Section Sixteen
Oaths, Covenants and Vows
Al-Yamin, Al-‘Ahd and An-Nathr
(A) Oaths
Making an oath is swearing by Allah, the Most High, on a certain thing; it takes two forms:
First: An oath relating to acts (yamīn al-Inshā’), which is swearing to do something or to abstain from doing something.
Second: An oath relating to information (yamīn al-Ikhbār), which is swearing that something happened or did not happen in the past or is happening or not happening in the present, so that to emphasise the truthfulness of the person providing this information.
An oath, of both types, is not done without words, so the intention alone is not sufficient. What is meant by words is swearing – using (the Arabic letters) ‘bā’’ or ‘tā’’ or others – by the name of God ‘Allah’ or another of His exalted names that are exclusive to Him, such as ‘ar-Rahmān’, ‘al-Khāliq’, ‘ar-Rāziq’ etc, or by the names that are not exclusive to Him but it is understood that it is He who is meant when used, such as ‘wel-Lethi nefsi biyadih’ (by the One in whose Hand is my soul), ‘rabb al-Arbāb’ (Lord of the lords) and the like. However, oaths using sacred entities other than Allah, such as the Prophet (sawa), his pure progeny (as), the Holy Qur’an, the sacred Ka’bah and others, do not secure a binding oath.
Each of the two types has specific rulings:
Part 1: Oaths relating to acts
1283. Conditions for the person taking the oath are:
1- The intention of doing the act or abstaining from the act mentioned in the oath.
2- Free will, so no oath is valid if forced.
3- He must be a mokallaf (a person who is obliged to perform his religious duties) and hence must pass the usual conditions of sanity and having reached the Islamic legal age, so there is no validity in the oath of a child or the insane.
1284. The conditions of the act that is the subject of the oath are:
First: It must be preferable/positive in itself, such as taking an oath to do a duty or a recommended thing, or to abstain from a forbidden act or an act that it is recommended to abstain from (makrūh), or any worldly act that is preferable/positive in itself. However, acts that are neutral in their nature, so that there is no preference (nothing essentially positive) in them, cannot be the subject of an oath, not to mention negative acts, such as if a person swears to verbally abuse or abandon someone or the like.
Second: The oath must relate to the person taking the oath, so if it relates to another, it has no effect, nor is it binding on the other person, such as if someone makes an oath that another person should eat his food, which is called ‘yamīn al-Monāshadah’ (the oath of asking).
Third: The person must be capable of carrying out the act, and that is at the time of the act, so if he swears to do something or to abstain from it which is possible then it becomes not possible at the time of carrying it out, the oath is invalidated.
Fourth: If the father does not object to the son’s oath, or the husband to the wife's, the oath is valid; so if the father objects to his son’s taking an oath or a husband his wife’s taking an oath, the oath is invalidated.
Fifth: It must not be made subject to God’s will as part of the intention, such as if someone swears then says ‘Inshā’ Allāh’ (God-willing); but if his intention was just for blessings, the oath is valid and binding.
1285. It is forbidden for the person to disobey the oath; disobedience occurs if he abstains from what he swore to do or by doing what he swore to abstain from doing, which is called ‘hinth al- Yemīn (breaking his promised oath). In this case, – in addition to the sin – atonement (kaffārah) is due, which is: freeing a slave, or feeding ten miskīns (a miskīn is someone who is leading a harder life than the poor) or clothing them, and if he cannot do that, he must fast for three consecutive days.
Part 2: Oaths relating to information
1286. It is not allowed to swear giving false information, such as if a person says that something did take place when it did not, or the reverse. Whoever does this is committing two sins: the first is lying and the second is that he made Allah a false witness.
1287. It is not allowed to take an oath unless with knowledge, so thinking (dhann) (not being certain) that something is true is not sufficient.
1288. It is allowed to make a false oath (commit a perjury) if obtaining a more important interest or preventing a more important evil depend on it, such as if stopping injustice from being inflicted on a Muslim, or his assets or honour even if he was able to resort to deliberate ambiguity (tawriyah).
(B) Vows
1289. A vow is: establishing a commitment to do something or abstain from doing it for Allah, the Most High. It is not established unless using the wording that declares it, such as saying: ‘Li-Llāhi ‘alayyeh nathron an āti bi-salāt al-Layl’ (I vow to Allah that I shall pray the night prayers) or ‘Li-Llāhi ‘alayyeh nathron an atrok al-Makrūh al-Folāni’ (I vow to Allah that I shall abstain from the makrūh so and so) or the like; so if the vow form does not contain the word ‘Allah’ or a word similar to it, the vow is not established, such as if a person only says: ‘Nathron ‘alayyah an af‘ala kethā’ (I vow to do so and so).
The conditions of the person establishing the vow and the subject of the vow – including the atonement – are the same as for the oath and its atonement. There are two differences however:
First: The husband’s permission is not conditional in the wife’s vow unless if it violates his rights and the vow was established when married; but if the vow was established before marriage, the husband has no right to stop his wife from fulfilling the vow even if it is violating his rights.
Second: The father’s permission is not conditional for the validity of the son’s vow; that said, if he forbids him from carrying out the vow that would result in the father fearing for his son, such as travelling to dangerous places, in this case the vow is invalidated.
(C) Covenants
1290. A covenant is: when a person establishes a covenant (promise) to Allah, the Most High, to do something or to abstain from doing it. This is not established unless carried out using the wording that declares it, such as saying: ‘‘Ahadto-Llāh an af‘ala kathā …’ (I have declared a covenant to Allah to do so and so …) or ‘O‘āhido-Llāh …’ (I declare a covenant to Allah …) and the like.
1291. The subject of the covenant must be preferable/positive, so it is not valid if it is neutral without any positive aspect, as in oaths.
1292. Covenants differ to oaths in two things:
First: There is no right for the father or the husband to invalidate the covenant.
Second: The atonement for breaking the covenant is feeding sixty miskīns, freeing a slave or fasting for two consecutive months.
1293. As a covenant is valid on something that is done and actual, such as establishing a covenant to Allah to offer a certain prayer in any case; it is also valid to make a covenant pending a particular matter, such as saying: ‘‘Ahedto-Llāh te‘ālā ‘alā an osalli ‘ishrīna rak‘aten in shofīto min maradi’ (I am declaring a covenant to Allah the Most High that I shall pray twenty rak’ahs if I am cured of my illness.)