِينَ بِاللَّهِ، أَوِ الْيَمِينَ بِاللَّهِ وَالنَّذْرِ، فَقَوْلُهُ ضَعِيفٌ. فَإِنَّ حُضُورَ مُوجَبِ أَحَدِ اللَّفْظَيْنِ بِقَلْبِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ مِثْلُ حُضُورِ مُوجَبِ اللَّفْظِ الْآخَرِ، إِذْ كِلَاهُمَا لَفْظٌ وَاحِدٌ، وَالْحُكْمُ فِيهِمَا مِنْ جِنْسٍ وَاحِدٍ، وَهُوَ [رَفْعُ] الْيَمِينِ: إِمَّا بِالِاسْتِثْنَاءِ، وَإِمَّا بِالتَّكْفِيرِ.