of the act to his disbelief, which is his disavowal of Allah. He has thus linked the act to his faith in Allah, and this is the very essence of swearing by Allah. Linking an act to Allah’s rulings of obligation or prohibition is therefore of a lesser order than linking it to Allah Himself.

“This is clarified as follows:”

When someone binds an oath by Allah, he binds it by his faith in Allah: the reverence and honour for Allah within his heart, namely Allah’s grandeur and His highest description in the heavens and the earth. Likewise, when he glorifies Allah and remembers Him, he does so in proportion to the knowledge of Him and worship of Him within his heart. Thus, glorification is sometimes expressed in relation to Allah’s name, as in His words:

“And remember the name of your Lord morning and evening.”

Alongside this, He says:

“Remember Allah with much remembrance.”

Whenever a servant honours his Lord by glorifying His name, swearing by Him, or seeking refuge in Him, he glorifies Him through the highest description present in his heart: his knowledge of Him, worship of Him, reverence for His greatness, and love for Him—in knowledge and excellence, veneration and honour. Whether he is judged to have faith or disbelief depends solely on what his heart has acquired of these things, as Allah, glorified be He, says:

“Allah will not hold you accountable for what is unintentional in your oaths, but He will hold you accountable for what your hearts have earned.”

And elsewhere:

“But He will hold you accountable for the oaths you have deliberately made binding.”

Thus, if the Lawgiver were to consider what the wording of an oath entails—its being bound by oaths and linked to it—without regard to the intention of swearing, this would entail that, if he broke it by something other than his oaths, its reality would cease, as in the saying:

“The adulterer is not a believer while committing adultery.”

And likewise, if he swears an oath concerning that