Tafsir al-Baghawi - Al-Baghawi - (1/264)

Tafsir al-BaghawiAl-Baghawi

and the like. If he swears by any of these concerning a future matter and then breaks his oath, expiation is obligatory upon him. If he swears concerning a past matter that something happened when it did not, or that it did not happen when it did, and he knew the truth at the time he swore, then this is the gravely sinful false oath, which is among the major sins. Some scholars hold that expiation is obligatory for it, whether the person was aware or unaware; this was also the view of al-Shafi‘i. Others hold that no expiation is obligatory, which is the view of the adherents of legal opinion. They said: if he was aware, then it is a major sin for which there is no expiation, just as with the rest of the major sins; and if he was unaware, then, in their view, it is a thoughtless oath.

Whoever swears by other than Allah—for example, saying, “By the Ka‘bah,” “By the House of Allah,” or “By the Prophet of Allah,” or swearing by his father and the like—has not made a binding oath. Therefore, no expiation is due from him for such an oath. It is a reprehensible oath. Al-Shafi‘i said: “I fear that it may be an act of disobedience.”

Abu al-Hasan al-Sarakhsi informed us; Zahir ibn Ahmad informed us; Abu Ishaq al-Hashimi informed us; Abu Mus‘ab informed us, from Malik, from Nafi‘, from ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Umar, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, came upon ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab while he was travelling with a group of riders and swearing by his father. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “Allah forbids you to swear by your fathers. Whoever swears, then let him swear by Allah or remain silent.” (1)

“For those who swear abstinence from their wives, there is a waiting period of four months. If they return, then Allah is All-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (226) But if they resolve upon divorce, then Allah is All-Hearing, All-Knowing. (227) Divorced women shall wait by themselves for three periods. It is not lawful for them to conceal what Allah has created in their wombs, if they believe in Allah and the Last Day. Their husbands have a better right to take them back during this period, if they desire reconciliation. Women have rights similar to their obligations, according to what is fair, but men have a degree over them. And Allah is Almighty, All-Wise.” (228)

Regarding His saying, “For those who swear abstinence from their wives, there is a waiting period of four months”: “they swear abstinence” means that they take an oath, and the term itself means an oath. What is intended by the verse is an oath to refrain from sexual relations with one’s wife. Qatadah said: “For the people of the pre-Islamic period, an oath of abstinence constituted divorce.” Sa‘id ibn al-Musayyib said: “This was one of the harmful practices of the people of the pre-Islamic period. A man might not love his wife, yet not wish for another man to marry her, so he would swear never to approach her, leaving her neither unmarried nor married.” They continued upon this practice at the beginning of Islam, until Allah set for it a fixed term in Islam.

The scholars differed concerning it. Most of them held that if a man swears never to approach his wife, or specifies a period longer than four months, he is deemed to have sworn abstinence. No action is taken against him before the four months have elapsed; once they have elapsed, he is brought before the authority and ordered—

(1) Reported by al-Bukhari in The Book of Oaths, chapter: “Do Not Swear by Your Fathers,” 11:530; and by Muslim in The Book of Oaths and Vows, chapter: “The Prohibition of Swearing by Other Than Allah,” no. 1646, 3:1266. Umar added: “By Allah, since I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, forbid it, I have never sworn by it, neither uttering it myself nor relating it from another.” See the author’s Sharh al-Sunnah, in the discussion of swearing and oaths, 10:3–8.

