and what the Book and Sunnah indicate and the early generations of the Muslim community followed. One should affirm what one knows and refrain from speaking about what one does not know, neither pursuing that of which one has no knowledge nor saying anything about Allah without knowledge, for Allah Most High has forbidden all of this.

The prophetic hadiths mention the grounds upon which he invoked Allah Most High, as in his words, may Allah bless him and grant him peace:

“O Allah, I ask You by virtue of all praise belonging to You. There is no god but You, the Bestower of blessings, the Originator of the heavens and the earth. O Possessor of Majesty and Honour, O Ever-Living, O Sustainer of all!”

This was reported by Abū Dāwūd and others. Another wording reads:

“O Allah, I ask You by virtue of my testimony that You are Allah: there is no god but You, the One, the Eternal Refuge, who neither begets nor is born, and to whom none is equal.”

This was reported by Abū Dāwūd, al-Nasā’ī and Ibn Mājah.

The scholars agree that an oath sworn by anything other than Allah Most High—that is, by created beings or things—is not legally binding. Thus, if someone swears by the Kaaba, the angels, the prophets, any of the shaykhs, or kings, his oath is not binding. Such swearing is not prescribed; rather, it is forbidden, either as strictly unlawful or as merely disliked. The scholars hold two views on this, and the correct view is that it is strictly unlawful.

An authentic hadith relates that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“Whoever swears an oath should swear by Allah or remain silent.”

Al-Tirmidhī also reports that he, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“Whoever swears by anything other than Allah has associated a partner with Him.”

None of the early scholars held that an oath sworn by any prophet is binding, except in the case of our Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. Two opinions are reported from Ahmad concerning whether an oath sworn by him is binding. Some of Ahmad’s followers, such as Ibn Aqīl, extended this disagreement to all the other prophets, but this is a weak view. The underlying position that an oath sworn by the Prophet is binding is itself weak and anomalous, and none of the scholars has held it