this is equivalent to saying, “Divorce shall be binding upon him—he will not do such-and-such,” or “Manumission or prohibition shall be binding upon him,” or “Walking to Mecca shall be binding upon him—he will not do such-and-such,” and similar expressions. In the conditional form, he affirms the act and places it first, putting its consequence last. When he places the act last and negates it, putting the consequence first, his intention regarding what he swears by is that it should not occur and that he should not violate its sanctity.

Likewise, if he says, “If I do such-and-such, then I am a disbeliever, a Jew, or a Christian,” this is like saying, “By Allah,” for such is its nature. Thus, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and his Companions considered the meaning of the expression and the speaker’s intention, whether it took a conditional form or the form of an oath. If his purpose was to lessen or prevent something, they treated it as an oath, even when expressed conditionally. If his purpose was to draw closer to Allah, they regarded him as making a vow, even when he used the form of an oath.

For this reason, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, treated someone making a vow as someone swearing an oath, since he commits himself to an act through a conditional expression. If the act vowed was something Allah had commanded, he instructed him to perform it; otherwise, he required him to make expiation for an oath. Likewise, he instructed someone who had sworn an oath to make expiation when he saw that another course was better than what he had sworn to do. In both cases, consideration was given to the intended objective.

If the intended act is something Allah loves and is pleased with, the person is instructed to perform it. This is the vow that must be fulfilled, even if expressed in the form of an oath. If another course is more beloved and pleasing to Allah, he is instructed to follow that more beloved and pleasing course, even if his undertaking took the form of a vow, and he is instructed to make expiation for an oath.

All of this serves to ensure obedience to Allah and His Messenger, and that all religion is devoted to Allah alone. Any oath, vow, contract, or condition that entails something contrary to the command of Allah and His Messenger is not binding. Rather, the command of Allah and His Messenger must take precedence over all of these.