involving deferment or unequal exchange, loans that yield a benefit, and the like. The scriptural text encompasses all of this. However, determining whether particular categories and individual cases fall within its scope requires supporting evidence. This is known as tahqīq al-manāt (ascertaining a ruling’s applicability to particular cases).

Likewise, Allah Most High says:

“O Prophet, when you divorce women, divorce them at the proper time for their waiting period.”

And He says:

“Divorced women shall wait for three periods.”

These and similar passages encompass every divorced woman by their wording and indicate that every divorce is revocable. For this reason, most scholars adopted this position and said that a man may not pronounce a threefold divorce upon his wife. They also indicate that divorce takes effect only as a revocable divorce, and that an irrevocable separation does not count as one of the three divorces. Thus, khulʿ (release from marriage in return for compensation) does not count as one of the three divorces. This is the position of Ibn ʿAbbās, of al-Shāfiʿī according to one of his opinions, and of Ahmad according to the well-known position reported from him. They disagree, however, over whether this requires that khulʿ involve neither the wording nor the intention of divorce, that it involve no wording of divorce alone, or that neither condition be required. These are three opinions.

Likewise, Allah Most High says:

“Allah has already prescribed for you a way to release yourselves from your oaths.”

And:

“That is the expiation for your oaths.”

This encompasses every oath taken by Muslims. Some scholars have therefore said: “Every oath taken by a Muslim is subject to expiation, as indicated by the Quran and the Sunnah.”

Others have said: “The text encompasses only oaths sworn by Allah’s name. Other oaths are not binding and entail no obligation.”

Still others have said: “Rather,