“and then break them”], or “intend to break them,” according to the view that expiation may be made before an oath is broken, as reported from the Prophet ﷺ, who said: “Whoever swears an oath and then sees that another course is better should expiate for his oath and do what is better, or do what is better and expiate for his oath. Then He said: ‘Safeguard your oaths’ [al-Mā’ida: 89].” Success comes through Allah, glorified and exalted be He.

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By scholarly consensus, adding the qualification “if Allah wills” exempts someone who swears such an oath and then breaks it from expiation, provided he attaches it to the end of his statement and intends thereby to release himself from the binding force of his oath. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Whoever swears by Allah and says, ‘If Allah wills,’ then does not do what he swore to do, has not broken his oath.”

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As for the disliked form of oath, it is swearing by other than Allah Most High. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Whoever wishes to swear should swear by Allah or remain silent.”

This takes two forms. The first is to impose an obligation upon oneself if one does or does not perform a particular act, such as saying, “I am bound to do such-and-such if I do such-and-such, or if I do not do it.” The second is to invoke the sanctity of something in swearing that one will or will not do something, such as saying, “By my father, I will certainly do such-and-such,” and similar expressions.

As for obligations a man imposes upon himself on condition that he does or does not perform an act, these fall into three categories: those that are binding by agreement, those that are not binding by agreement, and those concerning which there is disagreement.