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As for the third category—swearing an oath by divorce concerning a matter hidden from him—if he has a means of ascertaining its truth, divorce is not imposed upon him immediately; rather, it is deferred until the truth or falsity of his statement becomes known. An example is someone who says, “My wife is divorced if so-and-so does not come tomorrow.” If the specified time passes without the truth or falsity of his statement becoming known, he bears whatever responsibility he has taken upon himself in the matter. If, however, he has no means of ascertaining its truth, divorce is imposed upon him immediately, without granting him a respite.
There is disagreement if imposing divorce upon him is overlooked until events turn out as he swore they would. Three opinions may be derived concerning this case. The first is that divorce is imposed upon him. The second is that it is not imposed upon him. The third is that, if he swore on the basis of his predominant belief, prompted by an indication he discerned through means permitted by Islamic law, divorce is not imposed upon him. If, however, he swore on the basis of something disclosed to him through divination or astrology, or swore while in doubt or deliberately intending to lie, divorce is imposed upon him.
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As for the second form—making divorce contingent upon a specified circumstance using wording that declares it binding, such as saying, “My wife is divorced if such-and-such occurs”—it falls into four categories. The first is where the specified circumstance is certain to occur. The second is where it is certain not to occur. The third is where it may or may not occur, with neither possibility outweighing the other, or with its non-occurrence being more likely. The fourth is where it may or may not occur, but its occurrence is more likely.
In the first category, there is agreement that divorce is imposed upon him immediately. In the second, two opinions may be derived. In the third, there is agreement that divorce is not imposed upon him immediately. In the fourth, there are two explicitly stated opinions.