or else remain silent. As for invoking divorce—absolutely not; what fault is it of the woman that you should divorce her? That is a grave mistake.

Let me also say this: many of today’s muftis—myself included—issue the ruling that when someone utters such words merely as a threat or for emphasis, no divorce occurs; rather, he must offer the expiation for breaking an oath, for it takes the legal status of an oath. Yet I must also tell you that the majority of scholars—including the adherents of the four canonical schools—consider this an actual divorce, and that if a man fails to carry out what he has stipulated, his wife is thereby divorced. The matter is serious. Do not think that because some people give the lenient verdict the issue is truly easy; it is extremely serious.

The leading authorities of the four madhhabs—Maliki, Shafiʿi, Hanafi, and Hanbali—are unanimously of the view that such language effects a divorce: if you say, “If you slaughter, my wife is divorced,” and then you slaughter, your wife is divorced; and if you say, “If you do not slaughter, my wife is divorced,” and then you fail to slaughter, your wife is divorced. These four schools are not to be taken lightly, nor is the disagreement on this question insignificant. So do not underestimate the matter; it is very serious indeed.

Now imagine you return to your wife and that pronouncement happened to be the third and final divorce: according to the four schools you would be having intercourse with her unlawfully. According to those who regard it as an oath, you would make expiation and she would remain lawful to you. The issue is therefore exceedingly grave. We must utterly refrain from such oaths and not say, “If it happens, I will just go to Ibn Baz or Ibn ʿUthaymin or some other scholar and they will sort it out for me.” That will not benefit you, for there are senior scholars even greater than them who hold that the statement does constitute a divorce.