وَنَحْوَهَا، فَإِذَا حَلَفَ بِشَيْءٍ مِنْهَا عَلَى أَمْرٍ فِي الْمُسْتَقْبَلِ فَحَنِثَ يَجِبُ عَلَيْهِ الْكَفَّارَةُ وَإِذَا حَلَفَ عَلَى أَمْرٍ مَاضٍ أَنَّهُ كَانَ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ أَوْ عَلَى أَنَّهُ لَمْ يَكُنْ وَقَدْ كَانَ، إِنْ كَانَ عَالِمًا بِهِ حَالَةَ مَا حَلَفَ فَهُوَ الْيَمِينُ الْغَمُوسُ، وَهُوَ مِنَ الْكَبَائِرِ، وَتَجِبُ فِيهِ الْكَفَّارَةُ عِنْدَ بَعْضِ أَهْلِ الْعِلْمِ، عَالِمًا كَانَ أَوْ جَاهِلًا وَبِهِ قَالَ الشَّافِعِيُّ، وَلَا تَجِبُ عِنْدَ بَعْضِهِمْ وَهُوَ قَوْلُ أَصْحَابِ الرَّأْيِ وَقَالُوا إِنْ كَانَ عَالِمًا فَهُوَ كَبِيرَةٌ وَلَا كَفَّارَةَ لَهَا كَمَا فِي سَائِرِ الْكَبَائِرِ وَإِنْ كَانَ جَاهِلًا فَهُوَ يَمِينُ اللَّغْوِ عِنْدَهُمْ وَمَنْ حَلَفَ بِغَيْرِ اللَّهِ مِثْلَ أَنْ قَالَ: وَالْكَعْبَةِ وَبَيْتِ اللَّهِ وَنَبِيِّ اللَّهِ، أَوْ حَلَفَ بِأَبِيهِ وَنَحْوَ ذَلِكَ، فَلَا يَكُونُ يَمِينًا، فَلَا تَجِبُ عَلَيْهِ الْكَفَّارَةُ إِذَا حَلَفَ، وَهُوَ يَمِينٌ مَكْرُوهَةٌ، قَالَ الشَّافِعِيُّ: وَأَخْشَى أَنْ يَكُونَ مَعْصِيَةً. أَخْبَرَنَا أَبُو الْحَسَنِ السَّرَخْسِيُّ أَنَا زَاهِرُ بْنُ أَحْمَدَ أَبُو إِسْحَاقَ الْهَاشِمِيُّ أَنَا أَبُو مُصْعَبٍ عَنْ مَالِكٍ عَنْ نَافِعٍ عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُمَرَ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَدْرَكَ عُمَرَ بْنَ الْخَطَّابِ وَهُوَ يَسِيرُ فِي رَكْبٍ وَهُوَ يَحْلِفُ بِأَبِيهِ، فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: "إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَنْهَاكُمْ أَنْ تَحْلِفُوا بِآبَائِكُمْ، فَمَنْ كَانَ حَالِفًا فَلْيَحْلِفْ بِاللَّهِ أَوْ لِيَصْمُتْ" (١) . ﴿لِلَّذِينَ يُؤْلُونَ مِنْ نِسَائِهِمْ تَرَبُّصُ أَرْبَعَةِ أَشْهُرٍ فَإِنْ فَاءُوا فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ (٢٢٦) وَإِنْ عَزَمُوا الطَّلَاقَ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ (٢٢٧) وَالْمُطَلَّقَاتُ يَتَرَبَّصْنَ بِأَنْفُسِهِنَّ ثَلَاثَةَ قُرُوءٍ وَلَا يَحِلُّ لَهُنَّ أَنْ يَكْتُمْنَ مَا خَلَقَ اللَّهُ فِي أَرْحَامِهِنَّ إِنْ كُنَّ يُؤْمِنَّ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِ وَبُعُولَتُهُنَّ أَحَقُّ بِرَدِّهِنَّ فِي ذَلِكَ إِنْ أَرَادُوا إِصْلَاحًا وَلَهُنَّ مِثْلُ الَّذِي عَلَيْهِنَّ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَلِلرِّجَالِ عَلَيْهِنَّ دَرَجَةٌ وَاللَّهُ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌ (٢٢٨) ﴾ قَوْلُهُ تَعَالَى: ﴿لِلَّذِينَ يُؤْلُونَ مِنْ نِسَائِهِمْ تَرَبُّصُ أَرْبَعَةِ أَشْهُرٍ﴾ يُؤْلُونَ أَيْ يَحْلِفُونَ، وَالْأَلْيَةُ: الْيَمِينُ وَالْمُرَادُ مِنَ الْآيَةِ: الْيَمِينُ عَلَى تَرْكِ وَطْءِ الْمَرْأَةِ، قَالَ قَتَادَةُ: كَانَ الْإِيلَاءُ طَلَاقًا لِأَهْلِ الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ، وَقَالَ سَعِيدُ بْنُ الْمُسَيَّبِ: كَانَ ذَلِكَ مِنْ ضِرَارِ أَهْلِ الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ، كَانَ الرَّجُلُ لَا يُحِبُّ امْرَأَتَهُ وَلَا يُرِيدُ أَنْ يَتَزَوَّجَهَا غَيْرُهُ، فَيَحْلِفُ أَنْ لَا يَقْرَبَهَا أَبَدًا، فَيَتْرُكُهَا لَا أَيِّمًا وَلَا ذَاتَ بَعْلٍ، وَكَانُوا عَلَيْهِ فِي ابْتِدَاءِ الْإِسْلَامِ، فَضَرَبَ اللَّهُ لَهُ أَجَلًا فِي الْإِسْلَامِ، وَاخْتَلَفَ أَهْلُ الْعِلْمِ فِيهِ: فَذَهَبَ أَكْثَرُهُمْ إِلَى أَنَّهُ إِنْ حَلَفَ أَنْ لَا يَقْرَبَ زَوْجَتَهُ أَبَدًا أَوْ سَمَّى مُدَّةً أَكْثَرَ مِنْ أَرْبَعَةِ أَشْهُرٍ، يَكُونُ مُولِيًا، فلا يتعرض له قَبْلَ مُضِيِّ أَرْبَعَةِ أَشْهُرٍ، وَبَعْدَ مُضِيِّهَا يُوقَفُ وَيُؤْمَرُ

(١) رواه البخاري: في الأيمان - باب: لا تحلفوا بآبائكم ١١ / ٥٣٠. ومسلم: في الأيمان والنذور - باب: النهي عن الحلف بغير الله برقم (١٦٤٦) ٣ / ١٢٦٦. وزاد عمر قال: فوالله ما حلفت بها منذ سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عله وسلم نهى عنها ذاكرا ولا أثرا، انظر شرح السنة للمصنف حول الحلف واليمين ١٠ / ٣-٨.