my daughters—for the unmarried among them.” For the preposition ‘alā (“on condition that”) is one of the expressions used to stipulate a condition, as Allah says:

“I wish to marry you to one of these two daughters of mine, on condition that you serve me for eight years.”

The jurists agree that if someone says, “I give you my daughter in marriage for a thousand,” or “on condition that you give her a thousand,” or “on condition that you owe her a thousand,” this constitutes a binding stipulation, and the specified dower is valid. There is no disagreement about this. Whoever believes that there is disagreement on this point in the school of Imam Ahmad or any other imam is mistaken. This misconception arises from their disagreement concerning someone who says to his wife, “You are divorced in return for a thousand,” or to his slave, “You are free in return for a thousand,” when the wife or slave does not accept. According to one of the two reports from Ahmad, the emancipation and divorce take effect. The basis for this is not that this expression does not convey a condition.

For there is no disagreement within his school that if someone says, “I release you from the marriage in return for a thousand,” “I enter into an emancipation contract with you for a thousand,” “I contract your marriage for a thousand,” “I sell you this slave on condition that you pledge such-and-such to me as security for its price,” “on condition that Zayd guarantees its payment,” or “I give you my daughter in marriage on condition that you are a free man,” these are valid stipulations. There is no disagreement about this among any of the jurists.

Rather, the reasoning is that emancipation and divorce do not require compensation, and that he has not made the divorce contingent upon a condition, but has merely attached a stipulation to it. A distinction is drawn between making an act contingent upon a condition and attaching a stipulation to a declaration that takes immediate effect. Thus, many legal transactions are invalid when made contingent upon a condition, although attaching stipulations to them is valid. This qualifying condition cannot be fulfilled, and the divorce